Vishakha N. Desai
President & Chief Executive of Asia Society

"We have chosen Vishakha Desai because she is the best possible leader for the next generation of the Asia Society," said, Richard C. Holbrooke, Chairman of the Asia Society Board of Trustees, while announcing Vishakha N. Desai's selection to be the Society's sixth president in 2004. "Dr. Desai's appointment as president represents a series of exhilarating firsts. Through her thirteen years of personal and professional dedication to our organization, she brings an unprecedented understanding of arts and culture in the broader social, political, and economic context. Dr. Desai's strengths and vision combined make her the ideal leader for this important and dynamic organization," he summed up. John Thornton, head of the search committee and Asia Society trustee commented, "No one is better qualified to succeed Nick Platt and lead the Asia Society. The trustees of the Society have offered their unanimous support for this exciting decision by the committee." Ms. Desai won the job over candidates who included an American ambassador and a university president, Mr. Holbrooke aaded.

In the past three years since she assumed the role of president and chief executive of Asia Society, Vaishaka Desai has proved to be the "best possible president" and "the ideal leader" in every possible way in strengthening Asia Society as "the leading global and pan-Asian organization working to strengthen relationships and promote understanding among the people, leaders and institutions of the United States and Asia." From her office in New York City, she sets the directions for the Society's diverse set of programs—in the areas of policy, business, arts, culture and education—throughout the Society's network of centers in the U.S. and in Asia.

During an exclusive interview with this writer, Desai shared with this writer, her upbringing, mentors, achievements, dreams, and goals in life. Vishakha Desai applied for a fellowship as part of an exchange program in 1967 to spend a high school year in the United States. Desai says she was fortunate to have been chosen from among 3,500 kids who had applied in India at the time. Dr. Desai earned a bachelor's degree from Bombay University, but returned to the United States to earn both masters and doctoral degrees from the University of Michigan.

Dr. Desai has had a long and distinguished career at Asia Society, where she began in 1990, and most recently served as Senior Vice President and Director of the Museum and Cultural Programs. As Museum Director, Dr. Desai built an international reputation for introducing contemporary Asian art to a broad audience and using it to illuminate historical trends and their influence on the development of society. She managed the Society’s $40 million renovation of its New York City headquarters in 2001.

Dr. Desai has also been at the forefront of integrating Asian American issues into the Society's public programs, which encompass a wide array of creative, social, political, and business topics. "I have been fortunate to be born in India and live in the United States. My own multicultural background helps me to see and recognize diverse points of view, and the multiculturality of issues," she said.

As part of the Asia Society's growing engagement on environment-related issues, Vishakha N. Desai said, "Asia Society continues to chart new directions in addressing the critical issues and trends in Asia and the U.S.-Asian relationship. We provide a more nuanced, subtle, three-dimensional understanding of the world because of the fact that we combine culture, commerce and foreign affairs and there's no other institution that does that," Dr. Desai added. "Our challenge is that we do very well among decision makers, businesses, cultural leaders, we need to make a bigger difference to a bigger group of people. That means broader strategies to connect to more people."

Dr. Desai believes, "The age of Asia is upon us, and we are the main actors in this new age. And this centrality of Asia is not a new phenomenon, but has been visible since the 15 th century. And today, China and India, two ancient and flourishing civilizations face an enormously bright future, with their young men and women beginning to take central stage." By the year 2050 more than 50% of the world's population will come from India and China. If we include Japan, then by 2050 these three together would account for more than 50% of the world's GDP. Mutual interdependence between China and the rest of the world, Dr Desai said, will continue in the days to come. "We Asians inhabit the world's largest continent, with the world's largest population and its fastest-growing economies. We have a rich history and ancient cultures. Yet our role in international affairs is far less than it could, or should be," she commented.

"India's growth has profound implications for the Asia-Pacific region and the world," said Dr. Desai. "We should not discount the growing leadership role of Indian Americans. Many people know that Indian Americans as a group have the highest per capita income and highest per capita education of any ethnic group in the United States. As India rises and Indian Americans come into their own these two things together are creating an important force in the world," she added.

The scholar and social thinker cautioned, "The Non Resident Indians, especially, the second and third generation Indian Americans, need to be vigilant of the many things in life we still need to achieve. We must not develop a proud attitude or thinking that we know everything, and are not open to change and have the willingness to learn from others." Her suggestion to NRIs is to reflect on "how we as a community and as individuals can make a positive change in American society and in the global arena by being responsible players." She appealed to them to support and encourage the efforts of the nonprofit sector here in the US and back in India, and not be limited by achieving "economic and academic success alone."

"India's growth has profound implications for the Asia-Pacific region and the world,"

Dr. Desai conceptualized and presided over the organization's fiftieth anniversary celebrations in 2006, marked by high-profile activities and expansive fundraising initiatives. As a result of these efforts, the Society is expanding the scope and scale of its activities, particularly in Asia, including a new India Centre in Mumbai, which opened in 2006, a recently announced new Korea Center in Seoul, and planned multi-million-dollar physical facilities in Hong Kong and Houston.

A scholar of classical Indian art, Dr. Desai has built an international reputation for introducing contemporary Asian art to a broad audience and using it to illuminate historical trends and their influence in the development of today's society. A regular commentator in the news media, she frequently addresses business and foreign policy audiences on topics ranging from the evolution of U.S. engagement in Asia to the role of culture in changing Asian societies. Her biggest contribution has been "the ability to inform and influence the thinking process of policy makers."

Prior to joining the Asia Society in 1990, Dr. Desai was a curator at The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. She also taught at the University of Massachusetts, Boston University, Columbia University, and Williams College. Dr. Desai serves on the boards of The Brookings Institution, Citizens Committee for New York City, Asian University for Women, and the New York City Advisory Commission for Cultural Affairs.

The recipient of numerous grants and fellowships, Dr. Desai was awarded an honorary doctorate from Susquehanna University in 1996. She was also awarded the Asian American of the Year Award by the University of Massachusetts, and by Asian Americans for Equality, and is a recipient of the National Institute of Social Sciences Gold Medal. Women in Development (WID), New York presented its annual Woman of Achievement Award to Dr. Vishakha N. Desai in 2007 for "her extraordinary accomplishments in organizational leadership and her contributions to New York via her transformational work with the Society."

Dr. Desai has published extensively on traditional Indian and contemporary Asian art. Her publications include catalogues of exhibitions she has organized, such as Gods, Guardians and Lovers: Temple Sculpture from North India A.D. 700-1200, and Life at Court: Art for India's Rulers, 16th-19th Centuries, as well as articles articulating the need for the study of contemporary Asian art.

Dr. Desai has served in a leadership capacity for many organizations. She serves on the boards of The Brookings Institution, Citizens Committee for New York City, Asian University for Women, and the New York City Advisory Commission for Cultural Affairs. She served as the President of the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD) in 1998-99, and was on the Board from 1995-2000. She has also served on the Boards of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, LEAP (Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics), the South Asian Council of the Association of Asian Studies, the College Art Association, ArtTable, and the Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities.

Born and raised in a family where both her parents participated in the freedom movement in India and were inspired by the life and message of Gandhiji, Desai said, "I come from a family that does not brag about success, but about setting up goals and then working hard to achieve them." And she gives credit to her parents who instilled in her, even as a child, to set lofty goals and to lead a life of integrity. "You are in the world to make a difference for the world," Dr. Desai said, stating that her parents gave her an "incredible world vision." Dr. Desai also gives credit to her husband, Robert B. Oxnam, a China scholar who was Asia Society's President from 1981 to 1992, as one "who partners with me in reflecting on the global issues, enabling me to look at them from a broader perspective." And she adds, "I always learn from the people I come across in life."

"Dr. Desai is one of the great scholars of Indian art, as well as a dynamic public speaker," said Donald A. Wood, Ph.D., Chief Curator, and the Virginia and William M. Spencer III Curator of Asian Art. Virginia Strull, President of WID, New York and President of Strull Consulting, and Principal of S&S Partners, said, "Her work is inspiring and she serves as a positive role model for our members."

- Ajay Ghosh