Baha'i Chair for Studies in Development (BCHAIR)

The Bahá’í Chair for Studies in Development is an endowed Chair at Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, Indore established to promote interdisciplinary research and scholarship on social and economic development based on a vision that regards enduring prosperity as an outcome of material and spiritual progress. In seeking to advance knowledge on a conception of development that encompasses material, social and spiritual well-being, the Chair draws upon insights from the social sciences as well as systematic learning on the application of spiritual principles such as the oneness of humankind, justice, equality of women and men and environmental stewardship in the pursuit of development. The Chair carries out research, offers courses and creates fora for sharing of ideas and learning on themes related to development.

Over the past couple of years, the Chair has ventured into developing innovative educational programs that bring interdisciplinary perspectives on pressing developmental issues such as responding to the environmental crisis and fostering collective agency in communities for development initiatives. It has established collaborative relationships with distinguished thinkers and practitioners in the field of development both within India and internationally. The Chair has initiated research and discourse on some of the most cutting-edge concerns in the field of development such as the social and economic implications of building a caring society and facilitating endogenous development by bringing scientific knowledge into conversation with a population’s local knowledge, traditional ways of knowing and spiritual worldview in the conception and implementation of development.

HoD details - Dr. Arash Fazli is currently serving as the Head of the Bahá’í Chair for Studies in Development at Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya (DAVV), Indore. With more than 17 years of teaching and research experience, Dr. Fazli has been actively contributing to the academic discourse on development from an interdisciplinary perspective with a focus on the centrality of values to achieving just, unifying and sustainable approaches to collective prosperity.

Dr. Fazli has authored 4 books, edited 3 academic volumes, authored 4 chapters in academic volumes and authored five papers in reputed national and international journals. Dr. Fazli has lectured widely in India and internationally on development including at fora organized by the United Nations and at different prestigious global universities.

Under his leadership, the Chair has emerged as a unique academic space offering educational programs, research and a forum for the exchange of ideas on the imperative of building a value-based framework for development.

Contact Details:-
  0731-2527080
  info@bahaichairdavv.org
Head of the Department Details:-
Qualification -
B.A. (Sociology) Osmania University, Hyderabad, 1997
M.A. (English Literature) Osmania University, Hyderabad, 1999
B.C.J. (Communication and Journalism) Osmania University, 2000 (Gold medalist)
Ph.D. (English Literature – Cultural Studies), Osmania University, Hyderabad, 2008
Experience -
Sub-Editor (The Hindu, Hyderabad)
Editorial Coordinator ( The Times of India group, Hyderabad)
Resident Correspondent (Technology Media Group, Bangalore)
Principal Researcher (Institute for Studies in Global Prosperity, USA)
Assistant Professor, Bahá’í Chair for Studies in Development, DAVV (2017 – present)
Courses Offered
S.No. Programme
1 Certificate course on Environmental Ethics
2 Certificate course on Knowledge, Participation and Development