Michael Meyer, Dean of the Graduate School of Media and Communications at Aga Khan University in Nairobi. (image credit: AKU-GSMC)
“We live in an era of accelerating change and unprecedented complexity. Organisational strategies today will be obsolete if not self-defeating tomorrow.
Success requires agile leadership and intelligent communication.
That is why we are proud to offer an extraordinary opportunity to sharpen two of the most vital skills demanded by these challenging times.”
– Michael Meyer, Founding Dean,
Graduate School of Media and Communications,
Aga Khan University
By Capital Campus Published July 27, 2017
Aga Khan and Harvard universities have partnered to transform the management of top organizations in Africa by equipping senior executives with skills to help them adapt to the fast changing world.
The two universities have designed a pioneering suite of courses aimed at sharpening the leadership and communication skills of senior managers to deal with current complexities and accelerating change in the 21st Century.
The program, Transforming Leadership for 21st Century Africa, will be hosted in Nairobi by the Aga Khan University Graduate School of Media and Communications (GSMC) for senior leaders in business, government, civil society, and media.
The courses include The Voice of Leadership: Inspiration, Influence, and Impact, to be delivered by GSMC to empower leaders to speak and act with clarity, vision, and authenticity. The second course in the program, Adaptive Leadership for Africa: Chaos, Complexity, and Courage, will be delivered by the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University (HKS), Executive Education. As the single-most popular course at the Kennedy School, it aims to help executives exercise leadership amid uncertainty with skill, purpose, and effectiveness.
“The courses are designed to offer senior leaders a unique learning experience that will change the way they think about leadership and communicate in their professional and personal lives.
The first week-long course begins in November, is followed by a second-week module in February. Participants will work with Aga Khan Unversity and John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University mentors on their own “adaptive challenge
To qualify for the course, one needs to be a proven, or emerging senior leader with a minimum of a ten-year experience, and “be in a position that involves leading others and making mission-critical decisions.”
– Michael Meyer, Founding Dean,
Graduate School of Media and Communications,
Aga Khan University
The programme also accepts those who have personal leadership challenges that they wish to address as well as those looking for the opportunity “to reflect, to connect with oneself and to re-examine their leadership in a global context”.
Upon successful completion of Transforming Leadership for 21 Century Africa, participants will be awarded the certificate for Adaptive Leadership for Africa: Chaos Complexity and Courage by the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, Executive Education, and the certificate for The Voice of Leadership: Inspiration, Influence and Impact by the Aga Khan University Graduate School of Media and Communications. Upon graduation, the leaders will become part of a global network of leaders from a professionally and geographically diverse class and faculty.
Executives wishing to enroll can apply by logging on to http://akumedia.aku.edu/programmes. The deadline for applications is October 6th, 2017.
Today, there are over 3,500 AKU alumni in 49 countries. Here is what they share on how their education has helped them make a difference. Learn more about the survey: http://ow.ly/MXaD30eKknc
Creative Collaborations with Harvard University
Current
Based at Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture (AKPIA) is dedicated to the study of Islamic art and architecture, urbanism, landscape design, and conservation – and the application of that knowledge to contemporary design projects.
The goals of the program are to improve the teaching of Islamic art and architecture – to promote excellence in advanced research – to enhance the understanding of Islamic architecture, urbanism, and visual culture in light of contemporary theoretical, historical, critical, and developmental issues – and to increase the visibility of Islamic cultural heritage in the modern Muslim world. Established in 1979, AKPIA is supported by an endowment from His Highness the Aga Khan. AKPIA’s faculty, students, and alumni have played a substantial role in advancing the practice, analysis, and understanding of Islamic architecture as a discipline and cultural force.
Harvard Study Abroad Program in Kenya: In collaboration with Aga Khan University, East Africa, the Kenya program was offered in the summer of 2012. It had students enrolled alongside local students at Aga Khan University and participated in hands-on fieldwork concerning rural resilience and sustainability. Other aspects included Swahili training and a course on East Africa in the global world.
During the Aga Khan University genesis, its academic programs have benefited from collaborations with distinguished universities including Harvard in USA, McGill, McMaster and Toronto in Canada, as well as Oxford in the UK.
AKU’s Global Partnerships
Australia
Partner
Areas of Collaboration
Monash University
– Tourism and Leisure
University of New Castle
– Examination Board
– Faculty of Health Sciences
University of New South Wales
- Extractive Industries
University of Sydney
- Health Sciences
– Extractive Industries
Canada
Partner
Areas of Collaboration
British Columbia Institute of Technology
– Allied Health
– Nursing
Justice Institute of British Columbia
- Disaster Management and Preparedness
– Trauma and Risk
McMaster University
- Nursing
Quest University
- Faculty of Arts and Sciences
Simon Fraser University
- Muslim Cultures Summer Programme
University of Alberta
- Math and Science Literacy and Teacher Training
– Agriculture, Life and Environmental Sciences
– Regenerative Stem Cell Research
University of British Columbia
– Cardiac Sciences
– Nursing
– Faculty of Arts and Sciences
University of Calgary
– Family Medicine
– Education
University of Toronto
- Human Development (Maternal and Child Health and ECD)
University of Ottawa
- Ophthalmology
University of Victoria
- Math Literacy
– Dental Hygiene and Dentistry
University of Waterloo
– Co-operative Programme
Western University (University of Western Ontario)
- Teaching and Learning Case Management
– Comparative Religions
Portugal
Partner
Areas of Collaboration
Catholic University of Portugal
– World of the Indian Ocean – Archives
– Nursing
– Early Childhood Development
Singapore
Partner
Areas of Collaboration
Nanyang Technological University
– Teacher Training
– Faculty of Health Sciences
– Research
Sweden
Partner
Areas of Collaboration
Karolinska Institute
– Capacity Development
– Faculty of Health Sciences
– Research
Switzerland
Partner
Areas of Collaboration
University of Geneva
– Governance
– Global Health
UK
Partner
Areas of Collaboration
Cambridge University
- Education
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
- Research in Health Sciences
Oxford University
– Educational Research
– Teacher Training
USA
Partner
Areas of Collaboration
Brown University
– Faculty of Arts and Sciences
Columbia University
– Media Communications
Cornell University
– Faculty of Arts and Sciences
Johns Hopkins University
– Hospitalist Services
– Transplantation Programme
– Research in Health Sciences
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
– Innovation in the Field
– Economics and Engineering, STEM
Northwestern University
- Media and Communications
– Leisure and Tourism
Based at Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture (AKPIA) is dedicated to the study of Islamic art and architecture, urbanism, landscape design, and conservation – and the application of that knowledge to contemporary design projects.
Ismailimail 