Australians are a different pedigree…Mate!!!
“Anywhere else it would be a cause of embarassment, if not a modicum of shame,” writes The Times. “But to a country where a convict ancestry gives you aristocratic status, the revelation that the Australian Prime Minister is descended from not just one felon but six is a source of delight.
“Kevin Rudd has already boasted of having convicts on both sides of his family – ‘an absolute pedigree’ as he has called it. But there’s no higher pedigree than counting in your ancestry a thief, a forger and a highway robber – aged 11.
“About 160,000 convicts were deported from Britain to Australia between 1788 and 1868, often for relatively minor offences, and their role in the development of the country is now embraced with a rebellious pride. It is estimated that more than two million Australians are able to boast of at least one convict ancestor – and it is such a badge of honour that not having a convict in the family is now a source of embarassment.”
(Photo above shows Kevin Rudd with the book that details his criminal lineage.)
Swaraaj Chauhan describes his two-decade-long stint as a full-time journalist as eventful, purposeful, and full of joy and excitement. In 1993 he could foresee a different work culture appearing on the horizon, and decided to devote full time to teaching journalism (also, partly, with a desire to give back to the community from where he had enriched himself so much.)
Alongside, he worked for about a year in 1993 for the US State Department’s SPAN magazine, a nearly five-decade-old art and culture monthly magazine promoting US-India relations. It gave him an excellent opportunity to learn about things American, plus the pleasure of playing tennis in the lavish American embassy compound in the heart of New Delhi.
In !995 he joined WWF-India as a full-time media and environment education consultant and worked there for five years travelling a great deal, including to Husum in Germany as a part of the international team to formulate WWF’s Eco-tourism policy.
He taught journalism to honors students in a college affiliated to the University of Delhi, as also at the prestigious Indian Institute of Mass Communication where he lectured on “Development Journalism” to mid-career journalists/Information officers from the SAARC, African, East European and Latin American countries, for eight years.
In 2004 the BBC World Service Trust (BBC WST) selected him as a Trainer/Mentor for India under a European Union project. In 2008/09 He completed another European Union-funded project for the BBC WST related to Disaster Management and media coverage in two eastern States in India — West Bengal and Orissa.
Last year, he spent a couple of months in Australia and enjoyed trekking, and also taught for a while at the University of South Australia.
Recently, he was appointed as a Member of the Board of Studies at Chitkara University in Chandigarh, a beautiful city in North India designed by the famous Swiss/French architect Le Corbusier. He also teaches undergraduate and postgraduate students there.
He loves trekking, especially in the hills, and never misses an opportunity to play a game of tennis. The Western and Indian classical music are always within his reach for instant relaxation.
And last, but not least, is his firm belief in the power of the positive thought to heal oneself and others.