Scholars’ Blog
This Blog is edited and curated by Weidenfeld-Hoffmann Trust Scholars
This House Believes Social Media Platform Has No Right To Ban Politicians - 2021 Scholar Debate
Herein lies the power of a successful debate. Both teams developed arguments in good faith and thoughtfully responded to each other. My position on this issue is still the same, but the opposition successfully shook my intellectual grounding.
What Does it Take To Change One’s Mind?
The topic was both timely and controversial. It raised big picture questions around the right to free speech, the role of governments, and the nature of private companies.
Debating Celebrates Humanity
Debating reveals a fundamental fact that is frequently ignored: we all have something in common; I don’t mean shared opinions, but shared concerns.
How to Say No, and Still Win a Negotiation - Negotiation Skills Workshop
Many of us, women especially, unconsciously tend to undervalue our merits. The workshop helped us recognize where we might be selling ourselves short, and how we can address the weaknesses in our negotiation styles.
A Reflection On Globalism and Community - Moral Philosophy Seminar
In February, the WHT scholars of 2020-21 participated in our fourth Moral Philosophy Seminar, on Globalism and Community. With a cohort drawing from 20 countries across four continents, now in a single city of learning, this was always going to be an interesting session.
Musings on Practicing Leadership with Care
As young leaders charting new paths and bringing into life new visions for our countries, I wonder what it means to take a leaf out of these women’s pages and dare to become caring leaders.
Entrepreneurs are Problem Solvers
In the few months I’ve been here at Oxford, I feel like I’ve experienced 5 years' worth of experiences. I have come to realized that to tackle big scale problems, I do need an entrepreneurial mindset. This does not necessarily mean ideating and running a business.
Learning the ‘How’ of Enterprises
Some ideas have been discarded and others have kept their forms but changed in substance. These metamorphoses are messy, inescapable and necessary, yet that is what makes entrepreneurship so effective and beautiful. It is in the iterative process that ideas are refined and polished and take the form that best fits the needs people have.
Listening and changing the world — Moral Philosophy Seminar
The WHT Leadership Programme, from its very beginning, builds on diversity and underscores a simple but powerful skill to tackle the complexities of the world: empathetic listening
Matriculation Day — Officially Welcome to the University of Oxford!
We have come to Oxford from all around the world to pursue our dreams; to learn from world-renowned scholars, from our classmates and from each other.
Our Baggage to Oxford — Blog Series
We asked our scholars to go back to the moment they packed their luggage in preparation for their journey to Oxford. But instead of clothes and books, we asked them to think about the stories, people, memories, hopes, and all immaterial things that they would put inside.
First Steps — Reflections from Week 0
Stepping into the unknown is an equally thrilling and frightful endeavour. It may involve leaving the creature comforts of a well-paying job, the satisfaction of healthy relationships and a strong and close network of support in the place we call home. Be that as it may, once we’ve made the decision to embark on this journey, there is simply no room for hesitation.