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{{Short description|Malaysian businessman and scholar}}
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'''Chandran Nair''' is the founder and Chief-Executive-Officer of ], an independent think-tank based in Hong Kong.<ref>{{cite web|last=Romann|first=Alfred|title=A GIFTed man|url=http://www.chinadailyasia.com/news/2012-09/07/content_116334.html|work=China Daily|publisher=China Daily|accessdate=25 April 2014}}</ref> He is also Project Director for The Other Hundred, an international photography competition and photo-book project.<ref>{{cite news|title='The Other Hundred' - World's untold photo stories|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2013/10/10/world/asia/the-other-hundred-photos/|accessdate=23 April 2014|newspaper=CNN|date=October 14, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Nair|first=Chandran|title=The Other Hundred: The Non-Rich, Non-Celebrity List|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/28/the-other-hundred_n_4855720.html|work=The Huffington Post|accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref> '''Chandran Nair''' is a Malaysian businessman and scholar. He is the founder of ], an independent think-tank based in Hong Kong.<ref>{{cite web|last=Romann|first=Alfred|title=A GIFTed man|url=http://www.chinadailyasia.com/news/2012-09/07/content_116334.html|work=China Daily|publisher=China Daily|accessdate=25 April 2014}}</ref> He is also Project Director for The Other Hundred, an international photography competition and photo-book project.<ref>{{cite news|title='The Other Hundred' - World's untold photo stories|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2013/10/10/world/asia/the-other-hundred-photos/|accessdate=23 April 2014|newspaper=CNN|date=October 14, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Nair|first=Chandran|title=The Other Hundred: The Non-Rich, Non-Celebrity List|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/28/the-other-hundred_n_4855720.html|work=The Huffington Post|date=28 February 2014 |accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref>


==Background== ==Background==
Nair was born in Malaysia, the seventh of eight children. His parents were immigrants to Malaysia from India, and not well off, with all the children sharing a room. He studied ] in the UK, where he then worked for a few years. At 28, he joined the ] in ], building sanitation and water systems by day on a stipend and playing the saxophone in his free time in a band.<ref>, The Star (Malaysia), 21 May 2011</ref> He later earned a masters in environmental engineering from Bangkok. Nair was born in Malaysia, the seventh of eight children. His parents were immigrants to Malaysia from India, and not well off, with all the children sharing a room. He studied ] in the UK, where he then worked for a few years. At 28, he joined the ] in ], building sanitation and water systems by day on a stipend and playing the saxophone in his free time in a band.<ref>, The Star (Malaysia), 21 May 2011</ref> He later earned a master's degree in environmental engineering from Bangkok.


== Career == == Career ==


Nair is a member of the World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council for Sustainability<ref>{{cite web|title=Global Agenda Council for Sustainability 2012-2014|url=http://www.weforum.org/content/global-agenda-council-governance-sustainability-2012-2014|publisher=World Economic Forum|accessdate=25 April 2014}}</ref> and has argued at numerous forums including the WEF, APEC<ref>{{cite web|title=National Center for APEC|url=http://www.ncapec.org/media/photos/ceosummit/FutureFlash.html|publisher=APEC|accessdate=25 April 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140426232607/http://www.ncapec.org/media/photos/ceosummit/FutureFlash.html|archive-date=26 April 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> and OECD<ref>{{cite web|title=Speakers - OECD|url=http://www.oecd.org/forum/speakers/|publisher=OECD|accessdate=25 April 2014}}</ref> about the need for radical reform of the current economic model and strict limits on consumption.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.global-economic-symposium.org/symposium-2014/news/interview-with-chandran-nair|title=Global Economic Symposium|last=|first=|date=|work=Interview with Chandran Nair|publisher=Global Economic Symposium|url-status=live|archive-url=|archive-date=|accessdate=25 April 2014}}</ref> Nair was previously Chairman of ] (ERM), building the company to be the leading environmental consultancy in Asia Pacific. He left in March 2004.<ref>{{cite web|title=Chandran Nair|url=http://mbaalum.ust.hk/doc/Chandran_NAIR_Bio.pdf|accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref> Nair is a member of the ] Global Agenda Council for Sustainability<ref>{{cite web|title=Global Agenda Council for Sustainability 2012-2014|url=http://www.weforum.org/content/global-agenda-council-governance-sustainability-2012-2014|publisher=World Economic Forum|accessdate=25 April 2014}}</ref> and has argued at numerous forums including the WEF, APEC<ref>{{cite web|title=National Center for APEC|url=http://www.ncapec.org/media/photos/ceosummit/FutureFlash.html|publisher=APEC|accessdate=25 April 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140426232607/http://www.ncapec.org/media/photos/ceosummit/FutureFlash.html|archive-date=26 April 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> and OECD<ref>{{cite web|title=Speakers - OECD|url=http://www.oecd.org/forum/speakers/|publisher=OECD|accessdate=25 April 2014}}</ref> about the need for radical reform of the current economic model and strict limits on consumption.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.global-economic-symposium.org/symposium-2014/news/interview-with-chandran-nair|title=Global Economic Symposium|last=|first=|date=|work=Interview with Chandran Nair|publisher=Global Economic Symposium|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140426220758/http://www.global-economic-symposium.org/symposium-2014/news/interview-with-chandran-nair |archive-date=2014-04-26 |accessdate=25 April 2014}}</ref> Nair was previously Chairman of ] (ERM), building the company to be the leading environmental consultancy in Asia Pacific. He left in March 2004.<ref>{{cite web|title=Chandran Nair|url=http://mbaalum.ust.hk/doc/Chandran_NAIR_Bio.pdf|accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref>


Nair is a frequent contributor to various media outlets including ],<ref>{{cite web|last=Nair|first=Chandran|title=We should stop talking of an Asian century|url=http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/6c33db86-6781-11e1-b6a1-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2zfmKWI6b|work=The Financial Times|accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref> ],<ref>{{cite web|last=Nair|first=Chandran|title=Why is the west seen as the greatest threat? From Asia, the answer's clear|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/mar/06/us-greatest-threat-to-peace-asia-survey|work=The Guardian|accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref> ]<ref>{{cite web|last=Nair|first=Chandran|title=If Asia wants to prosper, don't listen to the IMF|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chandran-nair/asia-prosper-imf_b_4817711.html|work=The Huffington Post|accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref> ,].<ref>{{cite web|last=Nair|first=Chandran|title=Focusing Science on the Damage|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/16/opinion/focusing-science-on-the-damage-of-fossil-fuel.html?_r=0|work=The New York Times|accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref> and ]. <ref>{{Cite web|title=Chandran Nair|url=https://www.scmp.com/author/chandran-nair|access-date=2021-11-30|website=South China Morning Post|language=en}}</ref> He is the author of ''Consumptionomics: Asia's role in reshaping capitalism and saving the planet'', named one of the top ten books of 2011 by ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theglobalist.com/the-globalists-top-books-of-2011/|title=The Globalist's Top Books of 2011 - The Globalist|date=22 December 2011|publisher=}}</ref> In 2018 he published ''The Sustainable State: The Future of Government, Economy, and Society''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://global-inst.com/the-sustainable-state/|title=The Sustainable State|date=9 October 2018}}</ref> Nair is a frequent contributor to various media outlets including ],<ref>{{cite web|last=Nair|first=Chandran|title=We should stop talking of an Asian century|url=http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/6c33db86-6781-11e1-b6a1-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2zfmKWI6b|work=The Financial Times|accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref> ],<ref>{{cite web|last=Nair|first=Chandran|title=Why is the west seen as the greatest threat? From Asia, the answer's clear|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/mar/06/us-greatest-threat-to-peace-asia-survey|work=The Guardian|date=6 March 2014 |accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref> ],<ref>{{cite web|last=Nair|first=Chandran|title=If Asia wants to prosper, don't listen to the IMF|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chandran-nair/asia-prosper-imf_b_4817711.html|work=The Huffington Post|date=19 February 2014 |accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref> ].<ref>{{cite news|last=Nair|first=Chandran|title=Focusing Science on the Damage|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/16/opinion/focusing-science-on-the-damage-of-fossil-fuel.html?_r=0|work=The New York Times|date=15 July 2012 |accessdate=23 April 2014}}</ref> and ].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Chandran Nair|url=https://www.scmp.com/author/chandran-nair|access-date=2021-11-30|website=South China Morning Post|language=en}}</ref> He is the author of ''Consumptionomics: Asia's role in reshaping capitalism and saving the planet'', named one of the top ten books of 2011 by ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theglobalist.com/the-globalists-top-books-of-2011/|title=The Globalist's Top Books of 2011 - The Globalist|date=22 December 2011|publisher=}}</ref> In 2018 he published ''The Sustainable State: The Future of Government, Economy, and Society''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://global-inst.com/the-sustainable-state/|title=The Sustainable State|date=9 October 2018}}</ref>


== Publications== == Controversy ==
On August 26, 2021, Nair wrote an op-ed in ''Time'' magazine accusing ] of using her "]" to avoid being quarantined when arriving in Hong Kong to film the ] series '']''. Hong Kong's ] (CEDB) responded in a press statement that Kidman received a quarantine exemption for the purpose of performing designated professional work and necessary operation of Hong Kong's economy,<ref name="hongkongfp_20210819_nicole">{{Cite web|last=Kwan|first=Rhoda|date=August 19, 2021|title=Hong Kong exempts actor Nicole Kidman from Covid quarantine as Amazon's 'tone-deaf' expat TV shows see backlash|url=https://hongkongfp.com/2021/08/19/hong-kong-exempts-actor-nicole-kidman-from-covid-quarantine-as-amazons-tone-deaf-expat-tv-shows-see-backlash/|website=Hong Kong Free Press}}</ref> and a CEDB permanent secretary wrote a letter to the editor of ''Time'' stating that Nair's claim was "not only just misplaced but absurd".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Letters to Editors/Op-ed - Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, San Francisco|url=https://www.hketony.gov.hk/letters-to-editors.html|url-status=live|access-date=2021-12-03|website=www.hketony.gov.hk|quote="Chandran Nair’s article “Quarantine, What Quarantine? Nicole Kidman, Expats and White Privilege” (posted on August 26) regarding a recent decision to provide a quarantine exemption to personnel involved in the production of a TV series contains assertions that are groundless and speculative."|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211203053134/https://www.hketony.gov.hk/letters-to-editors.html |archive-date=2021-12-03 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Letter to TIME|url=https://www.hketony.gov.hk/letters/083121.pdf|url-status=live|access-date=2021-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211203053132/https://www.hketony.gov.hk/letters/083121.pdf |archive-date=2021-12-03 }}</ref>

=== ''Consumptionomics'' ===
In 2012, Nair published his first book, ''Consumptionomics''.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Nair|first=Chandran|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/768443526|title=Consumptionomics : Asia's Role in Reshaping Capitalism and Saving the Planet|date=2011|publisher=Infinite Ideas Limited|isbn=1-906821-49-6|location=Oxford|oclc=768443526}}</ref> In ''Consumptionomics'', he advocates that the Western model of consumption-led economic growth cannot be replicated in Asia, that current and future leaders must find alternatives to safeguard our future. He argues that resource constraints will require a realignment of economic policy to avoid catastrophic outcomes arising from the relentless promotion of a consumption-led growth model in the world’s most populous regions. He calls for curbs on some forms of consumption and for resources to be re-priced to reflect the true costs to society. He offers a new paradigm for governments, business leaders and academics to consider.

=== ''The Sustainable State: The Future of Government, Economy, and Society'' ===
His second book, ''The Sustainable State: The Future of Government, Economy, and Society'', was published in 2018, by Berrett-Koehler.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Nair|first=Chandran|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1057309672|title=The sustainable state : the future of government, economy, and society|date=2018|isbn=978-1-5230-9518-6|edition=First edition|location=Oakland, CA|oclc=1057309672}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|title=Google|url=https://www.google.com/logos/doodles/2021/seasonal-holidays-2021-6753651837109324-2xa.gif|language=en|access-date=2021-12-20}}</ref> In the ''Sustainable State,'' he shows that the market-dominated model followed by the industrialized West is simply not scalable. The United States alone, with less than 5 percent of the world's population, consumes nearly a quarter of its resources. If countries in Asia, where 60 percent of the world's population lives, try to follow the Western lead, the results will be calamitous.

Instead, he argues that development must be directed by a state that is willing and able to intervene in the economy. Corporations, which by design demand ever-expanding consumption, need to be directed toward meeting societal needs or otherwise restrained, not unleashed. Development has to be oriented toward the greatest good--clean drinking water for the many has to take precedence over swimming pools for the few. Nair provides three compelling case studies demonstrating the benefits of such strong state governance and the failings of weak state governance.

This will mean rethinking the meaning of concepts like "prosperity," "freedom," and "rights" and whether democracy is always the best way to ensure responsive government--as he writes, "A democracy that cannot work to improve the life of its citizens is not better than a nondemocracy that can actually improve quality of life." Many people will find these to be challenging ideas, but what he offers is a model suited to the realities of the developing world, not the assumptions of the dominant culture.

=== ''Dismantling Global White Privilege: Equity for a Post-Western World'' ===
His upcoming book, ''Dismantling Global White Privilege: Equity for a Post-Western World'' argues that white privilege is the best way to understand how oppression and dominance by Western cultures operates.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Nair|first=Chandran|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1262668860|title=Dismantling global white privilege : equity for a post-Western world|date=2022|isbn=978-1-5230-0002-9|edition=First edition|location=Oakland, CA|oclc=1262668860}}</ref> Touching on history, business, environment, entertainment, media fashion, education, and more, he analyzes how it has shaped, repressed, and destroyed local cultures to seek and preserve white economic power.

He identifies white privilege as the driving force behind globalization, being constantly upheld and reproduced by a global superstructure that perpetuates widespread white economic and military dominance. This book provides a middle ground between brief media mentions and the dense rhetoric of racial politics so readers can develop a new worldview around dismantling white privilege at the global scale.


==References== ==References==
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Malaysian businessman and scholar
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Chandran Nair at the World Economic Forum at Davos 2012

Chandran Nair is a Malaysian businessman and scholar. He is the founder of The Global Institute for Tomorrow, an independent think-tank based in Hong Kong. He is also Project Director for The Other Hundred, an international photography competition and photo-book project.

Background

Nair was born in Malaysia, the seventh of eight children. His parents were immigrants to Malaysia from India, and not well off, with all the children sharing a room. He studied chemical engineering in the UK, where he then worked for a few years. At 28, he joined the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, building sanitation and water systems by day on a stipend and playing the saxophone in his free time in a band. He later earned a master's degree in environmental engineering from Bangkok.

Career

Nair is a member of the World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council for Sustainability and has argued at numerous forums including the WEF, APEC and OECD about the need for radical reform of the current economic model and strict limits on consumption. Nair was previously Chairman of Environmental Resources Management (ERM), building the company to be the leading environmental consultancy in Asia Pacific. He left in March 2004.

Nair is a frequent contributor to various media outlets including The Financial Times, The Guardian, The Huffington Post, The New York Times. and South China Morning Post. He is the author of Consumptionomics: Asia's role in reshaping capitalism and saving the planet, named one of the top ten books of 2011 by The Globalist. In 2018 he published The Sustainable State: The Future of Government, Economy, and Society.

Controversy

On August 26, 2021, Nair wrote an op-ed in Time magazine accusing Nicole Kidman of using her "White Privilege" to avoid being quarantined when arriving in Hong Kong to film the Amazon Prime Video series Expats. Hong Kong's Commerce and Economic Development Bureau (CEDB) responded in a press statement that Kidman received a quarantine exemption for the purpose of performing designated professional work and necessary operation of Hong Kong's economy, and a CEDB permanent secretary wrote a letter to the editor of Time stating that Nair's claim was "not only just misplaced but absurd".

References

  1. Romann, Alfred. "A GIFTed man". China Daily. China Daily. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  2. "'The Other Hundred' - World's untold photo stories". CNN. October 14, 2013. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  3. Nair, Chandran (28 February 2014). "The Other Hundred: The Non-Rich, Non-Celebrity List". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  4. Up close & personal with Founder of Gift and author Chandran Nair, The Star (Malaysia), 21 May 2011
  5. "Global Agenda Council for Sustainability 2012-2014". World Economic Forum. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  6. "National Center for APEC". APEC. Archived from the original on 26 April 2014. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  7. "Speakers - OECD". OECD. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  8. "Global Economic Symposium". Interview with Chandran Nair. Global Economic Symposium. Archived from the original on 2014-04-26. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  9. "Chandran Nair" (PDF). Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  10. Nair, Chandran. "We should stop talking of an Asian century". The Financial Times. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  11. Nair, Chandran (6 March 2014). "Why is the west seen as the greatest threat? From Asia, the answer's clear". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  12. Nair, Chandran (19 February 2014). "If Asia wants to prosper, don't listen to the IMF". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  13. Nair, Chandran (15 July 2012). "Focusing Science on the Damage". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  14. "Chandran Nair". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 2021-11-30.
  15. "The Globalist's Top Books of 2011 - The Globalist". 22 December 2011.
  16. "The Sustainable State". 9 October 2018.
  17. Kwan, Rhoda (August 19, 2021). "Hong Kong exempts actor Nicole Kidman from Covid quarantine as Amazon's 'tone-deaf' expat TV shows see backlash". Hong Kong Free Press.
  18. "Letters to Editors/Op-ed - Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, San Francisco". www.hketony.gov.hk. Archived from the original on 2021-12-03. Retrieved 2021-12-03. Chandran Nair's article "Quarantine, What Quarantine? Nicole Kidman, Expats and White Privilege" (posted on August 26) regarding a recent decision to provide a quarantine exemption to personnel involved in the production of a TV series contains assertions that are groundless and speculative.
  19. "Letter to TIME" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-12-03. Retrieved 2021-12-03.
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