US university prescribes Kul Chandra Gautam’s memoir as a textbook

Kathmandu / Dec 30: A leading American business school, the Bentley University at Waltham, Massachusetts has decided to use Kul Chandra Gautam’s memoir: “Global Citizen from Gulmi: My Journey from the Hills of Nepal to the Halls of the United Nations” as a reference book in a Graduate course on Global Studies for its Masters in Business curriculum, Nepalaya publication said in a statement.

Commenting on this, Professor Donald McNemar, a Senior Lecturer on Global Studies at Bentley remarked that Gautam’s autobiography was rich in details and gave a wonderful sense of how the UN system works and the life of an international civil servant.

“It is a great portrait of the UN told through your personal journey,” said the Professor, who found the book so interesting and informative that he decided to use it in his course on the United Nations. Bentley University’s business school is dedicated to preparing a new kind of business leader with deep technical skills, a broad global perspective and high ethical standards required to make a difference in an ever-changing world,” as stated in the statement.

Hearing this news, author Gautam recalled his college life at Dartmouth College during 1968-71 and remembered a paragraph from his book where he writes, “One of the most interesting courses I took was with an inspiring professor, Donald McNemar, on international law, which also dealt with the workings of the United Nations and other international organizations. This planted the idea in my mind that someday I might consider working for the UN.”

Rest, as they say, is history. Gautam went on to join the UN service where he served for over 3 decades before retiring as the Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF and Assistant Secretary General of the UN, according to the statement.

“It is a great honour for me to hear about this from the same professor who left a lasting impression in my life and helped shape my career”, comments author Kul Chandra Gautam.

In a note to Gautam Professor McNemar wrote, “I thought it so interesting and informative that I decided to use your book in my United Nations course (Global Studies 403) here at Bentley University this Spring Semester.” He further mentioned, “I just asked the Bentley Bookstore to order copies for my students.”

Global Citizen from Gulmi is published from Nepal by Publication Nepalaya. It is available in major bookstores in Nepal, and available worldwide as e-book and POD (print on demand) through Amazon.com.

The 547- page paperback edition of the book is priced at NRs. 895.Courtesy: The Himalayan Times