prof. dr. Sharda Nandram

Full Professor, Faculty of Religion and Theology, Beliefs and Practices

Full Professor, CLUE+

Personal information

Sharda Nandram, born in Suriname, is a Dutch resident since 1985, and third generation Indian hailing from Rajasthan, India. Sharda is full professor Hindu Spirituality and Society at the Faculty of Religion and Theology of the Vrije University of Amsterdam. She has studied at the University of Amsterdam and. has bachelor and masters degrees in both Psychology and Economics. She did her PhD in Social Sciences at the Vrije University of Amsterdam. Sharda has published more than 70 articles in academic and professional journals, and has written about 30 book chapters, 21 books, about 40 reviewed papers, 40 research reports and more than 70 newspapers articles. She has over three decades of rich Consulting and Entrepreneurial experience across Healthcare, Banking & Insurance, Public Government, Education, Sports sectors. She is the founder of concepts of Integrating Simplification and Integrative Intelligence. She is well travelled with diverse cross-cultural experience through consulting, research and teaching engagements across Europe (Dutch resident), South America (Surinamese born), North America, Asia (Indian origin). Amidst well spread professional commitments, she equally enjoys taking care of her family - her Dutch husband and two children.

Research

The types of questions that this research chair focuses on, are :

What is the integrative nature of Hinduism as a worldview?
What is spirituality and what are the building blocks of a Hindu spiritual worldview?
What is the impact of an integrative approach to spirituality on economic attitudes?
What are relevant research methods and techniques from Hindu knowledge systems and how do they contribute to science?
How can traditions and schools of Hindu spirituality contribute to solution for building inclusive societies?
What does it mean to be a Hindu in the Netherlands and how can the Hindu morality/identity be further developed in modern societies?
How does Hindu spirituality relate to other religious / spiritual traditions and communities and what connections can be made?

Teaching

Course in Spiritual Care based on Hinduism in Dutch, starts 11th September and ends on 13th November 2019 (3 ECTS).

Scheduled contribution in: uUpcoming courses in the new international bachelor 2020

Scheduled: development of elective course on Yoga Spirituality and Leadership 2020

New courses will be developed based on the Research

Prizes and Awards

Amity Award for Best Case Study, 14th International Business Horizon, INBUSH-2012

Ancillary activities