Vishakha N. Desai is senior advisor for global affairs to the president of Columbia University, senior research scholar in global studies at its School of International and Public Affairs, and chair of Columbia's Committee on Global Thought. From 1990 to 2012 Vishakha held a variety of positions at the Asia Society, initially as the director of the Asia Society Museum and for the last eight years as president and CEO. In addition to several publications, Vishakha is also a frequent contributor to newspapers and magazines in both the US and Asia. She has published and lectured extensively on the intersection of traditional and contemporary arts and policy in diverse countries of Asia and is the author of "World as Family: A Journey of Multi-Rooted Belongings," published by Columbia University Press in May of 2021. Vishakha is the recipient of five honorary degrees and holds a B.A. in political science from Bombay University and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Asian art history from the University of Michigan.