{"id":244057,"date":"2025-11-01T16:39:49","date_gmt":"2025-11-01T11:09:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?p=244057"},"modified":"2025-11-07T09:47:42","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T04:17:42","slug":"integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/","title":{"rendered":"Integrating Practical Humanity Into Every University Discipline"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><strong>By <a style=\"color: #ff6600;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?s=Vipula+Wanigasekera\">Vipula Wanigasekera<\/a> &#8211;<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_230564\" style=\"width: 160px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-230564\" class=\"size-full wp-image-230564\" src=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Dr.-Vipula-Wanigasekera.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"151\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Dr.-Vipula-Wanigasekera.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Dr.-Vipula-Wanigasekera-45x45.jpg 45w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-230564\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dr. Vipula Wanigasekera<\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"p1\">We live in an era of intense specialization where universities excel at producing professionals\u2014engineers, doctors, lawyers, accountants, IT experts, and business leaders\u2014with refined technical expertise. Yet in this pursuit of skill, we have committed a profound educational oversight: we train for professions but not for humanity. Ironically, the very quality essential for ethical leadership, empathy, and social cohesion is the one most absent from the modern curriculum.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">While a few forward-thinking universities\u2014such as Yale-NUS, Duke Kunshan University, and Ted University\u2014experiment with cross-disciplinary humanities, their rarity underscores a global crisis: mistaking technical competence for holistic education.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The truth is simple yet urgent\u2014humanity is not an optional \u201csoft skill.\u201d It is the ultimate purpose of education, business, and life itself. The real measure of a professional is not merely their ability to build systems or grow profits, but their capacity to serve and uplift the human condition.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Every university must embed <i>Humanity<\/i> as a practical, mandatory component across disciplines, moving beyond abstract philosophy into lived experience.<\/p>\n<p>* Business students should evaluate the long-term human consequences of corporate and entrepreneurial decisions, assessing social value rather than quarterly profits.<\/p>\n<p>* Medical students must train empathy as a core clinical skill, not treat it as a ceremonial oath upon graduation.<\/p>\n<p>* Engineering and IT students should design inclusive, people-centered innovations that protect and empower vulnerable communities.<\/p>\n<p>* Law students ought to focus on restorative justice\u2014rehabilitation and reconciliation over mere punishment.<\/p>\n<p>* And so the list extends across all fields of study.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">This transformation is not moral preaching. It is about rigorous training in emotional intelligence, ethical reasoning, and social consciousness\u2014skills indispensable to navigating today\u2019s complex, interconnected world.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Humanity should not remain confined to classrooms; it must be practiced. Universities should make community engagement compulsory\u2014students working with the elderly, children, or marginalized groups to experience compassion firsthand. Curricula should include case studies demonstrating how empathy and ethics altered business, medical, or legal outcomes. Even corporate simulations must assess the balance between profit and human value as a key performance metric.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The difference between academic success and lasting legacy is profound. In Finland, for instance, students study their nation\u2019s difficult role in World War II not merely as history, but as a lesson in resilience and moral reflection (Paksuniemi, Uusiautti, &amp; M\u00e4\u00e4tt\u00e4, 2014). This approach transforms historical knowledge into a living guide for civic responsibility and collective identity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Imagine a future where graduates are not only competent but deeply compassionate\u2014leaders who genuinely believe that \u201cpeople are assets.\u201d Imagine workplaces guided by kindness and empathy, and societies that measure progress not just by GDP<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>but also by GHI (Gross Happiness Index), valuing well-being alongside economic growth.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Albert Einstein once advised, \u201cTry not to become a man of success, but rather a man of value.\u201d His timeless words, recorded by journalist William Miller in <i>LIFE<\/i> magazine in 1955, remind us that education\u2019s highest purpose is not achievement, but meaning. Titles fade, wealth dissipates, and even autobiographies gather dust. What endures is how we uplift others and enrich the shared human story. It is time universities acknowledged this truth and redefined success\u2014not as the acquisition of knowledge alone, but as the cultivation of wisdom and humanity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><strong><i>*The writer is a former Diplomat and Head of the Sri Lanka Tourism Authority, now a Lecturer, Author, YouTuber, Meditation and Reiki Healer<\/i><\/strong><\/span><i><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p> [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2368,"featured_media":183345,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,46,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-244057","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-colombotelegraph","category-constitutional-reforms","category-editorial"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Integrating Practical Humanity Into Every University Discipline - Colombo Telegraph<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Integrating Practical Humanity Into Every University Discipline - Colombo Telegraph\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"[&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Colombo Telegraph\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-11-01T11:09:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-11-07T04:17:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Convocation-University-.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"703\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"409\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Vipula Wanigasekera\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Vipula Wanigasekera\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/\",\"name\":\"Integrating Practical Humanity Into Every University Discipline - Colombo Telegraph\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Convocation-University-.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-01T11:09:49+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-11-07T04:17:42+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/8d77801e05aecb792177346dc5bb000c\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Convocation-University-.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Convocation-University-.jpg\",\"width\":703,\"height\":409},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Integrating Practical Humanity Into Every University Discipline\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/\",\"name\":\"Colombo Telegraph\",\"description\":\"In journalism truth is a process\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/8d77801e05aecb792177346dc5bb000c\",\"name\":\"Vipula Wanigasekera\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8beffd7497b7209c0a6b28b599507f15ff8017d2f604c5925916751589ce261a?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8beffd7497b7209c0a6b28b599507f15ff8017d2f604c5925916751589ce261a?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Vipula Wanigasekera\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/author\/drvwan\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Integrating Practical Humanity Into Every University Discipline - Colombo Telegraph","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Integrating Practical Humanity Into Every University Discipline - Colombo Telegraph","og_description":"[&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/","og_site_name":"Colombo Telegraph","article_published_time":"2025-11-01T11:09:49+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-11-07T04:17:42+00:00","og_image":[{"width":703,"height":409,"url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Convocation-University-.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Vipula Wanigasekera","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Vipula Wanigasekera","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/","url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/","name":"Integrating Practical Humanity Into Every University Discipline - Colombo Telegraph","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Convocation-University-.jpg","datePublished":"2025-11-01T11:09:49+00:00","dateModified":"2025-11-07T04:17:42+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/8d77801e05aecb792177346dc5bb000c"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Convocation-University-.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Convocation-University-.jpg","width":703,"height":409},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/integrating-practical-humanity-into-every-university-discipline\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Integrating Practical Humanity Into Every University Discipline"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/","name":"Colombo Telegraph","description":"In journalism truth is a process","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/8d77801e05aecb792177346dc5bb000c","name":"Vipula Wanigasekera","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8beffd7497b7209c0a6b28b599507f15ff8017d2f604c5925916751589ce261a?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8beffd7497b7209c0a6b28b599507f15ff8017d2f604c5925916751589ce261a?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","caption":"Vipula Wanigasekera"},"url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/author\/drvwan\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Convocation-University-.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244057","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2368"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=244057"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244057\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":244192,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244057\/revisions\/244192"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/183345"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=244057"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=244057"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=244057"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}