Chandran Kukathas (born 12 September 1957) is a Malaysian-born Australian political theorist and the author of several books. Until 2019 he was Head of the Department of Government at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

, where he held a Chair in Political Theory.

Early life

Chandran Kukathas was born on 12 September 1957 in The Federation of Malaya which later became a part of

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

. He obtained a BA in

History History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

and

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

from

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...

and an MA in

Politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

from

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through which it offers bachelor's, master's and docto ...

. He earned his DPhil in Politics from the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

, where he cofounded the Oxford Hayek Society.

Career

Kukathas has taught at the Australian Defence Force Academy campus of the

, the University of Oxford, and the

. He was the 1986–87 R.C. Hoiles Postdoctoral Fellow at the Institute for Humane Studies at

George Mason University George Mason University (GMU) is a Public university, public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Located in Northern Virginia near Washington, D.C., the university is named in honor of George Mason, a Founding Father ...

. He was, from 2003 to 2007, the Neal A. Maxwell Professor of Political Theory, Public Policy and Public Service in the Department of Political Science at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...

. He has held visiting positions at the Social Philosophy and Policy Center, Bowling Green State University (1991) and the Murphy Institute, Tulane University (2003). He has also been a visiting professor in the departments of Political Science and Philosophy at the

National University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national university, national Public university, public research university in Singapore. It was officially established in 1980 by the merging of the University of Singapore and Nanyang University ...

. Kukathas holds a chair in Political Theory in the Department of Government at the

. He serves on the advisory board of the Institute of Economic Affairs. Kukathas supports a radically minimalist form of political liberalism, where there are multiple forms of authority, each of which is legitimate.

Bibliography

* * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kukathas, Chandran Australian National University alumni Academic staff of the Australian National University Australian political scientists George Mason University faculty Academics of the London School of Economics University of New South Wales alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford University of Utah faculty Living people 1957 births Australian people of Malaysian descent Australian people of Indian descent Cato Institute people