Creating a Livable Planet Earth

The humanity needs a great vision to forget all the conflicts and move
towards a common goal of peace and prosperity for all the global citizens. We
visualize the birth of world vision leading to livable planet earth. This vision
will be greater than any other vision so far envisioned by the humanity.
A P J Abdul Kalam

Projects
Introduction
We are all well aware of the challenges of the ecosystem the rising GHG levels, the soaring the
ocean levels, threating amounts of pollution in the air and the depletion of water and nearly every
single natural resource on the planet. Dr. Kalam and his team will focus the lecture series in IIM
Shillong for 2015 on these issues and also on how to make the planet earth livable in a
sustainable long term basis.
Dr. Kalam would also like to hear from students on their unique ideas for the topic and its
postulates as the ideas from the youth can be significant in bringing out a sustainable roadmap,
not just for India but entire global community. To facilitate this, a set of 12 student groups of
roughly equal sizes need to be formed to work on the given the 12 unique challenges as in
Appendix 1.
Each student group should perform the following task in regards to their assigned projects:
1) Conduct extensive research online and offline on the topic, especially focusing on the
current solutions and issues. Most of these issues are very dynamic and rapidly changing
hence contemporary research is essential.
2) Analyze the data and reports from a sound perspective of a youth remember youth have
a much larger stake in the planet challenge and any other generation. While some focus
on India may be necessary but groups are encouraged to keep a global context in mind
unless otherwise stated in the assigned topic.

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3) Generate a report of upto 25 page (1.5 spacing, 12 font size, times new roman about
10,000 words) covering the scenario and its evolution over time, key challenges and
opportunities, available solutions, innovative ideas and suggestions and impediments.
Students can add any other relevant section as needed. Each report should have a table of
content and an executive summary of 500 words and references.
4) Based on the findings in the report produce a slideshow in MS Powerpoint or any other
similar software. This presentation will be shown to Dr. Kalam and his team on the
assigned time. The length of the presentation will be upto 15 minutes with additional 3
minutes for Q&A. Student group must ensure that they finish their presentation within the
allotted time. Be creative in your presentation, use anecdotes, literature and visual aids.

Appendix 1: Livable Planet Earth Challenges (topics for assignment to be

assigned to 12 different groups)
The topic is listed with some suggestive areas of research. Students are free to add any
other area in their research as long as it is relevant to the main topic.
1) Air Quality of the Planet
What is happening to the air quality of the planet? What are possible factors for the
degradation of the air and what is its visible and invisible impact. How will we secure the
future what have nations done about it and what more needs to be done. What is
happening with the carbon and nitrogen cycle.
2) Planets water
Many experts believe that in the near future water will become a commodity just like
Gold and Oil. Some experts say that wars will be fought over who owns the water supply.
What to do in this such an alarm situation. How do we protect our water? What is the
situation of our rivers and oceans?
3) Ensuring Drinking Water for All [this pertains to drinking water only and hence
different from topic #2]
What are the critical challenges of drinking water quality? Who is suffering the most?
How does this relate to the economy? What is the future scenario and what all we need to
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do? How does India stand on this issue? Can we consider a Right to Free Drinking Water
as a constitutional right in India? How can we roll it out?
4) Beyond Human Species
How has the human activity on the planet shaped/affected other species of plants and
animals? How has the biosphere been changing due to humans and what are the perils of
such a change? What are some solutions which have been undertaken and what more
needs to be done?
5) Energy Equations
How do we address the energy challenge for the planet and its people? What has been the
historic trend and future in fossil fuels? What are comparisons of per capita consumption
spread across time and geographies? How to reduce our consumption? How can
renewable be made to work and which are the most promising agendas in them? How can
IT and Non-conventional energy work together to realize better energy economies? What
are alternatives to petroleum economy?
6) Un-piling the Waste
What are the challenges of waste, especially non-biodegradable? How to address the
issues around this? What enterprise models can work? What can people, governments,
companies etc do?
7) Warming Planet
What is the situation on global warming? What are principal forces and where is the
global consensus on the issue? What needs to be done?
8) Deforestation
Since 1990 half of the worlds rain forests have been destroyed. The clearing of forests
continue at an alarming rate. What is the way to change this? What are some great ideas
and initiatives in this direction?

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9) Soil contamination
What are the issues of over usage of fertilizers and how is it affecting our soil? Are our
current agriculture models sustainable? How is the situation in India and outside? Discuss
solutions.
10) Reducing the burden of diseases
What is the disease map of the world over time? What are important challenges? How
does the challenge differ for developed and underdeveloped world? What can be done to
make humankind healthier?
11) How do we breed innovation, ideas and creativity
How can we promote new innovations and inventions which make planet earth
sustainable and livable? What are some specific ideas are being deployed already across
the globe in schools, universities, corporations and policies. What kind of an enterprise
ecosystem needs to be created for promoting such green entrepreneurship?
12) Eliminating human conflicts and hatred
How we ensure that human conflicts do not imperil human and other species and the
planet? How do we make earth peaceful and remove hatred of all kinds. How do we bring
the world together to celebrate unity, equity and tolerance?
Dr Kalam suggests students to refer the following books:
1. Why Nations Fail by Daron Acemoglu and James A Robinson
2. The End of Poverty How we can make it happen in our lifetime by Jeffrey Sachs
3. Target 3 Billion by Dr APJ Abdul Kalam and Srijan Pal Singh
4. Manifesto for Change by Dr APJ Abdul Kalam and V Ponraj
5. Beyond 2020 by Dr APJ Abdul Kalam and Y S Rajan

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