volume i issue v
TRANSCRIPT
H. E. Mr. M. K. Narayanan, Hon’ble Governor of West Bengal delivered the keynote address at a Session on “India’s Engagement with the World”on May 6, 2010 in Kolkata. The Session marked the
launch of the Aspen Institute India ‐ Kolkata Chapter. The session was moderated by Mr. Tarun Das, President, Aspen Institute India. Mrs. Krishna Bose, Former Chairperson, Standing Committee of Parliament, Ministry of External Affairs and Former Member of Parliament also spoke at the session. During the session the Hon’ble Governor highlighted India has always been a strong advocate of general and complete disarmament. He asserted that strengthening regional co‐operation and developing relations with South East Asia has been the pillars of India’s foreign policy. This has led to international appreciation and a stronger SAARC. For further details, click here
To commemorate the life and contributions of the late Prof. C.K. Prahalad towards building a better and developed India, Aspen Institute India, along with CII, NASSCOM, TiE and the Prahalad family organised memorial services in Chennai on July 3, July 8 in New Delhi and July 12 in Mumbai. Speaking at the memorial service in New Delhi, Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India, recalled “...the most intimate contact I had with him was when he
came to me and said what would you like to do for India at 75, and suggested there is nothing more exciting than to have 500 million young Indians fully prepared to face the challenges of living in this modern competitive world. He was very happy that I endorsed that vision of his. We formed a Skill Development Council and he was the moving spirit behind what motivated and what propelled the idea of skill development in the last four or five years...”
IN THIS ISSUE:
Aspen Institute India launches Kolkata Chapter
C.K. Prahalad Memorials Conversation with Sam Pitroda Aspire Skillsworld 2010 Book Discussion on “The Cure” by Geeta Anand
Book Launch of “Employees First, Customer Second”
India, China and the Asian Strategic Landscape
The Future of the India-US Relationship
"Indo-US Bilateral Economic Relationship in the context of the Changing Global Economic Architecture"
Stone-Pelting as a Political Problem: Kashmir in Comparative Perspective
India, the United States and the Global Agenda
Richard Haass on “The state of the World in 2010”
Plan B for Afghanistan “US and India: Tackling Climate Change Together”
“Next Steps for the Newspaper Business: An Editor's View From the Front Line”
“2040: India Richer than China”
US-India Strategic Dialogue US-Japan-India Trilateral Dialogue
US-India Track-II Dialogue on Climate Change
Rising India: Implications for World Order and International Institutions
India-China Strategic Dialogue
Third India-Israel Foum First Re-union of ILI-2, Bangalore
Rodel Fellows visit India Conversations
Volume I Issue V
C.K. Prahalad Memorials
Aspen Institute India launches Kolkata Chapter
Mr. Sam Pitroda, Advisor to the Prime Minister on Public Information Infrastructure and Innovation emphasized that food security and hunger are two of the biggest challenges in India. Mr. Pitroda made these observations while interacting with participants at a session organized on May 28, 2010. During the session, he proposed organizing private food banks and stressed the need for strategy that will make the system more effective in reaching people who need it most. He
reiterated the need for connectivity, harnessing the power and talent of India’s youth in an effective manner. Mr. Pitroda also talked about his life, work, obstacles and challenges he faced and how his life’s journey led him to become one of the key influencers of India’s development in the last two decades. For further details, click here
On July 1, 2010, Aspire Human Capital Management organized Aspire Skills World 2010 in collaboration with Aspen Institute India. The event foussed on the need to bridge the gap between industry and academia and deliver what India needs in terms of the skill sets of India’s youth. The speakers for the event included Dr. Siddiq Wahid, Vice Chancellor, Islamic University, Mark Parkinson, Director, The Shri Ram
Schools and Dr. Raj Singh, VC, Amity University. Representing industry were Pankaj Bansal, Co‐founder and CEO, PeopleStrong, Arjun Balakrishnan, Director, Panasonic, Sandeep Dhar, CEO, TESCO India and Sanjeev Bikhchandani, CEO, Naukri.com. The discussion was moderated by Amit Bhatia, Founder and CEO, Aspire. There session highlighted the structural problems in our education system i.e. old curriculum, lack of skilled trainers, huge gap between industry and academia. The panelists were of the opinion that there has to be a combination of domain knowledge teaching and skills development training to groom talent.
A book discussion was organized with Geeta Anand, author of The Cure, on July 14, 2010 in New Delhi. The Cure captures the true story of a family’s struggle to find a cure for its kids suffering from Pompe disease, a rare genetic disorder that damages the muscles and nerve cells throughout the body and affects various body tissues, particularly in the heart, skeletal muscles, liver and nervous system. At the session, Mr Bruce Ross, Country Director Food and Drug Administration, US Embassy, spoke about the challenges faced in releasing a drug into the market due to strict norms and standards and general trends of labs
Conversation with Sam Pitroda
Book Discussion on “The Cure” by Geeta Anand
Aspire Skillsworld 2010
working on cures for certain diseases. In the discussion, it became evident that “the key in achieving greatness is perseverance”. Rather than just being a story about a father trying to save the lives of his children, The Cure is a story of his perseverance, daring business acumen and fighting spirit of the family, about their failures and mistakes. Michael Macy, Cultural attaché, Embassy of the United States introduced the speaker, while Kishan Rana, former Ambassador to Germany and noted author moderated the session. The session concluded with a premier of the movie ‘Extraordinary Measures’which was an adaptation of the book. For further details, click here
CEO of HCL
Technologies, Vineet Nayar, launched his first book
‘Employees First, Customers Second’ on July 15th, 2010 in New Delhi. The book is based
on a unique management theory that turns conventional thought completely upside down. The launch was proceeded by a panel discussion on “Leadership Imperatives in India: Role of New Leaders”. Sachin Pilot, Minister of State, Communications and Information Technology, formally released the book. Speakers of the session included Tarun Das, President, Aspen Institute India Krishnamachari Srikkanth, Former Captain of Indian Cricket team, Karan Thapar, Anchor, CNBC and Vinay Hebbar, Head, Harvard Business Review. For further details, click here
As part of its series on China, Aspen India hosted a Session on “India, China and the Asian Strategic Landscape” with Kim Holmes & Lisa Curtis of the Heritage Foundation, C Raja Mohan, Strategic Affairs Edior, Indian Express on July 21, 2010. The session was moderated by Indrani Bagchi, Diplomatic Editor, Times of India. The session focused on the growth of India and China as the new superpowers, the effects of their growth not only on the Asian geopolitical landscape, but also on the rest of the world. The panel also examined the bilateral relationship between India and China, each country’s relationship with the United States and the path that India and China and the US must take in the coming years for a mutually beneficial co‐existence. For further details, click here
Book Launch of “Employees First, Customer Second”
India, China and the Asian Strategic Landscape
On July 22, 2010, R. Nicholas Burns, Former Under Secretary, U.S. Department of State and Shashi Tharoor, Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha discussed the future of India‐US relationship and what both the countries should be doing to develop it further at a Session on “The Future of the US‐India Relationship. Mr. Tarun Das,
President, Aspen Institute India moderated the session that focused on the growth of India and how this has changed the dynamics of the bilateral relationship with the US. For further details, click here
India is a natural partner to US and the future of the two countries is intertwined, declared Mr. Robert Hormats, Under Secretary for Economics, Energy and Agriculture Affairs, US Department of State. Speaking at an interactive session on “Indo‐US bilateral economic relationship in the context of changing Global economic architecture”, jointly organised with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on September 15th, 2010. Mr. Hormats underlined the importance of investment, energy, agriculture and global economic cooperation towards deepening the cooperation between India and
US. For further details, click here
“Stone‐pelting is the latest manifestation of an unhealed trauma and an unaddressed political problem” said Professor Sumantra Bose in an event organized in co‐operation with the British Council in Kolkata on September 24, 2010. Sumantra Bose is professor of international and comparative politics at the London School of Economics and Political Science. The deep sense of oppression and grievance being vented by the stone‐pelters goes back sixty
years. The renewed turmoil must be understood in such a time‐frame. The last twenty years, in particular, have seen the brutalisation of local society, particularly in the Kashmir Valley. An entire generation has grown up and come of age in an environment of repression and violence, observed Professor Bose. For further details, click here
Amb. Richard Haass, President, Council on Foreign Relations in an interactive session spoke about the three biggest challenges that would define the state of the world in the 21st century. These were: diffusion of power, the challenge of weak states and the challenge of the non state actors. According to him, the dominating features
The Future of the India-US Relationship
Richard Haass on “The State of the World in 2010”
Stone-Pelting as a Political Problem: Kashmir in Comparative Perspective
Indo-US Bilateral Economic Relationship in the context of the Changing Global Economic Architecture
and challenges that will keep US‐India preoccupied are the Greater Middle East including Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran and North Korea and by and large Asia. To resolve some of the lingering differences among key countries like Japan, Russia, China is the need to develop effective mechanisms to resolve disputes and foster the growth of regional institutions to maintain stability and dynamism. The session was moderated by Amb. Naresh Chandra, Former Ambassador of India to the US.
Amb. Robert Blackwill , Former US Ambassador to India discussed his “Plan B for Afghanistan” at a session on September 30, 2010. Dr. C Raja Mohan, Strategic Affairs Editor, Indian Express moderated the session. Amb. Blackwill’s suggested Plan B will dramatically reduce military causalities and therefore would minimise US domestic political pressure for a hasty American withdrawal from Afghanistan. This would also lower the American
expenditure on the operation. According to him, Plan B will also allow the administration in Washington to concentrate more intensively on four issues‐ dangerous nuclear terrorism, the Iranian Nuclear Program, the rise of Chinese Power and the future of Iraq, which. In his opinion were more important for the US Government than Afghanistan and its future.
On October 1, 2010, a panel discussion on “US and India: Tackling Climate Change Together” was organized with John Podesta, President & CEO of The Centre for American Progress, Jonathan Lash, President of World Resources Institute, Jamshyd N Godrej, Chairman & MD of Godrej & Boyce Manufacturing Co. Ltd and Suresh Prabhu, Former Minister of Industry Environment Forest & Power. Ravi Singh, Secretary‐General, WWF‐India moderated the session which focused on developing a working relationship between the two countries on issues such as clean energy as the development of new and renewable sources of energy.
The onslaught of the web has changed the dynamics of the newspaper industry globally, sending it in a web of panic as profits continue to decline since news is easily accessible online. Striking a positive note to this perceived threat, Mr. Lionel Barber, Editor, Financial Times (FT), assured that the “newspaper industry continues to have a bright future.” The session organized
US and India: Tackling Climate Change Together
Plan B for Afghanistan by Robert Blackwill
Next Steps for the Newspaper Business: An Editor's View from the Front Line
in collaboration wih the Confederation of Indian industry (CII) was chaired by Mr. Brooks Entwistle, MD and Country Head, Goldman Sachs (India) on October 12, 2010. “Technology has changed the balance of power between producer and consumer of news. It is hence important for you to work out what you can do to differentiate yourself in a world of multiple media”, stated Mr. Barber as a rejoinder to the session title.
“Indians could grow wealthier than the Chinese in the next 30 years if the government brings in fundamental changes, starting with clear property rights to farmers”, said Derek Scissors, American economist and Research Fellow, The Heritage Foundation at a Session on 2040: India Richer than China” on October 20, 2010. The session was moderated by Vinod Khanna, Emeritus Fellow,Institute of Chinese Studies. The two key areas in
which Scissors would like to see changes are infrastructure and education. He stated that though India has a number of programmes to widen the reach of primary and secondary education, the country needs to implement and monitor these in letter and spirit to ensure their effectiveness which will lead to the improvement of India’s overall productivity.
As a precursor to President Obama’s visit in November, 2010, a session on “Taking the Stage: India, the United States and the Global Agenda”, was organized in collaboration with Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) on October 21st at New Delhi. The speakers at this session were Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies, Evan Feigenbaum, adjunct Senior Fellow for East, Central, and South Asia, Council on Foreign Relations, and C. Rajamohan, Strategic Affairs Editor, Indian Express. Indrani Bagchi, Diplomatic Editor, The Times of India moderated the discussion. The session foucssed on how India and the US should work together on issues of trade, security, maritime commerce and other issues to alter the international geopolitical space. The panelists also discussed the need for effective multilateral cooperation on global and transnational problems in the 21st century.
The India‐US Strategic Dialogue was held in Washington DC / Aspen, Colorado in collaboration with Aspen Strategy Group from Augst 3‐6. This dialogue has helped both sides in bringing bilateral issues and challenges to the forefront and has also
2040: India Richer than China
India-US Strategic Dialogue
India, the United States and the Global Agenda
helped develop a roadmap for future co‐operation. Some of the issues discussed were: • India’s Rise and the future of the US‐India relationship • Cross‐border terrorism and India’s role in securing the world • India –China relations and the role of America • Trade and Economic engagements with India
The group also met Larry Summers, Director of the National Economic Council, General James L. Jones, National Security Advisor, Timothy F. Geithner, Secretary of the Treasury, Daniel Poneman, Deputy Secretary of Energy, James Steinberg, Deputy Secretary of State and Ambassador Meera Shankar, Indian Ambassador to United States of America.
Recognizing the growing importance of India in East Asia and the enormous potential for expanding co‐operation on global challenges based on shared values and interests, Aspen Institute India, in
collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the Japan Institute for International Affairs (JIIA), hosted the Sixth U.S.‐Japan‐India Trilateral Strategic Dialogue in Washington from September 22 to September 25. In this meeting, the participants focused their discussions on five areas: domestic political developments; the economic crisis; international security challenges; regional architecture and climate change/energy. The range of subjects at the talks reflected the significant and qualitative shift in recent years in the relations between the three countries. During their visit, the group met Mr. James Steinberg, Deputy Secretary of State as well as Senators John McCain and Joseph Lieberman.
The first Track II Dialogue on Climate Change and Energy between India and USA was held in New Delhi from September 30 to October 1, 2010. The Dialogue intended to enhance bilateral cooperation between India and the U.S. The dialogue’s purposes were to foster trust and cooperation between the two countries through sustained, direct exchanges between influential civil society
US-Japan-India Trilateral Dialogue
US-India Track-II Dialogue on Climate Change
actors on both sides and at the same time to chart out concrete pathways necessary to provide additional momentum to the official dialogues and agreements between the governments of India and U.S. The participants of the dialogue interacted with Mr. Jairam Ramesh, Minister of State for Enviroment and Forests.
A workshop on “Rising India: Implications for World Order and International Institutions” was organized in collaboration with Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) in New Delhi from October 20‐21, 2010. The workshop focused on the effective multilateral cooperation on global and transnational problems in the 21st century. Emphasis was laid on the respective states becoming responsible stakeholders with global responsibilities and shape international regime to suit their policy preferences and seek to adjust the governance structures of international institutions to reflect their growing weight and influence. The workshop shed light on how rising powers conceive the main challenges of the world and of the institutional requirements for collective security, prosperity, and stability within the emerging configuration of global power and interest.
The China Reform Forum and Aspen Institute India, supported by CII, jointly organized the second meeting of the “India‐China Strategic Dialogue” (ICSD) in New Delhi on 29 October 2010. The meeting was co‐chaired by Ambassador Naresh Chandra and Mr. Li Jingtian, Chairman China Reform Forum. The participants from both sides held discussions on a range of subjects covering bilateral, economic and trade relations, global challenges and cooperation in multilateral mechanisms, security and counter‐terrorism in South and South‐East Asia and the prospects for bilateral relations during the rise of China and India.
The Third India‐Israel Forum was held under the auspices of Tel Aviv University and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in partnership with Aspen Institute India, in New Delhi on
India-China Strategic Dialogue
Rising India: Implications for World Order and International Institutions
Third India-Israel Forum
1‐2 November 2010. The session aimed at strengthening the bilateral relationship and formulating a strategy to achieve this. The Forum was co‐chaired by Mr. Stanley M. Bergman, Chairman and CEO, Henry Schein Inc. and Aharon Fogel, Chairman, Migdal Insurance and Financial Holdings Ltd & Chairman, Ness Technologies, from the Israeli side and by Mr. Jamshyd Godrej, Chairman and Managing Director Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd & Mr. Tarun Das, President, Aspen India, from the Indian side. The two‐day forum deliberated on opportunities in business cooperation and technological collaboration specially in areas of biomedicine, biotechnology, water technology, alternative energy and ecology. The Israeli side presented their achievements in the areas of innovation and technology and encouraged the Indian Industry participants to engage more actively in the areas of R&D and technological cooperation with Israel.
The first reunion of ILI‐2 took place in Bangalore,13th – 15th August. The weekend was a mix informal get‐togethers and working sessions. Apart from sharing project updates , the group also made a visit to a unique community school being run on the campus of Indus International School, Bangalore. As part of its initiative on Leadership, Aspen Institute India hosted Rodel Fellows of the Aspen Institute USA. The Aspen Institute‐Rodel Fellowships in Public Leadership program seeks to enhance democracy in the US by identifying and bringing together the nation's most promising young political leaders to explore, through study and conversation, the underlying values and principles of western democracy, the relationship between individuals and their community, and the responsibilities of public leadership; to support and inspire political leaders committed to sustaining the vision of a political system based on thoughtful and civil bipartisan dialogue; and to help America's brightest young leaders achieve their fullest potential in public service. During their visit here, Aspen Institute India facilitated their meeting with Mr. Sachin Pilot, Minister of States for Information Technology and Mr. Rahul Khullar, Commerce Secretary‐ Government of India.
Rodel Fellows visit India
First Reunion of ILI-2, Bangalore
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Meeting with Michèle Flournoy, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy of the United States
Meeting with Admiral Robert F. Willard, Commander, U.S. Pacific Command.
Meeting with Ambassador S. Jaishankar, Indian Ambassador to China
Meeting with Frank Wisner, Former U.S. Ambassador to India
Meeting with Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Conversations