China is water-scarce. With a per capita water availability of 2259 cubic meters in 2002, China�€™s water resources are barely enough to sustain its massive population of over 1.3 billion. Compared to this in 2002, the United States, with its population of just over 300 million, had a per capita water availability of approximately 10,837 cubic meters per year. Aiding China�€™s water-scarcity is the appalling state of its rivers; rivers like the Yangtze, Mekong, Yellow etc. that originate from the Tibetan Plateau, are all under threat due to numerous reasons like climate change, pollution, over-extraction etc. One of the main threats to the Yellow River, also known as the Huang He, is from desertification. 

Piracy in the Gulf of Aden continues to thrive despite international efforts at joint maritime patrols along the Somali coastline. Combating the menace has proven futile, with international laws ill equipped to address what is fast becoming a threat to the lives of crewmen and global trade.  

In the past hundred years, the world�€™s population has doubled and the demand for water has increased seven fold. With almost half the population of the world located in and around 261 shared river basins, it is a major cause for concern. These major basins cover approximately 45% of the global surface area, and account for 60% of the global water flow. Water is one of those vital resources for which there is no substitute, and experts have been predicting that it will be the most pressing concern of the century. Yet each area for potential conflict is also an opportunity for cooperation, if viewed through a different lens. 

Sundeep Waslekar examines one of the biggest questions of the 21st century: what will happen to the Treaty of Westphalia when it celebrates its 400th anniversary in 2048 ?

In 2002 when we set up Strategic Foresight Group, the main objective was to provide forward looking analysis on social, economic, geopolitical futures. In the last year, we have added a heavy component of environment, especially water to our portfolio. This has raised some questions. Why does an organization that is focused on geo-politics look at water related issues? How is the future of water going to change socio-economic factors? Is water scarcity going to lead to conflict over water? And ultimately how is water going to change the future of our world?

Society is like a human being. Unfortunately, society of today is rather diseased. While some of the diseases are life threatening, none of them are terminal- yet. If diseases can be cured in a manner that they do not recur, we will have a healthy society based on human values. But if the disease persists in even a small part of the world, the human society cannot be said to be healthy.

Sundeep Waslekar writes on the qualities that define a great nation.

The last eight years have seen the meteoric rise of Pakistan from virtual political obscurity to a nation caught in the unfortunate tussle for power and legitimacy between the government and those that dare to challenge its existence. The rise of an indigenous Taliban coupled with the entrenchment of local and international terrorist organisations has meant that Pakistan has willingly or unwillingly �€“ the point is debatable �€“ taken on the unenviable position of being the �€œmost dangerous place on earth�€. Yet, the fact of the matter is that a significant number of Pakistanis have been thrust into a daily existence of which they want no part. One such group is the country�€™s Internally Displaced People (IDPs) from the tribal areas and the frontier province. Forced to flee their homes when conflict between the army and militants engulfed the area, these people have been �€“ cheated by the government; forgotten by their countrymen and; marginalised by the international community. Yet their importance to Pakistan is unmistakable and must be recognised if the country is to achieve some semblance of stability in the long term.