Tawakkol Karman Tawakkol Karman, born in 1979, is a Yemeni journalist, politician, and human rights activist. Tawakkol has worked as a journalist since earning a degree in political science from Sana’a University. As a journalist, she wrote extensively and bravely about injustices and civil rights violations, despite the country’s severely restricted media environment. In 2005…
Author: Prof RR
My name is R.Rajagopalan, but students and many friends call me as Prof RR. I am an engineer by training, environmentalist and writer by passion, and a story teller by choice. I am a great believer in the ‘liberal arts’ and am interested in a wide variety of things, from ecology and environment to literature and life purpose.
I believe in the power of stories to inspire, educate and influence people, especially children.
I retired in 2003 as Professor at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai, India. I hold a B.E. (Honours) degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Madras and M.Tech. and Ph.D. degrees in Industrial Management from the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur. I taught for over 30 years at IIT Kanpur and IIT Madras, handling a variety of courses on industrial engineering, management, environment, and development. At IIT Madras, I was also the Director of International Ocean Institute (IOI India) and coordinated several international ocean and environment-related courses and workshops.
I have been giving presentations and conducting workshops on environment for different groups in India. I am a regular facilitator at Initiatives of Change, Panchgani, where I have made presentations on environment and life purpose to a large number of participants including 300 IAS and other Civil Services officers. I also co-direct an annual workshop on sustainability at the international community of Auroville, near Puducherry in south India.
I have published 20 books on environment for schools, colleges and aspirants to the Civil Services. My university-level book, Environmental Studies: From Crisis to Cure has consistently been a bestseller on Amazon.in. In recent times, I have also written books on ethics meant for aspirants to the Civil Services.
I now divide my time between Bangalore, India and Oakland, USA.
092. Nadia Murad: From being a victim to becoming a leading advocate for survivors of genocide and sexual violence
Nadia Murad Nadia Murad comes from the Yazidi village of Kocho in Iraq. The Yazidis are a Kurdish religious minority found primarily in parts of Iraq, Turkey, Syria, and Iran. Their religion includes elements of ancient Iranian religions as well as elements of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Although scattered and probably numbering only between 200,000…
091. Jody Williams: Successful campaigner for the ban on landmines
Jody Williams The 1997 Nobel Peace Prize was jointly awarded to Jody Williams (of Vermont, US) and the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL). Landmines are the scourge of poor countries. 100 million un-detonated anti-personnel mines still remain buried in 60 countries after wars and armed conflicts. Their original purpose was to maim or kill…
090. Mulla Nusruddin: Clothes maketh a man
Mulla Nusruddin Mulla Nusruddin heard about a grand dinner being hosted by the new Emir in his palace. He turned up there in his usual shabby clothes. The guards did not who he was and would not let him in. Mulla came home, put on his best dress and turban, and went back to the…
089. Rigoberta Menchu: Working for the rights of indigenous peoples
Rigoberta Menchu Born in 1959, Rigoberta Menchú Tum is an indigenous feminist and human rights activist from Guatemala. Rigoberta has been championing the cause of Guatemala’s indigenous peoples during and after the Civil War (1960–1996) in that country. She has also been promoting indigenous rights internationally. Even as a teenager, Rigoberta was active in the…
088. Raging Grannies: Protesting with humour and songs for a better world
Raging Grannies The Raging Grannies movement began in 1987 in Victoria in the province of British Columbia, Canada. A group of senior women including teachers, businesswomen, artists, homemakers, librarians and other professionals started a protest against the threat to health and environment posed by the visit of US Navy warships and submarines in the waters…
087. Bryan Stevenson: Committed to equal justice for all
Bryan Stevenson America’s harsh criminal justice system, the mass incarceration of mostly black people, and the use of private prisons are well-known. In such a system, Bryan Stevenson, through his Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), has won reversals, relief, or release from prison for over 135 wrongly condemned prisoners on death row and won relief for…
086. Madam C.J. Walker: First Self-Made Female Millionaire in the US
Madam C. J. Walker She is said to be the first self-made female millionaire in the US and she was black. How could a black woman set up and run a big enterprise in America in the early years of the 20th century? That was the achievement of Madam C. J. Walker. She was born…
085. Edith Eger: Holocaust survivor who heals others
Edith Eger It was May 4, 1945. World War II was coming to an end and American forces were liberating the inmates of Nazi concentration camps. In an Austrian camp, a young American soldier noticed a small hand moving slightly amongst a number of dead bodies. It was that of Edith, a Jewish survivor. He…
084. Chuang Tzu story: How to transform a corrupt politician
One day, Yen Hui, the favorite disciple of Confucius, told his master that he wanted to go to Wei. He said, “The Prince of Wei is lusty and self-willed. He takes no care of his people and refuses to see any fault in himself. He pays no attention to the fact that people are dying…