Hon. Mr. RV Deshpande, Minister of Higher Education and Tourism, Government of Karnataka, India

Amid the tension and worries of this world, struggle and war, AOL has done commendable work in the past 35 years of its existence. Art of Living’s message of global peace and transforming the core values of humanity is commendable.

Karnataka is one of the leading states in India. More than 4000 MNCs have been operating in Karnataka. It is the IT capital of the world now, along with being the Startup capital of the world. Karnataka is a state of inventions and innovations. Any investor coming to invest in India, should consider coming to Karnataka first.

 

Mr. Michael Perlis, President and CEO of Forbes Media LLC, United States of America

5 years ago, we needed to reinvent Forbes and now we are doing it with an intention. We are publishing e-stories of people who succeed, what it feels to be successful and their idea of happiness. We feel that to be a good company - we need good core human values and human intent of the highest order.

Business today is enormous, we publish in 37 countries today, and we have a powerful digital presence of Forbes.com across some unique 50 million visitors. Our stories are about education, real estate, and other world-wide initiatives.

Now, we are placing our focus on the youth, with some 30 projects the fray in USA.

 

H.E. Mr. Kamal Thapa - Deputy PM, Nepal

 The power of spirituality is unity in diversity. All layers -- peace within national and regional boundaries and International peace. Even at an individual level, we’re striving to achieve peace of mind. Global peace is achievable and sustainable. The ideals of democracy, market economy have conquered the world.

Absence of a stable economy breeds poverty, deprivation and encroachment over people’s faith and culture –which in the end paves the way for confrontation. The foundation of peace is dependent on democracy, market economy and culture. It is imperative that we ensure inclusion of all communities in the society. Increase in economy inequality can lead to conflict situation. It is important to have free market in order to bridge the gaps between the have and have nots. Sustainable global peace - need to respect faith of individual choice, stop all types of cultural invasion.

In Fact, Nepal has Good news to offer. Recently, after 10 years of violent insurgency the government has drafted a new constitution. With this, we have a new era of economic development and prosperity. The new constitution incorporates new democratic values and norms totally committed on liberal economy based on free market.

As far as spirituality is concerned, we are proud to say Nepal is home to spirituality. It is the land where Lord Budha meditated 2500 years back. Democratic constitution and commitment towards development have made us ready to prosper. We need your support and encouragement in this endeavour.

 

H.E. Mr. Olusegum Obasanjo , Former President of Nigeria, Nigeria

Leaders today must think globally, act locally, cooperatively and inclusively. No country can grow in isolation. Therefore, leaders must be proactive, they must work together.

There is a need for an environment to be created for dealing with these issues, which will determine whether we have peace in future or not.

 

Mr. Kishore Biyani, Chairman, Group CEO, Future Group, India 

The retail world is all about basics, to grow one needs to follow a sustainable practice. Looking at the future, one must enable latest innovations in technology with a sustainable retail model.

 

Hon. Mr. Nirj Deva, Member of European Parliament

The world is changing rapidly and we need to be part of that change. Communalisation will become the way of the future. We need to stop regulations that kill enterprise and give rise to innovations and ideas.

 

Hon. Prof. GL Peiris, Formed Foreign Minister, Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka is a country that builds its society where everyone belongs. We thrive on growing together and building trust and offering support to our citizens. This I believe is the way Sri Lanka will grow.

 

Ms. Arundhati Bhattacharya, Chairperson, SBI

Ethics and Profitability are correlated. Companies that are ethical outlive their profitability. Giving the example of our own bank, we are the only bank that has been in existence for 210 years without even a single year of losses. We truly believe in economic growth of every individual starting from the lowest strata and moving upwards.' 

'We as a country and organisation will only progress by repeatedly showing trust and implementing ethical values.