How sustainably is India developing?
A documentary assesses a new nationally downscaled Doughnut of India, with data visualisations and expert interviews
Posted by Samuel Balonier on October, 06, 2026
Last updated: October, 20, 2026
As a student of climate science in Potsdam, I came in contact with the 'Good life for all within planetary boundaries' project in a lecture by Johan Rockström, and I saw how well the national Doughnuts depict the developmental challenges for the different countries.
This experience inspired me during my semester abroad at IIT Madras in Chennai, India, to ask myself the question: How sustainably is India developing, as the world's most populous country and one of the fastest growing economies in the world?
As part of a video documentary initiative, we quantified seven of the nine planetary boundaries and all twelve social dimensions, all in the national context of India. The numbers and data visualisations were put in context with interviews with experts from IIT Madras. The project provides insight into how India's Doughnut has evolved over the past years, what the most recent state is, and how it can be improved.
The 33-min video can be found on YouTube here and is embedded below. A report is currently in preparation.
