In The News

Hard Realities: Brazil Drops Resistance to Genetically Altered Crops

Larry Rohter September 28, 2003
Brazil, the world's second largest producer of soybeans and one of the world's most important agricultural exporters, has traditionally outlawed genetically modified (GM) crops. Now, populist president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has shifted policy, choosing to allow modified soybean seeds. Some poor Brazilian farmers have already been using GM seeds obtained from neighboring Argentina...

A Swirl of Foreboding in Mahogany’s Grain

Juan Forero September 28, 2003
The towering mahogany tree has long been coveted for its color and strength. Now, fueled by international demand, trade in mahogany wood has become a multimillion-dollar industry that threatens large swaths of the Amazon rainforest. Logging of the wood far bypasses the stringent limits set by international regulations, raising fears that loggers operating outside legal areas will decimate the...

Too Soft, Too Open, Too Democratic?

September 26, 2003
Voting in the World Bank and IMF is far from democratic – votes are determined by the amount each state contributes to the coffers, leaving poorer countries with next to no say in decisions. This undemocratic system is in line with the original intent of the Bank and IMF: they were to be the lenders, representing creditor nations. No 'bank' allows the borrower to determine policy....

Globalization: Preserving the Benefits

Anne. O. Krueger September 25, 2003
Facing mounting criticism around the world, proponents of globalization have risen to its defense. IMF First Deputy Managing Director Anne Krueger argues for a renewed commitment to the principles of free trade that have fueled the last half-century’s ever-increasing economic expansion. Though she accepts the frequently valid misgivings of globalization’s critics, Krueger claims that its...

U.S. Business Leaders Demand Won's Rise, Screen Quota Cut

Kim Sung-mi September 25, 2003
Several major obstacles to a bilateral trade agreement between South Korea and the United States were challenged during a meeting this week in Washington. US and Korean business leaders called on Korea to grant greater access to foreign films by lowering its quota of domestic films from 40% to 20%, an issue which some called the "principal obstacle" to a bilateral trade deal....

Can Rich Countries Stem the Outflow of Jobs?

Eddie Lee September 23, 2003
Last month, the United States lost 93,000 jobs, many of them in the service sector. This commentary in Singapore's Straits Times attributes this job loss to outsourcing by developed world companies. In an effort to cut costs, many companies are hiring workers in developing countries since they are willing to work for far less than their counterparts in the US and Singapore. As the...

Bush Covers Up Climate Research

Paul Harris September 21, 2003
In an investigation by journalists at the British weekly Observer, emails and internal memos have been uncovered that implicate President Bush's administration in deliberately covering up scientific evidence that links oil and gas emissions to global warming. For years environmental scientists have been warning of global warming, but the Bush administration has always insisted that the...