In The News

Adieu, Atlantic Blue Fin Tuna?

Alex David Rogers March 17, 2010
The Atlantic blue fin tuna risks extinction thanks to overfishing and poor global governance, according ocean expert Alex David Rogers. To add insult to injury, recent proposals to ban all international trade in the fish are being rejected by Japan, the largest consumer. Japan’s decision could significantly undermine the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) and deal a...

A Greek Tragedy Haunts the World – Part I

Jonathan Fenby March 1, 2010
The unfolding tragedy in Greece again demonstrates the interdependence of our integrated world – affecting countries near and far. In part I of this two part series, author Jonathan Fenby shows how Greece’s sorry state of affairs has thrown the European project into question. Indeed, Greece’s faltering has exposed some of the fundamental flaws in the EU’s conception. It could never be a true...

Beer Globalization in Latin America

Benjamin Dangl February 24, 2010
The global beer industry is experiencing a round of consolidation, including the recent takeover of Mexican brewer FEMSA by the Dutch Heineken. The growing concentration of brewing might in the hands of a few companies is a natural result of corporate globalization – today four companies control half of the world’s beer production globally. But this trend could also lead to “homogenization of...

India Worries as China Builds Ports in South Asia

Vikas Bajaj February 19, 2010
China’s efforts to beef up its South Asian trade by building ports in nations such as Pakistan and Bangladesh are irking India, which feels that its regional influence is being undermined. This is the latest trend in a history of strained relations between the two countries, who are now nonetheless linked by booming trade with one another. Over the last decade, however, China’s trade with South...

One World, Two Universes

Nayan Chanda February 1, 2010
The tussle between Google and China is laying bare a strained relationship between China and the Western world that had previously been covered up by the financial crisis. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's recent speech on Internet freedom, though it did not specifically mention China, marked a shift for the US administration in emphasizing human rights. Western corporations are...

China’s Strident Tone Raises Concerns Among Western Governments, Analysts

John Pomfret February 1, 2010
China’s response to Washington’s plans to sell weapons to Taiwan is part of the recent change in tone in China’s relations not only with the US, but also the world. That change likely stems from China’s ever increasing importance on the world stage as well as new confidence generated by its survival of the financial crisis relatively unscathed. But domestic insecurity over unrest in its western...

The New Rules: Globalization’s Next Wave of Integration

Thomas P.M. Barnett January 21, 2010
The global recession, rather than setting back economic integration, is actually deepening it by making companies create tighter, vertical supply chains that cut out the middle-man, with companies buying direct from the producer. A major example of this is Wal-Mart, which is using its global size to negotiate directly with suppliers to reduce costs but also to ensure security of supply. To the...