In The News

Migration Trend: Young Move to Lands of Aging Rich

Joseph Chamie June 30, 2016
The world’s most troublesome borders for illegal migration have one thing in common – more older people on one side than the other. Large gaps in the median age on either side show a difference of 19 years for Northern Africa and Southern Europe, and 11 years for the United States and Central America. “Age differences between sending and receiving nations are a powerful force exerting migratory...

Australia Foreign Debt Reaches Crisis Proportions

Philip Bowring June 29, 2016
Australia confronts declining prices in commodities, a shrinking currency and net foreign debt that exceeds A$1 trillion. “Servicing the long-term debt problem is an increasing concern, particularly if US interest rates begin to rise while commodity prices do no more than stabilise around current levels,” writes Philip Bowring for the Asia Sentinel. “Direct foreign investment is weakening because...

Does Europe Need Brexit?

Alan Stoga June 9, 2016
Brexit symbolizes the European Union’s divide and discontent, and yet, “the shock of Britain leaving the Union could be exactly what's needed to jumpstart Europe out of its near catatonic state,” argues Alan Stoga, senior adviser with Kissinger Associates and chairman of the Tällberg Foundation. The continent is divided in multiple ways over politics, migration, debt, as well as labor and...

American Capitalism’s Great Crisis

Rana Foroohar June 8, 2016
Young Americans no longer perceive benefits from capitalism, and such sentiments will influence the outcome of the US presidential election. The system of US market capitalism is broken, explains Rana Foroohar, author and Time magazine’s assistant managing editor for economics and business. Only about 15 percent of wealth from individual and corporate savings is invested in businesses for adding...

Why Parents Are Often the Biggest Obstacle to Achievement

Paul Phillips June 6, 2016
Education is a long route to prosperity. Parents who view children as a resource that can contribute to a family farm, business or retirement often dissuade children from pursuing full education opportunities. “Because they equate education with loss,” writes Paul Phillips, principal and chief executive of Weston College. “That is to say, if a person gets an education they will leave and never...

Nature’s Answer to Climate Risk

Maria Damanaki May 31, 2016
About half the world’s people live near coasts, and climate change is putting their livelihoods at risk. A risk assessment report from the World Economic Forum points to “failure to adapt to the effects of climate change as the single greatest risk, in terms of impact, to societies and economies around the world,” explains Maria Damanaki, global managing director for oceans at the Nature...

What Macroeconomists Are Missing

Andrew Sheng May 25, 2016
Mainstream economic models failed to predict the 2007 global economic crisis. In an essay for CaixinOnline, Andrew Sheng suggests that the models overlook the impact of uncertainty and that fragmented analysis neglects global connections: “[S]pecialists and departmental agencies know more and more about less and less and are unable to connect the dots to view the economic and social system as a...