In The News

Why Fighting Climate Change May Help the Economy, Not Hurt It

Michael Casey September 19, 2014
A common refrain among those who resist taking action on climate change is that costs and lost jobs from reducing reliance on coal and oil are too high. Studies from the University of Massachusetts Political Economy Research Institute, the Center for American Progress and the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate suggest that reducing greenhouse gas emissions could boost economies...

Immigrant Vote Could Sway Tight Scottish Independence Referendum

Lisa De Bode September 10, 2014
Scotland will head to the polls on September 18 for a referendum on independence from Great Britain, and immigrants could represent one in five likely voters. Like other Scots, immigrants are divided. Ending the 300-year union with England and Northern Ireland would have economic and political consequences, reports Lisa De Bode for Al Jazeera America, including reduced power of the Labour Party...

The Economics of Ebola

Amara Konneh August 14, 2014
The Ebola threat disrupts daily routines in the four countries where infections are spreading and concern is high in neighboring nations and beyond about doing business or accepting travelers and students from the region. The numbers of infections are small. Meticulous attention to precautionary measures can prevent the spread, but a 60 percent fatality rate is alarming. “The reason this...

Wakeup Call for Europe

Philippe Legrain August 5, 2014
Europe has squandered its potential with crushing debt, declining living standards, high unemployment and little innovation. “Europe isn’t just falling further behind the United States; it also faces ever-greater competition from China, India, Brazil, Mexico, Turkey, Korea and other emerging economies – not just in lower-end manufacturing but also in higher-tech sectors,” writes economist...

The Tale of Two Middle Classes

Branko Milanovic July 31, 2014
Thanks to globalization and trade, middle-class incomes have more than doubled in countries like China and Indonesia, but still remain a fraction of those earned by the middle class in Europe or the United States . Meanwhile, in Europe, the United States and Japan, incomes for the middle class have stagnated even as their richest citizens accrue more wealth, profiting by investing in...

Success of Chinese Reform Is Key to BRICS’ Rise

Pankaj Mishra July 25, 2014
International organizations like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund balk at including Asian representatives in leadership positons. China therefore seeks to lead another global system formed by top developing nations known as BRICS. “It is also understandable why China’s poor and often resentful BRICS cousins are willing to assist its global self-assertion,” writes Pankaj Mishra,...

A Field Day for Fracking

Wenonah Hauter July 16, 2014
The US and EU initiated a new round of closed discussions on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, a free trade agreement, with much of the content still kept top secret. However, the EU position on raw materials and energy was leaked in May, and the deal could eliminate restrictions on US exports of natural gas to Europe, reports Wenonah Hauter for Other Words. Concerns have...