In The News

Can Asia Step Up to 21st Century Leadership?

Amitav Acharya December 1, 2011
Global power is shifting, particularly in economic matters. Asia’s emerging powers seek enhanced leadership roles in world affairs, yet those roles may not be warranted until the nations take on more responsibility for regional and global governance and security, argues Amitav Acharya of American University. “Asia’s role in global governance cannot be delinked from the question: Who leads Asia?”...

Toppling of Libyan Dictator Legitimizes R2P Doctrine

Bennett Ramberg November 29, 2011
The war in Libya broke new ground, lending support for the international community to take a strong stand against dictators who threaten their own people. Bennett Ramberg, formerly with the US State Department, analyzes recent wars and how intervention in Libya compares. After horrific massacres in Rwanda and Srebrenica, the Canadian government took the lead in 2001, convening diplomats in...

The Magic of Diasporas

November 23, 2011
Citizens in troubled economies like the US and Europe are increasingly lashing out against immigration. Such blame is misplaced. Fears about depressed wages, stretched benefit programs and brain drain are exaggerated, suggests this article in the Economist, and governments must do a better job of educating voters about “the growing economic importance of diasporas, and the contribution they can...

How Walmart Is Changing China

Orville Schell November 23, 2011
Walmart is working with China to identify and reduce waste in packaging, shipping and energy use, explains China expert Orville Schell in an article for the Atlantic. Any cost-saving idea can be multiplied among thousands of suppliers, thousands of stores, millions of employees and shoppers. Since 2005, Walmart and China “are engaging in a bold experiment in consumer behavior modification, market...

Painful Euro Crisis and Lessons for the World – Part II

Joergen Oerstroem Moeller November 18, 2011
While overspending and giving citizens a false sense of prosperity, leaders of wealthy governments anticipated future economic growth to resolve all imbalances. This YaleGlobal series analyzes how the debt crisis unfolding in Europe may offer lessons for the rest of globe. A relatively small group of banks and investors control substantial global revenue, explains researcher Joergen Oerstroem...

The Arab Past Meeting the Arab Future

David Ignatius November 17, 2011
The Middle East could be transformed if the Palestinian group Hamas renounced violence, accepted Israel’s right to exist and supported the past commitments of the Palestinian Authority, writes David Ignatius for the Daily Star. Ignatius lists several recent events, including Hamas’ support for Syria’s opposition movement and its ongoing dialogue with Egyptian officials, that signal the group is...

Europe Close to Creating “Budget Tsar”

Joshua Chaffin November 15, 2011
With European countries struggling to get a control on debt, the European Commission is taking steps to appoint one person responsible for scrutinizing finances. Rival commissioners could not over-ride disciplinary measures imposed by the commissioner for economics and monetary affairs on nations that overspend. “Commission officials argue that the new changes are necessary to prevent national...