In The News

Will the Crisis Reverse Global Migration?

Jayati Ghosh July 14, 2009
The current global financial crisis has led many an analyst to predict a reversal of recent growth trends in migration and a dramatic fall in remittances. While some data may confirm such predictions, it may not turn out that way in the end. As economist Jayati Ghosh argues, remittances may not decline as much due to gender issues and demographic factors and migration may be stickier than...

An Ethnic Struggle in China Goes Global

Dru Gladney July 9, 2009
Recent clashes between indigenous Uighurs and Han Chinese in Urumqi in China’s Xinjiang province highlight the growing difficulty Beijing faces with regard to minority rights. It also highlights how even a small group with global connections can bring the world spotlight on their cause and embarrass a big power, writes Dru Gladney, an expert on China’s minorities and President of the Pacific...

A New (Under) Class of Travellers

June 30, 2009
Experts believe that an increase in environmental crises like droughts or floods due to climate change will cause an attendant increase in migration. How many people will be affected remains unclear with estimates ranging from 200 million to 700 million by 2050. The issue is complicated not only by where to place responsibility for aiding those uprooted by environmental degradation, but also by...

From General to Government Motors: Can GM Return to its Former Glory?

William J. Holstein June 25, 2009
The tale of General Motors may provide the inspiration for many a business parable. But according to author William J. Holstein, GM’s downfall started in the 1980s when the company failed to view as credible the threat of Japanese automakers and the tectonic shift in auto production to lean manufacturing. Couple this with outsized medical benefits for current and retired employees and a...

Economic Downturn Fuels Human Trafficking

Howard LaFranchi June 22, 2009
The global economic recession has resulted in a rise in human trafficking, according to a US State Department report. The report, issued annually and covering 2008, cites 52 countries and territories for failing to combat human trafficking, up from 40 the previous year. While the rise was caused in part by an increase in the number of countries included in the report and the higher standards by...

Soft Market for Cashmere Takes Toll in China

Keith Bradsher June 22, 2009
The global economic crisis is now starting to be felt in even remote countries like China’s Inner Mongolia and normally less cyclical professions like goat herding. Demand for cashmere sweaters knit in China and exported to the US and Europe is down 30 percent this summer, causing raw cashmere prices to fall 50 percent and forcing many Mongolian goat herders to sell their flock to make ends meet...

The Great U-Turn

Patrick Barta, Joel Millman June 18, 2009
Over the past century, individuals seeking to better their lives have seen the US as the land of opportunity. But the recent economic recession has apparently changed this view, as some immigrants are deciding to return home, for good. But it is not just the US that faces this new trend. This year, many developed countries have seen double digit year-over-year drops in immigration rates from...