In The News

Europe’s Double Jeopardy

Nayan Chanda May 24, 2013
Reliance on austerity measures could still push Europe into recession. But political leaders are responding to criticism from the International Monetary Fund and others – that austerity failed to deliver economic relief. An end to belt-tightening could improve consumer demand, increasing hiring and government revenues, but an aging population and large numbers of unemployed youth pose challenges...

The Promise of Africa

Ian Shapiro May 23, 2013
Energetic and talented leaders, intent on contributing to Africa’s rise, gathered for the World Economic Forum on Africa 2013 in early May. The WEF is an independent international organization committed to engaging business, political, academic and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. Africa has its share of failed or near failing states, but others are...

Temporary Immigrants Mean Temporary Loyalties

Ratna Omidvar May 23, 2013
The lingering effects of global recession contribute to high unemployment rates and immigration policies favoring temporary guest-worker arrangements over an eventual path toward citizenship. Canada has reduced emphasis on family reunification, treating parents and grandparents as tourists and imposing a two-year period of “conditional” residence on sponsored spouses. The country still offers a...

“I Am With the Uprising of Arab Women”

Marcia C. Inhorn May 21, 2013
It may surprise those who view Arab society as traditional and conservative that many Arab Muslim men are supportive of women’s rights. Marcia Inhorn, a Yale professor of anthropology, interviewed more than 300 men from 14 Arab nations – and reports in Slate that many men seek love and companionship in marriage and education and equality for their daughters. “The hundreds of professions of love...

India-China Love-Hate on the Silver Screen

Coonoor Kripalani May 21, 2013
In April Chinese troops moved inside the temporary line of actual control along the disputed border with India. Indian troops countered by setting up camp nearby in a standoff that ended 20 days later, before the official visit of China’s Premier Li Keqiang to New Delhi. For Indian cinema buffs, the recent events along the frozen heights of Ladakh, may seem like life imitating art, or the 1964...

Changing American Perceptions of US Adversaries, One Dish at a Time

Heather Maher May 16, 2013
Appreciation for delicious cuisine connects individuals and can put conflicts on the back burner. Since 2010 Conflict Kitchen in Pittsburgh has served the dishes of countries at odds with the United States, including Afghanistan, Iran and Cuba. The motivation for co-founders, one of whom is a professor at Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Art, was to diversify to the city’s ethnic food...

Rescuing the European Model

Joergen Oerstroem Moeller May 2, 2013
Europe has suffered through a debt crisis, but governments are trimming, not abandoning, social welfare programs. Such modifications could become a model for economic globalization around the globe, suggests Joergen Oerstroem Moeller, a senior research fellow with the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore. Europe is reducing budgets while preserving social protections for the future...