In The News

Ending Isolation – Part II

Andrea Armeni April 25, 2012
International sanctions are intended to signal displeasure about another country’s direction and promote change. This YaleGlobal series examines separate trade bans directed at Burma and Cuba, questioning whether long-term isolation provides enough incentive for wayward states to pursue reforms. The United States imposed a near-complete trade embargo on neighboring Cuba one half century ago after...

US Battle to Revive Manufacturing – Part II

Clyde Prestowitz April 13, 2012
Jobs remain a central concern for the US voters and the 2012 presidential campaign. Candidates of opposing parties, and even insiders of the Obama administration, debate whether government intervention, including subsidies for particular industries, helps or hurts companies. This YaleGlobal series analyzes the US effort to jumpstart manufacturing, and in the second article, Clyde Prestowitz,...

US Battle to Revive Manufacturing – Part I

Bruce Stokes April 11, 2012
As the US confronts stubborn unemployment and a shrinking industrial base, a battle is shaping up about reviving manufacturing. Running for reelection, President Obama has embraced manufacturing and export renaissance, even as free-market supporters find fault in what they call his “industrial policy.” In this two-part series, YaleGlobal examines the political and ideological implications of...

World Momentum Builds for Universal Health Coverage

Yanzhong Huang March 9, 2012
The US may resist universal health care coverage, but less wealthy emerging economies are investing in providing health care to all. Despite the economic recession, nearly 100 countries are studying how to institute government-funded programs, aiming to offer affordable basic care for all citizens and control costs, reports Yanzhong Huang, senior fellow for global health at the Council on...

For US, Europe’s Debt Woes Are an Ocean Away

Bruce Stokes February 13, 2012
Ignoring the European debt crisis is reckless for a major economy like the US – though riots in the streets of Athens, a reaction to austerity measures, may prompt new heed. Bruce Stokes points to many reasons for the US to act swiftly on the euro-crisis: Nearly 60 percent of overseas profits for US multinationals come from the continent, with 20 percent of US exports headed to Europe; austerity...

Tax Reform May Not Bring US Jobs Back

David Dapice February 3, 2012
Technology and ever-growing productivity – not outsourcing – are the main culprits behind declining jobs in the United States. The US president has proposed revising tax policy to encourage companies to apply growing profits to factories and research inside the US. But manufacturing is going the way of agriculture; fewer workers producing more. “Because of automation and technology, each factory...

Global Causes Attract Growing Share of US Giving

Susan Froetschel January 10, 2012
After the 2008 global recession, Americans understandably tightened their purse strings for charitable giving. Yet giving to international causes rose by about 15 percent in 2010 – the largest percentage increase of all categories, including religion, health or education, according to Giving USA Foundation. Nonprofits in the international affairs category attracted 5 percent of US contributions,...