The global crises have prompted calls for new ways of thinking about what can be done to steer economic development in a greener direction. Since, in politics, one should ‘never let a serious crisis go to waste’, this is the time to take bold steps. Jeffery Sachs and Peter May offer their views on the possibility and necessity to develop a new, green economics.
Globalisation and the Future of Terrorism: Patterns and Predictions, by Brynjar Lia. Contemporary Security Studies Series, Routledge, 2006, 280 pp.
Some countries have shifted resources to stimulate ‘green economy’ opportunities, looking to capitalize on societal concerns about the spillovers of profligate consumption during the recent speculative bubble. Under the banner of a ‘Global Green N...
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International missions that aim to support stability, peace- and state-building in crisis areas are often unsure of how to move forward. The idea is gaining ground that a ‘revisioning’ of such interventions is needed. Hybrid is the new buzzword.&n...
Complexity approaches have a lot to offer the aid business, if it is not already too late. We asked Nils Boesen to comment on the blog postings from a recent conference.
Is aid in crisis? Probably it is, but only in its current form. Because there will always be people who want to care for others in our interconnected world, whether for reasons of solidarity or ‘enlightened self-interest’. But, for the sake of arg...
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Sustained and widespread future prosperity will require basic reforms in global governance and in macroeconomic science. Such reforms will not be easy, as they require entirely new ways of thinking.
Growth for growth’s sake is no longer an option. Ecological economists are calling for a ‘green’ revision of incentives and investments, as the starting point for achieving societies that are sustainable in environmental, social as well as economi...
A few months ago I was in Ghana and visited St George’s castle in Elmina, the infamous fort used by the Dutch to hold large numbers of African slaves prior to their ‘export’ to the New World. The Dutch captured the fort from the Portuguese in 1637...
The Aga Khan Trust for Culture is restoring historic buildings in cities across the Muslim world. While culture can be a catalyst for development, urban poverty remains a massive challenge.
Faced with new geopolitical and environmental challenges, the French government as well as NGOs are changing their rhetoric. A focus on European and international efforts to promote a sustainable world is replacing old slogans of development.
International development, humanitarian and military interventions aim to bring about change, but with mixed results. The fields of change management and complexity science offer useful lessons for those engaged in poor and fragile states.
Development aid is the subject of heavy debate. In many ways the world has improved immensely over the past sixty years. Hoever, the question is increasingly being raised as to what contribution aid has made to this development. Progress has prima...
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