Project Syndicate

The Main Street Manifesto

2020-06-28

The historic protests sweeping America were long overdue, not just as a response to racism and police violence, but also as a revolt against entrenched plutocracy.

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The Pandemic Must Transform Global Agriculture

2020-06-24

The COVID-19 crisis has highlighted the risks of unhealthy diets and the extreme fragility of the global food system.

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The Pandemic Must End Our Complacency

2020-06-22

With an economic downturn as severe as the Great Depression and political conditions similar to those in the run-up to World War I, an international system built on globalization now hangs in the balance.

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China’s “Peaceful Rise” Vanishes in Thin Air

2020-06-19

With the worlds attention focused on the pandemic, Chinese troops have been establishing fixed positions in areas that even it considers to be on the Indian side of the disputed

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How People Power Strengthens the Rule of Law

2020-06-16

Dynamic grassroots movements are especially needed in authoritarian states where institutions are fundamentally broken. But even in established democracies...

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Less Globalization, More Multilateralism

2020-06-14

While some degree of deglobalization may be desirable today, this process also carries grave risks, from skyrocketing production costs to geopolitical conflict.

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The Post-Pandemic Social Contract

2020-06-13

While many recent proposals for reforming capitalism would substantially change the way our economies operate, they do not fundamentally alter the narrative about how market economies should work; nor do they represent a radical departure for economic pol

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Preventing an Emerging-Market Meltdown

2020-06-11

Emerging markets today account for more than two-fifths of global GDP measured at market exchange rates, and nearly three-fifths after adjusting for differences in purchasing power.

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The End of Europe’s Chinese Dream

2020-06-02

The COVID-19 crisis has pushed Europeans strategic thinking about China – already shifting because of three developments – past the tipping point. After years of pursuing closer bilateral economic ties, Europeans suddenly realize that they have become dan

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A Chronicle of a Lost Decade Foretold

2020-05-31

Many on the left still cling to the hope that the COVID-19 crisis will translate into the use of state power on behalf of the powerless. But those in authority have never hesitated to harness government intervention to the preservation of oligarchy...

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What Should We Be Preparing For?

2020-05-30

In most emerging and developing countries, COVID-19 is causing an economic hurricane. It looks increasingly like a Category 5, but the international community and many national governments prepared for a tropical storm.

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China Is Its Own Worst Enemy

2020-05-27

Had Chinese President Xi Jinpings communist regime been wise, it would have sought to repair the pandemic-inflicted damage to Chinas image by showing empathy and compassion to other countries.

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How Germany Contained the Coronavirus

2020-05-27

Compared to many other countries, Germany has managed the COVID-19 crisis well, owing to its properly funded health system, technological edge, and decisive leadership. But beyond any unique feature of the German system is something that all countries can

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Nature Is Our Best Antiviral

2020-05-18

Many countries are already demonstrating how we can build stronger bonds between nature, our economy, and our health.

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The Misguided War on Global Value Chains

2020-05-13

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought economies around the world to an abrupt halt and highlighted the fragility of existing global value chains. But demolishing these key drivers of international trade and investment would only make a bad situation worse.

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The Case for Deeply Negative Interest Rates

2020-05-13

Only monetary policy addresses credit throughout the economy. Until inflation and real interest rates rise from the grave, only a policy of effective deep negative interest rates, backed up by measures to prevent cash hoarding by financial firms, can do t

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Where Is the Local News About COVID-19?

2020-05-04

As if disinformation and confusion about COVID-19 at the national level were not bad enough, the pandemic also coincides with rising authoritarianism and declining local news coverage in many countries. Now more than ever...

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Building a Post-Pandemic World Will Not Be Easy

2020-05-04

While both remind us that the Anthropocene epoch may jeopardize our continued existence, and that benign everyday behavior can result in catastrophic outcomes, such similarities must not obscure crucial differences.

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Target R and Wait for the Vaccine

2020-04-28

Opening up the economy means allowing more human interaction and hence greater potential for new #COVID19 infections. Two numbers matter for deciding whether this can be done safely any time soon.

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The International Order After COVID-19

2020-04-28

At first blush, the coronavirus pandemic seems likely to corroborate the argument for deeper international cooperation to confront shared global challenges. But crises tend to intensify and accelerate preexisting trends – in this case, the rise of anti-gl

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Disunited States

2020-04-26

Long held up as a model for Europe, the United States is now also suffering from balkanization, internal competition, out-of-touch and short-sighted leadership

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The Chinese Health Organization?

2020-04-26

If the World Health Organization is to spearhead international health policy and respond to disease outbreaks effectively, it must pursue deep reforms aimed at broadening its jurisdiction and authority.

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The Moral Crisis of the Pandemic

2020-04-20

COVID-19 has intensified our dependence on local communities, and we are riveted by stories of community resilience in the face of an unseen peril.

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The Human-Capital Costs of the Crisis

2020-04-16

Unlike a hurricane or earthquake, the coronavirus pandemic has caused no damage to physical capital stock. But firm-specific skills have no value when the firm that uses them goes out of business, which is one reason why US productivity...

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