Is a Festival of Economics an oxymoron or is the annual event held in Trento something special?
Rio+20 rocked by CSD19 flop
Expectations of Rio+20, technically known as CSD20, tend to forget that CSD19 comes first. It wasn’t a success.
No place to hide for G8 leaders on foreign aid
International pressure to honor pledges of foreign aid contends with domestic imperatives to slash public spending. This is just one of the dilemmas facing leaders of the world’s most powerful economies at their summit starting on Thursday in the French town of Deauville.
IMF owes no favours to Europe
There’s a breathtaking arrogance in demands by European leaders to choose the next IMF head on grounds that the euro crisis dominates the IMF agenda.
Trento examines the borders of economic freedom
The 6th annual Festival of Economics opens next week in the Italian city of Trento. “The Borders of Economic Freedom” will be debated by a wide range of distinguished speakers, including Amartya Sen, Vaclav Havel, Dani Rodrik and William Easterly.
German diplomat probes the African question
Do African countries really have the desire or the capacity to copy western countries or the Asian tigers? A German diplomat considers the question.
Child soldiers add questions for Pakistan
A new focus on Pakistan in the UN Secretary-General’s annual report on Children and Armed Conflict may complicate the task of rebuilding relations with the US in the aftermath of the killing of Osama bin Laden.
Let’s get real about two degrees
The first major publication of the Indian Network for Climate Change Assessment predicts a worryingly high average temperature rise for the region.
ILO revenge on DFID
Donors love immunization programmes because it’s easy to count the beneficiaries. The significant role of young people in the Arab Spring may force a rethink on priorities.
Happy days of hunter-gathering
A new book on the role of food in shaping history suggests that stone age man was taller than our modern selves.