The good news, then, is that the world in 2030 will be more prosperous. Indeed, the middle class could swell to over 5.5 billion people, predominantly in Asia. But it will also be significantly more unequal in individual countries. The European and North American middle class may not get much relief given current growth and […]
You may know the name Thomas Piketty. His work launched him to prime time as the “rock star economist”; his sultry French accent and general attractiveness, of course, helped. You may not know the name of his intellectual counterpart: Branko Milanović. Balding and bespectacled, the 63-year-old looks much more like a dismal scientist than a […]
The first decade of this century witnessed an historic reduction in global poverty and a near doubling of the number of people who could be considered middle income. But the emergence of a truly global middle class is still more promise than reality. Read Here – Pew Research
The modern loosening of ties between the citizen and the state, apart from a number of beneficial consequences, also altered the nature of citizenship, depriving it of some of its psychological value without diminishing its practical worth. Read Here – WorldAffairsJournal
The poorest half of the world’s population—that’s 3.5 billion people—control as much wealth as the richest 85 individuals! Read Here – Businessweek
We are seeing a tremendous rise in living standards across Asia, with poverty disappearing everywhere you look. In China, for example, since initiating market reforms, more than 600 million people have been rescued from absolute poverty. We’ll see a far greater improvement in living standards within the region than we have seen in centuries. And, […]
Russian President Vladimir Putin may have toppled Barack Obama at the very top of the list, but China’s Xi Jinping has claimed the highest ranking among Asians (and third overall) in Forbes magazine’s latest survey of the world’s most powerful people. Read Here – The Diplomat
When Dhaka’s street battles began to intensify earlier this year, the ambulances started to pour out onto the streets. Going to pick up the dead and injured? In many cases, no. Instead, they were often used to shuttle expats, businessmen and rich kids to airports, offices and garment factories. Read Here – The Diplomat
The new super-rich have no allegiance, obligation or connection to wider society. They live in a mirror-lined bubble – and a legally entitled one. Can anything beyond another crash change things? Read Here – The New Statesman
George Soros cites Isaiah Berlin as an important intellectual influence, so it makes sense to see Soros through one of the Riga-born philosopher’s best-known lenses — the division of the world into foxes and hedgehogs. In his public life, Soros is a broad-minded fox: As a hedge fund manager, his success rested on his ability to make many […]
looking beyond borders 