YaleGlobal

Values are a uniting force around the globe, slowly replacing an era of industry and economics, and soft power is more enticing than hard power for a global audience. National leaders may try to set new conditions for universal standards of justice, known as the moral high ground, but they can anticipate a struggle in justifying extreme and unreasonable claims for informed citizens in their own nations and elsewhere. Increasingly, cities, states and other entities reject the foreign policy stances of their own governments to work with likeminded people overseas, explains author and economist Joergen Oerstroem Moeller.

Sand is indispensable for construction, roads and oil recovery even as nations try to protect coasts and supplies.

Disasters no longer seem like rare events with the internet and smartphones delivering instant, compelling stories for a global audience that is curious, observant and active on social media. Most odious are false reports drafted to misdirect responsibility and create an atmosphere of mistrust.

As the globe's population swells from about 2 billion people a century ago to more than 7 billion today, migration numbers are on the rise, too, from about 173 million in 2000 to about 250 million today. Will Hickey, author and associate professor with the School of Government and Public Policy in Indonesia, analyzes the dilemma for countries in trying to separate refugees based on their motivation, economic or political. Refugees search for a better life, and the line between economic and political security is blurred and the stories from either side are equally heartbreaking.

YaleGlobal Article: The Futile Goal of Winning Wars - Developed nations have specific operational vulnerabilities and much to lose; the US president needs to understand the meaning of victory and defeat

YaleGlobal Article: Disrupting US-China Relations Will Incur High Costs - Efficient production lines, millions of jobs and affordable consumer products of all types depend on stable US-Chinese relations

YaleGlobal article: The Hidden Global Trade in Patient Medical Data - The goal to global trade in health data is new treatments, but government regulations do not keep pace.

YaleGlobal article: Waste Not, Want Not. Researchers develop new technologies, working with entrepreneurs and designers to recycling all kinds of waste into new products which are then sold back to consumers or scattered into the environment.

YaleGlobal: Africa's Population Growth Could Undermine Sustainability - the world's fastest growing region must aim for population stabilization to ensure peace

YaleGlobal article "Wanted: Equal Opportunity Globalization" about income inequality, technology, trade and globalization: Working class in the developed world blames Asia's high growth rates for economic woes rather than policies that reinforce inequality at home.

Many voters in the United Kingdom are having second thoughts about leaving the European Union, and not simply because of the plummeting value of currency or stock markets. The referendum's outcome instantly transformed the UK's reputation, from being open to trade and diversity to being isolated and insecure. The message contained in the decision to leave the European Union resonates with a lot of people in other countries, explains Farok Contractor, a professor at Rutgers Business School and expert in foreign direct investment, adding that the vote highlighted growing worldwide anxiety over the impact of globalization.

The world's most troublesome borders for illegal migration have one thing in common, more older people on one side than the other. Large gaps in the median age on either side show a difference of 19 years for Northern Africa and Southern Europe, and 11 years for the United States and Central America. Age differences between sending and receiving nations are a powerful force exerting migratory pressures on borders, argues Joseph Chamie, a demographer and former director of the UN Population Division.

YaleGlobal: Turkey No Longer a Democratic Model for the Middle East - Ambitions of Turkey's President Erdogan are damaging the nation's standing with regional and international partners.

YaleGlobal article "Of Two Minds on China" by Terry Lautz - One side of China pursues openness and reforms; another side insists that unity and stability are paramount.

College administrators encourage civic engagement for all students, and international students are following the US presidential race. College administrators encourage civic engagement, so international students attend rallies, write op-eds and volunteer for presidential candidates.

The nuclear security summits raised awareness and improved security, but threat of terrorists seizing fissile material is high.

To avoid marginalization and over-reliance on China, Russia should repair ties with the West

Turkey's Justice and Development Party, also known as AKP, won 317 seats in the General National Assembly with Sunday's elections more than expected and more than the 276 needed for a majority, but not enough to change the constitution directly. The results confounded pollsters since AKP failed to win a majority in June elections or form a coalition government. Confronting renewed conflict with Kurdish militant groups and the devastating consequences of four years of war in Syria, Turks voted to continue current policies to manage the country's long-running conflicts, writes Chris Miller, associate director of Yale University's Grand Strategy Program. Western partners are impatient with the Turkish presidents intolerance of opposition. The decisive win, combined with increased support for AKP from ethnic Kurds, could add pressure for a peace deal with Kurdish PKK militants, Miller explains. Turkey's ruling party and the Kurds have reason to cooperate in battling Islamic State extremists that control large sections of neighboring Syria and threaten the entire region.YaleGlobal

Early reports on China’s Five-Year Plan outlining the government’s strategic priorities for 2016 to 2020 indicate preparations for slowed yet more sustainable economic growth. The plan involves ongoing transition toward an economy that promotes service industries, private consumption, innovation and entrepreneurship. The plan endorses a diversified economy, emphasizing quality rather than quantity for development and avoiding aimless pursuit of hyper-growth, explains Stephen S. Roach, a Yale faculty member. Roach maintains that a secure economy requires confident citizens. The government’s increased emphasis on a social safety net may convince Chinese households to feel more secure about their future and confident about spending, key for sustained growth. A final and detailed plan will be released in March. – YaleGlobal

Vladimir Putin, determined to revive Russia's status as a global power, has rapidly mobilized forces to bolster the Assad regime in Syria. He orchestrated a meeting with US President Barack Obama at the September UN General Assembly meeting, to give the appearance that he is taking charge of ending the Islamic State's expansion in Iraq and Syria, explains Thomas Graham, a senior fellow at the Jackson Institute for Global Affairs based at Yale University. The move carries risks, and the United States still has great capacity to influence the region with its response.

Investors around the world seek secure places to store assets. Chinese firms and individuals hold enormous amounts of liquid money, and many seek to diversify with non-Chinese assets. Farok J. Contractor, professor at Rutgers, suggests that Chinese firms may be creating subsidiaries to ease transfers, which explains why as much as 70 percent of outbound foreign direct investment capital from China flows to Caribbean nations and Hong Kong.

As NATO withdraws from Afghanistan, India and Pakistan must step up and cooperate on security.

Seeking global clout, China's position on sanctity of sovereignty evolves.

China, Europe, Japan, US – 70 percent of the global economy – require swift G20 intervention.

The globe may be safe from the euro debt crisis – if countries don’t join the downward spiral.

Budgetary balance and need to develop alternatives, are reasons to end fuel subsidies.

Scarborough Shoal standoff reveals blunt edge of China’s peaceful rise.

As rebels gain territory, Syrian guards could abandon chemical-weapon arsenals.

YaleGlobal article published on March 30, 2012

Article published in YaleGlobal Online April 16, 2012

YaleGlobal article published on April 4, 2012

YaleGlobal Online article published April 13, 2012

Shelving of giant Chinese hydroelectric dam could be a signal to the West.

Focused on their own security, India, Brazil, South Africa hesitate to promote democracy elsewhere.

Raging floods in Thailand disrupt global supply chains and exports, threatening economic security.

Alarmed by the US in decline, South Korean hardliners push for nuclear-weapon development.

In an interview with YaleGlobal editor Nayan Chanda Ghana’s Vice President John Dramani Mahama says how stigma of homosexuality hampers fighting AIDS, talks about the role of telecommunication in political transformation, voices concern about NATO attacks on Libya, and Ghana’s effort to avoid the curse of wealth from natural resources.

Delicate handling and consistent policies can help China regain the trust of neighbors.

China, claiming an aversion to using force for international conflicts, hedges on Libya.

Bulging youth populations, limited opportunities and repression create an explosive mix in the Middle East.

A new world order, depending on the BRICs, is not emerging anytime soon.

Government can balance competition with social protections, controlling globalization.

After Fukushima, consumers’ radiation worries are normal, but should focus on public-policy planning.

In North Africa and East Asia, former enemies can compromise and build new governments.

One activist, and an angry middle class, rallied to protest India’s endemic corruption.

China, India and Brazil target Mozambique for energy and strategic reasons

To fuel its own growth, China emerges as Africa's major trade partner.

Calamity also offers a stricken Japan the possibility of a rebirth.

As China and India demonstrate military preparedness, Europe dithers.