From the transformation of economics to economic transformation: Pathways to a better future
The school will take place online only, from 16 to 23 August 2020. The Initiative will host a pre-meeting on 15 August, allowing all participants to get to know each other before the school begins.
The global financial crisis triggered widespread protests against the power of finance and the deep inequalities and anxieties that haunt the hyperglobalized world, but did not inspire any courageous reform effort or produce a serious rethinking of how we approach the ordering of economic life.
Restoring the health of the financial sector and the portfolios of institutional investors was the priority of policymakers, while protecting the livelihoods of working families and assisting the recovery of local communities was relegated to a second-order problem, at best.
As a result, the norms, rules and institutions of the hyperglobalized world survived largely intact and the economic theories that failed to see or, worse still, contributed to, the disaster have continued to dominate university curricula and to frame the range of acceptable policy options to economic challenges facing governments at all levels of development.
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis has highlighted – arguably more profoundly than before – the disconnect between what makes for healthy communities and what constitutes a healthy economy.
The school welcomes applications from young policymakers and scholars, as well as members of the diplomatic corps based in Geneva.
Deadline for applications: 10 August
The abrupt work stoppage forced developed country Governments to provide novel support packages for distressed families and there is a good deal of talk about building a better recovery that leaves no one behind, yet even the significant national packages adopted by Group of 20 member countries have focused on bailing out large corporations, while the international community has failed to provide meaningful support to countries lacking the fiscal and policy space to deal with the pandemic, let alone with the significant economic damage resulting from what the International Monetary Fund has called the “great lockdown”.
Summer School 2020 aims to connect the intellectual challenge of rethinking economic analysis to the practical challenge of building a healthier, more resilient, more equal and greener future for all. Students will have the opportunity to apply for one-to-one mentorship with the speakers and can participate in a blogpost writing competition, by submitting a short, accessible article on one of the themes addressed, benefiting from the advice of the speakers. For details, visit the Young Scholars Initiative platform.
