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The world

A jungle where only the law of the strongest holds? A mosaic of compatible cultures? A lonely planet undergoing a climate change that leaderships are ignoring? A volcano just before a global democratic revolution? Surely, an interesting place to observe, interpret, understand, manage, and change.

 

 
 

Contents


Essay: IPCC Special Report on how to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees and why

Full 2018 text in one PDF

Confirmation that our director, Valentino Piana, was one of the reviewer of the report

 

Essay: Global risks reports by the World Economic Forum

2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005

Look at how evolved the perception of economic, political, environmental global risks over the years in the full list of all WEF reports.

 

Essay: Green economy world index (October 2014)

PDF

Essay: Hierarchy structures in world trade
 
A new technique of analysis of trade values reveals the asymmetric structure of relationships among countries. The structure of world trade is characterised by bilateral absence of relations (82%) and dominance (40% in non-absent relationships), weak dominance (of two types: 24% and 22% respectively), whereas symmetric integration is just the 6% of non-absent relationships.

Essay Data

Essay: The dynamics of world trade structures

Essay: Climate change: the facts

Hundreds of major scientists at the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change have been working on climate change assessment on three fields: the assessment of the scientific evidence of the threat, the evaluation of impact and the mitigation strategy. Here you are the summary results of their evidence-based, consensus-based reports, which have been the reason for the Nobel Prize 2008 to be given to IPCC.

5th Assessment Report:

Link In mitigation: Sustainable Development and Equity PDF

 

The scientific evidence of the threat: Report released on 2 February 2007

The evaluation of impact: Report

Mitigation of Climate Change: Report

Earlier judgements: the 2001 Executive summary report

Essay: A multipolar world in 2025 - a US point of view

The U.S. National Intelligence Council released a scenario perspective of international power balance in the long term.

Full text

Essay: TRANSFORMING OUR WORLD: THE 2030 AGENDA FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

This text, approved in August 2015, will be debated and finally approved at the General Assembly. It contains humankind goals for 2030 in all countries: 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 targets demonstrate the scale and ambition of this new universal Agenda. They seek to build on the Millennium Development Goals and complete what these did not achieve. They seek to realize the human rights of all and to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. They are integrated and indivisible and balance the three dimensions of sustainable
development: the economic, social and environmental.

PDF

Essay: Global Environment Outlook (GEO-5) - 2012

The full text of the GEO-5 Summary for policymakers by the United Nations Environment Programme.

PDF

Essay: Global sustainability - an assessment and a call for action by a UN High Level Panel (2012)

Under the title: "Resilient People, Resilient Planet: A future worth choosing", more than 50 recommendations are motivated with analyses and reflections.

PDF

Essay: Policies for G20 job-rich recovery

 

Essay: World leadership: a survey of opinions

U.S. is unquestionably perceived to be the leading world power, and is followed at a distance by China; however U.S. will lose its currently undisputed role as the number one world power by the year 2020. This is the opionion of a large sample of citizens in Brazil, China,Germany, France, the United Kingdom, India, Japan, Russia and the U.S. which give answers on key issues of the future.

Full text

 

Essay: The decisions taken at the Bali Conference on climate change (Dec. 2007)

Responding to the findings of the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that warming of the climate system is unequivocal, and that delay in reducing emissions significantly constrains opportunities to achieve lower stabilization levels and increases the risk of more severe climate change impacts

Recognizing that deep cuts in global emissions will be required to achieve the ultimate objective of the Convention and emphasizing the urgency to address climate change as indicated in the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change,

The Conference of the Parties decides to launch a comprehensive process to enable the full, effective and sustained implementation of the Convention through long-term cooperative action, now, up to and beyond 2012.

Bali action plan

Web page with further PDF to download

 

Essay: Climate change and behavioural economics

The standard economic approach to climate change policy, with its almost exclusive emphasis on rational responses to monetary incentives, is seriously flawed. The new paradigm in economics shed light on how to cope with climate change. Humans are unique among animal species in their ability to cooperate across cultures, geographical space and generations. Tapping into this uniquely human attribute, and understanding how cooperation is enforced, holds the key to limiting the potentially calamitous effects of global climate change.

Essay

 

Essay: How market-based mechanisms for carbon emission trading work
 
The Kyoto Protocol opened the opportunity of launching new markets. The carbon marketplace in Europe has developed more rapidly and robustly than many observers expected. The 2005 totals represent 322 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e)—almost a 40-fold increase over the
previous years’ volumes.


In addition to the robust trading on European exchanges, the new international marketplace has triggered significant investments in Clean Development Mechanisms projects in developing nations. The result is a flow of investment dollars into economies that need it, and direct dividends in the form of carbon credits to the investing countries or companies. As of June 2006, more than 1,000 projects were in the CDM pipeline, including a large number of renewable energy projects.

Essay

 

Essay: Solving global problems by global networks

International networks of politicians, scientists, civil society to tackle difficult global problems, rating official and real policies of nation states and private firms. A challenging proposal by J-F. Rischard in an interview to OpenDemocracy.

 

Essay

 

Essay: Climate change from the point of view of business

The insurance and re-insurance industry has key data to evalutate the costs of climate change. SwissRe, a major re-assurance firm, has been monitoring climate change for years.

Qualitative Report

2004 Hurricane season

2006 report: The Effects of Climate Change - Storm Damage in Europe on the Rise

 

Economic data: Human development index (162 countries)

Rich reports of reflections and data.

2016 2015 2014 2013 2011 2010 2009 2008-2007

2004 2001

 

 

 

Economic data: Assessing the sustainability of the world

Link to data and tools

 

Economic data: World Economic and Social Survey by UN

Yearbooks from 1998 to 2007

 

Essay: Reinventing UNCTAD

In the dialectics among international organization as WTO, World Bank, ILO, etc. UNCTAD could find a new role.

Essay from the South Centre

 

 

Economic data: The shadow economy: an estimation for 145 economies

PDF

 

Economic data: Worldwide quality-of-life index (2005)

PDF

 

Economic data: Long-term macroeconomic data for 136 countries and 42 years

The most user-friendly distribution of the main international database on GDP components (consumption, investment, public expenditure and net exports) for 136 countries and 42 years. Excellent for international comparisons, long-term growth enquiries and business cycle analysis, since it provides real values at constant prices comparable over time and countries.

MS Excel

MS Access

 

Map: Global air pollution map

Image file

Explanation

 

Map: Global population density map

Image file

Explanation and country by country maps

 

Map: Atlas of a changing planet

+100 sites as they are now and as they were

 

Essay: Human rights respect reports

2004 - US opinion on all countries in the world, except US

2004 - China's opinion on US respect of human rights

 

Essay: UN Global ecosystems assessment report (2005)

A lot of data and theses over the present and the future, represented in four main scenarios:

Global Orchestration – This scenario depicts a globally connected society that focuses on global trade and economic liberalization and takes a reactive approach to ecosystem problems but that also takes strong steps to reduce poverty and inequality and to invest in public goods such as infrastructure and education. Economic growth in this scenario is the highest of the four scenarios, while it is assumed to have the lowest population in 2050.
Order from Strength – This scenario represents a regionalized and fragmented world, concerned with security and protection, emphasizing primarily regional markets, paying little attention to public goods, and taking a reactive approach to ecosystem problems. Economic growth rates are the lowest of the scenarios (particularly low in developing countries) and decrease with time, while population growth is the highest.
Adapting Mosaic – In this scenario, regional watershed-scale ecosystems are the focus of political and economic activity. Local institutions are strengthened and local ecosystem management strategies are common; societies develop a strongly proactive approach to the management of
ecosystems. Economic growth rates are somewhat low initially but increase with time, and population in 2050 is nearly as high as in Order from Strength.
TechnoGarden – This scenario depicts a globally connected world relying strongly on environmentally sound technology, using highly managed, often engineered, ecosystems to
deliver ecosystem services, and taking a proactive approach to the management of ecosystems in an effort to avoid problems. Economic growth is relatively high and accelerates, while population in 2050 is in the mid-range of the scenarios.

No scenario represents business as usual, although all begin from current conditions and trends.

Essay [6.6 MB] Other assessments

 

Debate site: World cities management

City Mayors examines and illustrate how city mayors, and others who govern metropolitan areas, develop innovative solutions to long-standing urban problems such as housing, transport, education and employment, but also how they meet the latest environmental, technological, social and security challenges which affect the well-being of their citizens.

Link

 

Debate site: How to approach difficult conflicts in the world

Beyond intractability of political, ethnical and economic conflicts.

Link

 

Essay: Innovative global funding sources for Millennium Development Goals

In order to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, substantial additional external funding needs to be mobilized. Estimates differ, but a ‘ballpark’ figure is an
annual increase of US$50 billion. This could be achieved by a doubling of official development assistance (ODA). Welcome steps have been made in that direction, but
this takes time, and time is of the essence. For this reason alone, it is necessary to consider new sources.

In the paper the authors consider seven new sources:
• Global environmental taxes (carbon-use tax);
• Tax on currency flows (the ‘Tobin tax’);
• Creation of new Special Drawing Rights (SDRs);
• International Finance Facility (IFF);
• Increased private donations for development;
• Global lottery and global premium bond; and
• Increased remittances from emigrants.

Essay

 

Economic data: Real world elasticity in 144 countries - Price elasticities and income elasticities of consumption classes (food and non-food) - Food share on household budget

MS Excel

 

Economic data: Exports, imports, trade balances for 181 countries - a time-series

Absolute figures, shares in world trade, rankings.

MS Excel

 

Economic data: 2004 Labour market levels and trends in all countries of the world: employment and unemployment in the general population, the youth, the women

MS Excel [1200 KB]

 

Economic data analysis: Skilled and unskilled wages in a globalizing world, 1968-1998

 

 

Economic data: Capital stock: a time-series by country

 

Economic data: How the world is coping with its main challenges according to 2004 GGI judgement and data

PDF [1000 KB]

 

Economic data: World energy demand and supply 2006

PDF

 

Economic data: Inflation rates for 170 countries (1970-1996)

Yearly dynamics of inflation is presented in one sheet. Is price stability a common feature of the world economies? Is hyperinflation a disease that hurts some groups of countries more than others? Discover the answers to these and many other macroeconomics questions just analysing the real data.

MS Excel

 

Map: Global atlas of human impact on the planet

PDF directory

Explanation

 

Essay: Complexity meets development - A Felicitous Encounter on the Road of Life
 
Essay

The whole number of Interdisciplinary Description of Complex Systems where the paper appeared first.

Economic data: 93 Food products prices in 198 countries (1985-2001)

The price of sugar, milk, meat and many more foodstuffs. Ideal to compare price structures over countries and time. By transforming these local-currency data in dollars, you can test the "one price law", according to which any good has the same price worldwide, after taken into account nominal exchange rates. Comparing with world wages, you get the real purchasing power of people in food terms.

MS Excel

 

Economic data: Gender statistics from all over the world

 

Economic data: World trade statistics

2000 2004

 

Economic data: Origins and destinations in world trade - Trade flows over time

MS Excel

 

Economic data: Population forecast for all countries in the world (total, urban, rural, density,...) as well as a complete 2004 State of the World population (health, indicators,...)

 

Economic data: Historical data about population, GDP and per-capita GDP in all countries of the world since centuries ago

 

Essay: State of the World 2003

The Worldwatch Institute provides compelling, accessible, and fact-based analysis of critical global issues, with a special attention to the environment.

Its flagship publication is this report, whose edition of 2003 can be downloade for free from the following page:

Essay

 

Economic data: Environmental respect data: the number of ISO14000 certified firms in 98 countries - a time-series

MS Excel

 

Economic data: Composition of public expenditure (education, health, defence...) - 69 countrie (1975-1985)

 

Essays: World trends

A collection of world change trends in economy, society, cultures.

Essays

 

Economic data: Gross domestic expenditure on R&D by source of funds in 71 countries

MS Excel

 

Economic data: The presence and employment of SMEs in 119 countries

 

Economic data: AIDS / HIV worldwide: a time-series

 

Economic data: Health and disease statistics worldwide

 

Economic data: Telephone calls country by country: a long time series

Minutes of conversation at the phone between couple of countries (193 available nations) from 1983 to 1995.

MS Excel

Reference site

 

Economic data: Comparable wages for 162 jobs in 132 countries

The MS Excel file with a user-friendly interface of the excellent dataset by Freeman - Oostendorp. Long-term time-series from 1983 to 1999. This data set allows for comparison of wages across countries for the same job, over time, underlining the differences between skilled and unskilled works.

MS Excel [2.9 MB]

 

Economic data: Productivity in 99 countries (1950-2000)

Direct link to Groningen Growth and Development Centre and The Conference Board, Total Economy Database, February 2004, at http://www.ggdc.net, where you'll find a lot of useful industry and macro data.


Economic data: World primary commodity prices (54 time series) - Agricolture Raw Materials, Metals (e.g. Zinc, Iron, Aluminium, Copper), Fertilizers, Petroleum, Natural Gas, etc. (1980-2001)

MS Excel

 

Economic data: Health and disease statistics worldwide

 

Book: Economic Democracy; The Political Struggle for the 21st Century

In this book, Dr. J.W. Smith states that IMF/World Bank structural adjustments continually lowers the wages of weak nations and thus exponentially increases the transfer of their wealth to the imperial-centers-of-capital. Instead of increasing the wages of the poorly-paid to the level of the well-paid, the wages of the well-paid are being lowered to the level of the low-paid.

Four primary rules and 15 subsidiary rules of Democratic Cooperative Capitalism are presented as alternatives for quickly developing the world and alleviating poverty.

Book

 

 

Economic data: Cocoa beans world prices (1971 - 2001)

MS Excel [5 KB]

 

 

Economic data: Coffee world prices (1982 - 2000)

Look at the difference in prices for consumers in importing countries and for growers in exporters country. Seasonality analysis feasible, since they are monthly data.

MS Excel [80 KB]

 

Essay: Energy technologies for the 21st century
 
A
comparative study about different energy technological progress by WEC.

Essay

 

Essay: 2004 World Population report

Not only numbers but also reflections on poverty alleviation, women’s rights and universal access to reproductive health.

Essay Site

 

Economic data: Updated macroeconomic and industrial data for all over the world

An excellent source of analyses and data, aimed at expressing country risk rating evaluations.

Site

 

Essay: The State of the World's Children (2005)

Essay Statistical data

Links to international political data: Current election results all over the world

 

Links to international data: World data (1926-1944)

 

 
 
 

 

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