Tuesday, December 20, 2011

The Price of Civilization

[Source: The Oxford Martin School on YouTube]

Keynote Speaker: Professor Jeffrey Sachs, Director, The Earth Institute, Columbia University


Lecture summary: 'The Price of Civilization: Reawakening American Virtue and Prosperity'.

Sachs argues that for the U.S. to regain sound fiscal health the country must also reform its politics. While economic recovery necessitates coming to terms with global realities, America must also rein in lobbyists' power and political spin and limit corporate contributions. Sachs explains why the complexity of the world economy means that the American form of capitalism, with a hands-off government allowing market forces to govern the economic realm, guarantees a future of instability. He tells us why we must agree on a role for government in the equation and reach a consensus on the values that unite us as citizens of the world.

Monday, December 12, 2011

U.S.: The worst income inequality?

[Source: CNN Money]

Interview with Branko Milanović, lead economist in the World Bank's research department and author of "The Haves and the Have-Nots"



Thursday, November 17, 2011

The Collaborative Consumption Revolution

Why The Collaborative Consumption Revolution Might Be As Significant As The Industrial Revolution

[Source: TechCrunch article]




Tuesday, November 1, 2011

How economic inequality harms societies

"Richard Wilkinson charts the hard data on economic inequality, and shows what gets worse when rich and poor are too far apart: real effects on health, lifespan, even such basic values as trust."

[Source: TED Talks] 


 

Friday, October 14, 2011

Transforming Cultures: From Consumerism to Sustainability

[Source: Worldwatch Institute Blogs]

The Rise and Fall of Consumer Cultures


"State of the World 2010" Project Director Erik Assadourian presents the findings at Allegheny College on Earth Day

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Monday, July 4, 2011

Monday, June 20, 2011

Jeffrey Sachs on the Corporate Influence in Politics

[Source: Project Syndicate]


The column discussed is "The Global Economy's Corporate Crime Wave" by Jeffrey Sachs and can be read at http://bit.ly/kMEguZ  and his column on Project Syndicate is at http://bit.ly/jeffdsachs

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Umair Haque: Building a 21st Century Economy

[Source: Umair Haque's Blog]


Presented at TEDxOxbridge on June 4, 2011

Monday, June 13, 2011

What Happened to Our Dream of Freedom

"The Trap: What Happened to Our Dream of Freedom" is a BBC documentary series in 3 parts of about one hour each, made by Adam Curtis

Part 1 of 3 -


View the entire series in playlist mode or by clicking 'Up Next' after each part, starting with Part 1 above.

The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power

Source [The Corporation Film]

This is Part 1 of 23 -


View the entire film in playlist mode or by clicking 'Up Next' after each part, starting with Part 1 above.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

The Story of Stuff: Citizens United vs FEC

[Source: The Story of Stuff Project]

The Story of Citizens United v. FEC, an exploration of the inordinate power that corporations exercise in our democracy.


Also read: related blog post

Thursday, February 17, 2011

CEOs on capitalism’s challenges

Four CEOs discuss the difficulties of managing an evolving business environment with the long term in mind, and of working with stakeholders and communities interested in more than bottom-line returns.

[Source: McKinsey Quarterly]


Caterpillar’s Jim Owens, The Carlyle Group’s David Rubenstein, Starbucks’s Howard Schultz, and Unilever’s Paul Polman discuss some of the current challenges to capitalism—ranging from long-term planning and stakeholder management to building trust and consumer confidence—and how companies can address them in a socially responsible way.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Rethinking Capitalism

Michael Porter explains why business leaders must focus on shared value.



[Source: blip.tv and HBR Blogs]