Posted on

Towards a Non-Extractive and Care-Driven Academia

by Vijay Kolinjivadi, Gert Van Hecken, Jennifer Casolo, Shazma Abdulla and Rut Elliot Blomqvist

The white gaze permeates many aspects of even the most critical disciplines. In this piece, we offer some thoughts on how we might reclaim what the university could be  – a place that equips people with the knowledge they need to unlearn/unmake/dismantle the knowledge framings and worldviews that lend themselves to white supremacy and other forms of oppression more broadly.  Continue reading “Towards a Non-Extractive and Care-Driven Academia”

Posted on

Surging or Subsiding? How Mining Sector Booms Impact Female Empowerment

By Audrey Au Yong Lyn

Mexico experienced a major mining boom as a result of the 2007-2008 global financial crisis, which produced sharp increases in the prices of precious metals mined in Mexico such as gold and silver. Mining is a male-dominated profession, so what happened to female welfare during the boom? This think piece discusses the results of a study of data from mining communities in Mexico before and during the boom on two significant determinants of female empowerment, namely intra-household decision making and intimate partner violence (IPV). Continue reading “Surging or Subsiding? How Mining Sector Booms Impact Female Empowerment”

Posted on

Economics (really) needs to change: Introducing ‘Wellbeing Economics’ by Nicky Pouw

By Nicky Pouw

Beneath the surface of neoclassical economics lies unwavering faith in the pursuit of big numbers: more is always better. More growth means more income, more supply and production, more employment, more demand, more investment, more growth, and so forth. Big numbers give people a certain sense of security; everything is ‘going well’ and the economy is ‘healthy’. Only when a crisis hits, such as the current COVID-19 virus, people seem to become aware of the danger that lurks in big numbers; namely, they always involve tipping points and introduce risk into other areas, such as public health or international security. By ‘tipping point’, I mean that a certain equilibrium is upset, such as the equilibrium in economic growth or the balance between supply and demand. Continue reading “Economics (really) needs to change: Introducing ‘Wellbeing Economics’ by Nicky Pouw”

Posted on

It’s about Europe’s future, stupid!

Against the background of the global Corona pandemic, there is an urgent need for the EU to step up its international cooperation efforts.

By Michael Obrovsky

Reacting rather swiftly to the economic and social effects of the COVID-19 crisis, The European Council in its July 2020 meeting has agreed on the reconstruction instrument “NextGenerationEU“. The latter features a financial volume of € 750 billion to strengthen the EU budget 2021-2024 and € 1,074.3 billion for the long-term budget (MFF Multiannual Financial Framework) for the period 2021-2027. While new instruments and billions of euros are being provided for the recovery of the European economy, the EU’s international cooperation framework with the Global South is still based on a pre-COVID-19 approach. Continue reading “It’s about Europe’s future, stupid!”

Posted on

Insects on the Plates!

By Sarah Nischalke and Sebastian Forneck

Finding people who love to feast on insects and collect them from the wild, handing them a few plastic boxes with simple trays for vegetable waste from the kitchen, water and for egg laying/breeding- and ready is the mini-livestock farm that produce crickets, locusts or other insects that go into processing for snacks made of insect flour, and, voila: there is a vibrant insect market… Continue reading “Insects on the Plates!”