Heterodox Economics Newsletter

Issue 180 May 11, 2015 web pdf Heterodox Economics Directory

Within the past few weeks we have been working to improve the journal-coverage of the Heterodox Economics Newsletter by employing a more systematic and inclusive list of journals generally included in the Newsletter. Most of the relevant information for doing so is accrued by automated email-Alerts provided by the journals' publishers. So if you want us to include your favorite journal simply make a suggestion and we will try to expand our list of journal-subscriptions.

While I hope this change will further improve the scope and usefulness of the Newsletter, recycling Table of Contents - Alerts for academic journals is still an ambivalent experience: on the hand I strongly believe that a more inclusive collection of heterodox journals presented in the Newsletter is a considerable asset, since it allows to quickly review current advances in various areas of heterodox research. On the other hand, doing so means to promote the products of academic publishers, which often play a rather dubious role in science: For-profit publishers in academia generate high profits due to collusion and the exercise of market power vis-a-vis single agents as well as institutional subscribers in a highly concentrated market, although most inputs (such as authoring and reviewing papers) are provided to the publishers for free by the academic community (see here for short introduction to this important issue and here for some additional information).

Keeping this qualification in mind, I hope you will appreciate this expansion of our services!

All the Best,

Jakob

© public domain

Table of contents

Call for Papers

19th FMM Conference on "The Spectre of Stagnation? Europe in the World Economy" (Berlin, 2015)

22-24 October, 2015 | Best Western Premier Hotel Steglitz International, Berlin

Deadline for Submissions: June 30, 2015

While the Great Financial Crisis has left its mark almost everywhere in the world economy, its regions have taken different paths in the aftermath. Europe, in particular, still suffers a prolonged slump with vast levels of unemployment and outright deflation posing a threat to political and social stability of the European Union. Is stagnation the new normal for Europe? Why did some parts of the world recover faster after the crisis, while others did not? Are their paths economically, ecologically and socially sustainable or do they only mask a general trend towards stagnation? The conference will discuss theoretical and empirical aspects as well as policy options. It will also deal with the implications of these developments for the economics curriculum.

The submission of papers in the following areas is encouraged:

For the open part of the conference the submission of papers on the general subject of the Research Network – Macroeconomics and Macroeconomic Policies – is encouraged as well. We particularly welcome submissions of papers for graduate student sessions on both the specific topic of this conference and the general subject of FMM. Graduate students who already presented a paper in previous FMM conferences are encouraged to submit to the regular sessions in order to improve chances for newcomers. There will also be a day of introductory lectures for graduate students prior to the opening panel on 22 October. Hotel costs will be covered for participants presenting in the graduate student sessions (for a maximum of four nights from 21 to 24 October).

All details, including submission procedure, are available at the FMM website.

Joint-Conference on "Teaching Economics in the 21st Century" (Berlin, 2015)

26-29 November, 2015 | Berlin School of Economics and Law, Germany

Conference Theme: "Teaching Economics in the 21st Century: The State of Research and Teaching and the Way Forward"

Conference jointly organized by Arbeitskreis Politische Ökonomie (AK PolÖk), World Economics Association (WEA), Netzwerk Plurale Ökonomik (Network Pluralist Economics), European Association for Evolutionary Political Economy (EAEPE), Institute for International Political Economy (IPE), Forschungsstelle für wissenschaftsbasierte gesellschaftliche Weiterentwicklung (FWGW) and Research Network Macroeconomics and Macroeconomic Policy (FMM)

Critics contend that economic research and teaching and economic policy advice continue to follow a neoclassical paradigm to the exclusion of competing approaches, despite the sobering experience of the financial crisis. Those who defend the neoclassical mainstream tend to point to cite more complex and advanced models in order to proof that the mainstream-models are not as biased and unrealistic as critics contend. However, the relevance of models is questionable, as long as they do not find their way into undergraduate textbooks and curricula for students of economics. After all, most students who are exposed to economics teaching leave university with undergraduate textbook knowledge and the restricted toolbox and hidden ideological bias contained in these textbooks. Where economics is taught at high school level, it is often a similarly biased and restricted body of knowledge, which is presented as “economics”. Therefore, the abovementioned associations are organizing a joint conference to analyse and to help modernize the prevailing textbook content. We want to start a fruitful dialog between authors and publishers of textbooks and teaching materials, researchers, teachers and students.

The focus will be on the following topics:

How many theories should a textbook present, and which theories should be chosen? How much focus should there be on the genesis of these theories? How much weight should e.g. be given to history of economic thought, economic history and the philosophy of science? How should a pluralistic textbook be organized?

Should model-based reasoning be presented as the gold standard of economics? Which qualitative methods could help improve our understanding of the (globalized) economy? How can qualitative methods be combined with quantitative ones in a fruitful way to analyze economic issues? Which models could be taught outside the paradigm of economies in equilibrium?

How interdisciplinary can or should a textbook be? How can the academic isolation of economics be overcome that has developed over many decades? Which roles should knowledge from other fields like sociology, law, political science, biology, and philosophy play in teaching economics?

Why do textbooks play such a dominant role? Should they? What are their goals and what are their limitations? Does the dominant role of some particular textbooks pose a problem? If it does, what should be done? How should alternative textbooks be structured and written? Which teaching materials are being used at school and in other non-academic contexts? How do these need to change?

The conference will approach these questions in a variety of formats. Participants are invited to present and discuss either contributions addressing specific narrow questions or position papers covering a whole range of issues. Authors of textbooks are invited to report on their experiences and results regarding the inclusion of pluralistic content. We would also like to involve students and teachers in a discussion of strategic perspectives. There will be space to present and discuss alternative curriculums. A wide variety of pluralist and heterodox textbooks will be on display at the venue of the conference.

Submissions

Formally, submissions can consist of elaborated position papers or abstracts of at most 500 words. Accepted position papers will be circulated in advance to all conference participants. They may also be used as introductions and focal points of panel discussions. There is no requirement to submit a paper in order to participate at the conference.

Please send your submission to akpolök@uni-flensburg.de until 12 October 2015.

Please find updates and information at: http://tinyurl.com/teachingeconomics

The conference will be partly held in English and partly in German.

Invited keynote speakers include Robert Skidelsky of Jesus College and Jayati Gosh of the University of Cambridge (tbc). The conference will include a panel discussion with Peter Bofinger (University of Würzburg) on the status quo of teaching and textbooks at German-language universities.

We plan to publish the conference papers in book form. A long-term goal is to initiate the production of collectively written textbooks. We are considering awarding a prize with high public visibility to promote the production and use of alternative textbooks.

Download the CfP here (pdf)

SOLIDAR: Call for Papers on "Jobs, Growth and Investment Plan"

SOLIDAR is launching a call for academic papers to help formulate and develop alternatives to the structural reforms that are currently being pursued by the European institutions as part of the so-called ‘virtuous triangle’ (i.e. investment, fiscal consolidation, and structural reforms) as part of the SOLIDAR Social Progress Watch Initiative.

As the European Commission continues to pursue these reforms as foundation for the Union’s post-crisis economic policy, complemented by its recently launched ‘Jobs, Growth and Investment Plan’, SOLIDAR together with its members questions whether this approach strikes the right policy mix and whether it is delivering the right outcomes in terms of maximising prosperity and minimising unemployment for European citizens.

Specifically, SOLIDAR wants to identify reflections that enable the progressive redefinition of the concept of structural reform. Until now the mainstream interpretation has been that that further labour market reforms regarding employment protection legislation, automatic stabilisers and wage-setting frameworks are a viable solution. However, through the Social Progress Watch 2014, we witness only a further rise in inequalities, precariousness and poverty. We want to look into alternative economic and regulatory approaches to be followed that stimulate Jobs, Growth and Social Investment. Please read our background note here.

To help formulate and develop these reflections as an alternative to the implemented structural reforms that are currently being pursued by the European institutions, SOLIDAR is calling on independent thinkers, journalists, academics, and researchers from EU Member States, EFTA countries, and Candidate Countries to submit academic papers on the issues listed below.

While SOLIDAR welcomes an open discussion and a wide variety of policy ideas, we would like to follow the three distinct understandings of social equality as developed by Sir Tony Atkinson to structure the discussion. The three understandings are: equality of opportunity, equality of outcome, and horizontal equality. Among these, SOLIDAR is particularly interested in policy ideas that connect to improving the equality as outcome.

To further elaborate on the details, we call for papers in the following areas:

Practical information

The academic papers will be evaluated by a scientific advisory group. Successful candidates will be offered 800 Euro honorarium after the final version of their paper will be accepted for publication in the format of a book, foreseen for the second semester of 2015.

Requirements

The call is open for independent thinkers, journalists, academics and researchers from EU member states, EFTA countries and candidate countries of the EU. Successful candidates will be required to deliver an academic paper on one of the specific topics listed above. The paper needs to be between 20.000 – 30.000 characters, written in font Arial, letter size 10 with 1.5 line spacing. The article should include in-text references and be accompanied by a list of references in APA format.

Deadlines

Candidates are kindly asked to send an abstract by this date. This abstract should be written on one of the specific sub-topics mentioned above and should be no longer than 1500 characters, including preliminary conclusions and an outline of the envisaged research method. The abstract should be accompanied by a list of references in APA format and the candidate’s short biography identifying academic credentials and a large, high resolution photo (if possible).

Approximately 10 successful candidates will be invited on 6 and 7 July to a symposium in Turin, Italy to discuss the abstracts and further develop the papers among the selected candidates and members of the scientific board.

Deadline for submitting the final version of the academic papers.

Launch of the publication in the European Parliament.

Please send the abstracts by 1 June 2015 to eva-maria.schneider@solidar.org and bregt.saenen@solidar.org who can be also contacted with further questions concerning this call.

Twelfth Annual Historical Materialism Conference (London, 2015): Deadline extensions and relevant Sub-Streams

5-8 November, 2015 | School of Oriental and African Studies, Central London, UK

The original Call for Papers may be found here.

Extended Deadline for abstract submissions: 15 May 2015.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Stream: "Imperialism in the crisis - the crisis of imperialism" during the Twelfth Annual Historical Materialism Conference

Confronted by a chronic and systemic global economic crisis, mainstream debates have shifted from a focus on globalisation to one on geopolitics, security, and hegemony. Undermining the de-territorialised rhetoric of the 1990s, states are forcefully back. Debates on globalisation, imperialism, and war are not new to Marxists. But the present conjuncture raises the stakes, as it requires a critique that can address the on-going transformations in the international political economy – the global shift of production to the South, the rise of new powers, the spread of wars in the Middle East, Africa, and Europe itself, and the harshening of institutional racism. What is more, the concepts of people, nation, and centre/periphery have pervaded left debates on alternatives in Europe. How do these alternative strategies relate to questions of anti-imperialist resistance, solidarity with immigrants and internationalism?

Building on the successful experience of the race and capital stream, and the 2014 conference on Making the World Working Class, this year’s Annual Historical Materialism Conference will host a stream on the crisis of imperialism. HM conferences have seen lively debates on migration and institutional racism, capital and race, imperialism and the law of value, super-exploitation, the labour aristocracy, Eurocentrism old and new, capital and postcolonial studies. At this year’s conference we aim at both bringing together these themes and widening the scope of our discussion about strategy beyond Europe and the US, debating not only the current state of imperialism in the crisis but also how to deepen the crisis of imperialism.

On the basis of the above, we invite papers that may address (but are not limited to) the following themes and/or questions:

Paper proposals should be max 200 words. When submitting your proposal, please indicate the theme to which your paper could contribute. This will help us to compose the panels.

We welcome panel proposals. When you submit a panel proposal, please send an abstract of the general theme of the panel (max 300 words) together with the abstracts of the individual papers in the panel. Please note, however, that we reserve the right to disaggregate panels if necessary.

Panels and individual papers should be submitted by May 15 to: http://www.historicalmaterialism.org/conferences/annual12/submit

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Stream: "Greece and Spain as laboratories of hope" during the Twelfth Annual Historical Materialism Conference

Since 2010 Greece has been at the same time an extreme case of neoliberal politics and in particular of the disciplinary austerity politics of the EU in its cooperation with the IMF, and a unique laboratory of struggles. An unprecedented sequence of struggles along with a profound political crisis has led to the important shifts in relations of political representation and the formation of the first government in Europe after many decades led by a left-wing party, SYRIZA. In a parallel process of social and political crisis, Spain saw important political mobilization and mass movements and the emergence of PODEMOS as a movement that has made impressive advances in political and electoral terms, including the possibility of attaining governmental power. These developments pose important theoretical and political challenges. What are the dimensions of the economic, social and political crisis? What are the different Marxist theoretical approaches to the crises and their political and strategic consequences? What were the dynamics of the social movements and their political aspiration? How can social dynamics be translated into political projects? How can left-wing governance be combined with the autonomous role of the social movements? What is the strategic alternative to the crisis of the ‘European project’ and the neoliberal counter-attack? In what ways is it possible to counter the immense pressure exercised by the EU and the IMF? Is it possible to transform a radical transition program into a form of governance? Can we think of movements as experimental sites for new social and political configurations and forms? Can we think of the emergence of potential ‘historical blocs’?

Based upon the successful experience of previous streams and panels in previous HM Conferences, and the political and theoretical importance of recent developments in the European South, this year’s HM Conference will host a stream on Greece and Spain as laboratories of hope. In the past years, HM Conferences have hosted lively debates on social and political developments in Greece, on movements and forms of social and political protest and contestation, on the economic, social, and political dimensions of the global capitalist crisis and its particular European form, on far-right and neo-fascist movements, and of the strategic challenges for the Radical Left.

On the basis of the above, we invite papers that may address (but are not limited to) the following themes and/or questions:

Paper proposals should be max 200 words. When submitting your proposal, please indicate the theme to which your paper could contribute. This will help us to compose the panels.

We welcome panel proposals. When you submit a panel proposal, please send an abstract of the general theme of the panel (max 300 words) together with the abstracts of the individual papers in the panel. Please note, however, that we reserve the right to disaggregate panels if necessary and thus they are not « package deals ».

Panels and individual papers should be submitted by May 15 to: http://www.historicalmaterialism.org/conferences/annual12/submit

Call for Participants

5th Graz Schumpeter Summer School

12-18 July, 2015 | University of Graz, Austria

Economic Stagnation: Problems of Theory and Policy – From Malthus to Piketty

After a long period of sustained growth, the spectre of stagnation in advanced capitalist economies is back again. A major theme at the time of John M. Keynes and Joseph A. Schumpeter, stagnation is once more on the agenda with a vengeance. The Graz Schumpeter Summer School addresses the following questions:

The Summer School discusses these problems at a theoretical, empirical and policy level. It provides a thorough account of the multifarious aspects of stagnation as dealt with by authors from Thomas R. Malthus, via Alvin Hansen to Josef Steindl and beyond, and applies relevant ideas, concepts and tools to contemporary problems.

Detailed information about the summer school is available here (pdf).

Basque Summer School in Economics and Philosophy

6-8 July, 2015 | University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain

“Macroeconomics, Microfoundations, and Evidence-Based Social Policy: A Summer School in Economics and Philosophy”

The International Network for Economic Method (INEM) and Centre for Humanities Engaging Science and Society (CHESS, Durham) will be holding an International Summer School in Economics and Philosophy for graduate students and researchers.

The Summer School is part of the UPV/EHU XXXII Summer Courses and XXV European Courses and continues the series initiated by the Urrutia Elejalde Foundation (UEF).

Lecturers:

More details on the schedule to follow

Convenors:

Aims:

In the last couple of decades, the economics discipline has become more diverse in its fields of enquiry and especially its methods. Many economists have become a lot more open towards neighbouring disciplines; some now regularly collaborate with psychologists to investigate to provide the behavioural foundations for choice theory and modellers look to alternative approaches from complexity theory and agent-based modelling. Likewise, after the recent financial and economic crises, many economists are striving to rebuild and strengthen the structures that were hit whereas others are taking the opportunity to open their horizons. All these new research avenues and, in particular, the crises have made even more explicit the need for philosophical reflection within the discipline. Issues methodological, theoretical, and ethical are all at the core of the discussion of the causes of the crises, the ways to go back to prosperous paths of growth and employment, and the new approaches.

The aim of the Summer School in Economics and Philosophy is to present a variety of issues in economics in which philosophical reflection is important and useful. It will bring together graduate students with scholars from economics, philosophy and neighbouring disciplines in order to exchange ideas, build a community and strengthen the link between economics and philosophy. This year’s main focus is on reduction and microfoundations in macroeconomics and the use of evidence in the formation and testing of social policies.

Registration:

The Summer School is open to Masters/PhD students and other researchers at various stages of progress on their dissertation project or academic careers.

To register please send us, by June 15, 2015 at the latest, a short CV and motivation statement to Anna de Bruyckere (email: a.m.c.de-bruyckere@durham.ac.uk). We will accept applications as they come in, so to be guaranteed a place please apply as soon as possible. We are considering allotting time for student presentations. Whether or not this will fit the programme will depend upon interest and final schedules. If you would be interested to give a brief presentation of your own work, please indicate so in your application. Please note this will not affect the likelihood of obtaining a place.

Registration Fee and Bursaries:

The registration fee for the Summer School is €100. This will cover teaching material as well as lunches and coffee breaks during the event. There are bursaries to help with accommodation expenses in San Sebastián. If you are interested in applying for a bursary, please let us know in your registration letter.

We would like to draw your attention to national sponsorship institutions like the DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) in the case of Germany, who offer training course scholarships for students. Please contact your university’s international office for further information on scholarships available in your country.

We gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the International Network for Economic Method (INEM), the University of the Basque Country (UPV), and the Erasmus Institute for Philosophy and Economics (EIPE).

Further information is available here.

Finance and Development Workshop at Kingston University (London, 2015)

4 June, 2015 | Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Kingston University, London UK

The workshop will explore the complex interaction between development and the financial system in a post-crisis world. The following issues will be discussed in particular: the future of the global financial system, international capital flows and development, financing structural transformation and policy perspectives on finance and development.

Confirmed speakers are Steve Keen, Engelbert Stockhammer, Gary Dymski, Tom Marois, Devrim Yilmaz and many more, including the Bretton Woods Project and the Overseas Development Institute.

Location: Room 3002, John Galsworthy building, Kingston University

A detailed program is available here (pdf). Please register here for the workshop.

HPPE seminars series at LSE: summer term (London, 2015)

HPPE at LSE has now published its programme for Summer Term 2015

First, instead of the seminar we’re having a full-day workshop on Tuesday, 12 May. The workshop title is “Economists from 1780 to 1980: Observing and configuring the economy”. Details will follow shortly.

If you already know that you would like to attend, please register your interest with Maxine Montaigne (m.c.montaigne@lse.ac.uk) or myself (t.vogelgsang@lse.ac.uk)

Second, the seminar is moving from the East Building to 32 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, room 32L.LG.03. Access to the building is regulated. Seminar attendants who are not members of LSE should speak to security at the entrance. Mention that you’re visiting the HPPE seminar and they will let you pass.

SOAS Summer School

Session 2: 6 July – 24 July 2015

Session 3: 27 July – 14 August 2015

Please note that you can take courses in consecutive sessions, however you can only take one course per session.

YSI @ 2015 Trento Festival of Economics

May 29 - June 2, 2015 | Trento, Italy

The Institute for New Economic Thinking's Young Scholars Initiative invites you to participate in various activities at the fringes of and in cooperation with the 2015 Festival of Economics in Trento, Italy, from May 29 to June 2, 2015.

YSI Program @ The Festival

At the Festival, YSI offers lectures designed for young scholars alongside the main Festival program.

This year’s confirmed YSI lecturers are Joseph Stiglitz (Columbia University), Martin Guzman (Columbia University), and Steve Fazzari (Washington University).

More programming will be added soon. You can view the detailed program and general information here.

Trento Festival of Economics 2015 The Festival takes place at various locations across the historic city center in Trento, with many events outdoors, and gelaterias and salumerias less than a stone throw away. This year’s theme is "Social Mobility" and confirmed speakers include Tony Atkinson, David Autor, William Easterly, Daniel Gros, Wolfgang Münchau, Thomas Piketty, Dani Rodrik, and Martin Wolf. The Festival homepage describes the event and provides useful logistical information (the detailed program will be posted there soon).

We look forward to seeing you very soon!

Job Postings

Bournemouth University, UK

Job Position: Professor/ Associate Professor of Macro-Economics

Salary for Professor from £59,619 - £74,256 per annum with further progression opportunities to £81,672

Salary for Associate Professor from £53,248 - £58,172 per annum with further progression opportunities to £65,796

Bournemouth University is creating the most stimulating, challenging and rewarding university experience in a world-class learning community by sharing our unique fusion of excellent education, research and professional practice and inspiring our students, graduates and staff to enrich the world.

The newly formed Faculty of Management combines the academic excellence and expertise from The Business School and the School of Tourism. The Department of Accounting, Finance & Economics is a growing team of dynamic educators and researchers. The team offers an exciting portfolio of MSc Finance related courses allowing for various specialisations including Economics and contributes expertise across undergraduate and postgraduate courses in the areas of accounting, finance and economics. Research in the department is currently focused on corporate governance, quantitative techniques, banking and finance, sustainable environment as well as foreign direct investment and economic transition. The department has a vibrant PhD student community and a range of enthusiastic early career researchers.

As Professor/Associate Professor in Macro-Economics you will be someone who can provide academic and managerial leadership in the area of macro-economics and expertise in regional development is particularly welcome. There will be opportunities for you to engage in the activities of the faculty as it progresses its recruitment policy and continues to build a research culture. This in turn will provide opportunities for professional development and further career progression.

You will be qualified to Doctorate level or equivalent in a relevant field. You will be research active and committed to a culture of academic excellence and continuous improvement.

For an informal discussion please contact the Head of Department, Professor Jens Holscher on 01202 965392 or via jholscher@bournemouth.ac.uk

Professor- Job Description & Person Specification (PDF)

Associate Professor- Job Description & Person Specification (PDF)

Academic Career Framework

Closing date: (midnight) Thursday 21 May 2015

Interview date: To be confirmed

Please quote reference: FMG29

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, US

Job Position: Economist

US EEOC, Office of General Counsel, Research and Analytic Services
GS-14 ($107,325 - $139,523)

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is composed of a highly motivated and diverse team dedicated to the agency's mission - to eradicate employment discrimination. Come join us and make a difference.

This position is located in Research and Analytic Services, Office of General Counsel, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). You will serve as an authority in the field of economics and provide expert opinions, guidance and direction to senior level management, trial attorneys and other experts in the analysis of employment discrimination cases.

The incumbent serves as an authority in the field of economics and provides expert opinions, guidance and direction to senior level management, trial attorneys and other experts in the analysis of employment discrimination cases. Applies econometrics, other statistical/quantitative techniques and research design principles to develop statistical evidence of discrimination for Commission litigation cases. Testifies in Federal court on the economic and analytic methodologies used by the incumbent and external experts, as appropriate.

Application Deadline: May 13, 2015

All details and application form is available here.

Ford Foundation, China

Job Position: Program Officer

The Ford Foundation’s office in China seeks a dynamic, innovative Program Officer to help drive and shape the foundation’s work in the critical area of economic opportunity and public policy. The Program Officer will support the strategy of the China Office and the broader social justice goals of the Ford Foundation.

BACKGROUND:

Addressing inequality is a key focus of the Ford Foundation globally and in China. The broad overarching goals of the office are to: reduce socioeconomic inequalities that are manifested in the process of rural- urban integration; improve economic opportunities particularly for migrants and those in the informal labor sector; advance educational outcomes; and reduce inequality related to gender and sexuality. The Foundation strives to achieve this by working with academics and policy makers, community-based organizations, the public and private sector and the donor community, including the growing number of philanthropists and foundation sector leaders in China. The Foundation’s Economic Opportunity and Public Policy work plays a key role in addressing these broader goals.

The rural-urban divide is the central locus of economic, political, and cultural/social inequality in China. Three interrelated systems – the household registration, land tenure and fiscal systems – have worked together to institutionalize inequality between rural and urban populations over six decades. This inequality was exacerbated by rapid transition to a market economy—a process that emphasized GDP growth, discounted externalities, and promoted uneven development across groups and parts of the country. Despite physical mobility through rural-urban migration, social mobility previously possible through education has decreased as access to quality education has become more limited. Although wages for some rural-urban migrants (“migrants”) have reached parity with urban peers, migrants are disproportionately represented in the informal economy, and they are excluded from most social protection benefits (health insurance, pensions, etc.) in urban areas. Reform of the three underlying systems is underway, and while the high-level policy direction is clear, the process of addressing an urban bias institutionalized over the past 60 years will be long and challenging, with significant risks for farmers, migrants, women, the children of migrants, and other marginalized groups. A weak legal system, lack of transparency and accountability at both state and non-state levels, and limited political voice contribute to persistent inequality.

The Ford Foundation’s China Office focuses its work on the People’s Republic of China and programs in China to address the above challenges from a Chinese perspective, while also bearing in mind the importance of linking local challenges and interventions to global trends and strategies. Given China’s increasing influence in the world, the Foundation will also seek to program globally on issues related to China’s global economic and political role.

Program Officer’s Core Responsibilities

Reporting to the China Representative and working with a multidisciplinary team of Program Officers, the Economic Opportunity and Public Policy Program Officer will be responsible for developing and implementing a strategy that accelerates social protection gains, promotes sustainable livelihoods and inclusive economic growth, and advances economic fairness and security within the broader context described above to address the inequalities caused by the rural/urban divide. The Program Officer will develop and implement a strategy that reflects the complementary roles of government, civil society, social and labor movements and the corporate sector, with a view to fostering dialogue and collaboration. In addition, the work needs to reflect the global footprint and reach of the Foundation and China’s growing economic impact around the world. The Program Officer will:

CRITERIA FOR SUCCESS:

QUALIFICATIONS:

Location: Beijing, China

Target Date: Mid-2015

Salary: is based on experience and on the Foundation’s commitment to internal equity. A generous benefits package is provided.

To apply for the position visit the Ford Foundation website by May 21st, 2015. Detailed job description is available here (pdf).


Maastricht University, Netherlands

Job Position: Full Professor International Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics

The School of Business and Economics of Maastricht University (SBE) has a vacancy for a Full Professor in International Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics (1.0 fte). This chair is one of the structural chairs in the department of Economics, section AE2.

The chair holder is responsible for research and education in the area of international macroeconomics and monetary economics. The chair holder will coordinate, teach and supervise courses at undergraduate, graduate and PhD level. Additional responsibilities involve managerial tasks at the departmental and School level and obtaining external funding.

Candidates should preferably have an excellent publication record, an international network, strong teaching qualifications, experience in developing courses and educational programmes at BSc, MSc and post-graduate level, managerial experience and be a team player.

Position Requirements

EDUCATION

Education at SBE is internationally orientated and applies small group teaching methods. The candidate is expected to make an important contribution to bachelor, master and post-graduate education and is responsible for course and curriculum development. The increasing importance of the relationship with Maastricht School of Management and the new emerging markets bachelor may require the development of courses in the area of macro-economic policy in a globalizing world .

RESEARCH AND ‘VALORISATIE‘

The Professor is responsible for performing, coordinating and supervising research activities in the area of International Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics. This includes acquiring outside funding. The professor is expected to participate in the graduate school of SBE, GSBE. The candidate should be able to coach, stimulate and support PhD students and other staff with performing research activities at the level of international scientific journals of high quality. The candidate is expected to collaborate actively with staff in the department.

MANAGEMENT

AE2 is a large group and is engaged in a large number of activities. AE2 cooperates intensively with other departments in SBE for teaching and research. In addition, AE2 holds close relationships with the research institutes ROA and UNU-MERIT. This demands good and efficient governance of the group and its activities. We expect the chair holder to be a team builder and to be willing to fulfill senior managerial tasks in the department and in the School.

REQUIREMENTS

The candidate has a research profile in the area of International Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics and must be an internationally recognized researcher in the domain of the chair. He/she should have excellent research skills, as evidenced by not only a PhD, but also publications in top-ranked international classified journals. He/she will play an active and stimulating role in the relevant research program in GSBE. He/she must have proven to be able to motivate and coach young researchers to perform high-profile research and experience in PhD thesis supervision is required. The candidate must be firmly related to international (research) networks in the domain of the chair.

The candidate must be able to play a leading role in the further development of the domain of the chair within SBE, including post-graduate programs. The candidate must be a recognized teacher who has developed as well as taught innovative courses within the International Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics domain. The candidate should have an interest in and affinity to the Problem Based Learning system used at SBE. In addition the candidate has been successful in attracting external funding for research.

The candidate must also have an open mind to new and non-orthodox developments in his field. The candidate must have a broad and critical view on the development of economic theories, both orthodox and non-orthodox.

Terms of Employment

Initially, the position is at the VSNU CAO Hoogleraar 2-level. This implies a gross salary from € 5.103,00 to € 7.431,00 per month, depending upon experience. Further growth into a VSNU CAO Hoogleraar 1-level position is for later consideration and depends upon performance and responsibilities. This would imply a gross salary from a € 5.684,00 to € 8.971,00 per month, depending upon experience.

On top of the salary, there is an 8% holiday allowance and an 8.3% end of year allowance.

The terms of employment of Maastricht University are set out in the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities (CAO). Furthermore, local UM provisions also apply. For more information look at the website http://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl, employees, A-Z.

Department

The department of Economics of SBE has built an excellent reputation for teaching and research in all domains in economics. The department is divided in two sections: AE1 (microeconomics and public finance) and AE2 (macroeconomics, international economics and labour economics and social policy). The research in the section AE2 is concentrated in three areas: labour economics/economics of education, globalization with a focus on technology and trade and international macroeconomics and monetary economics.

The group in labour economics and the economics of education has a strong cooperation with the research institute ROA. The research in globalization, technology and trade has strong ties with the research in UNU-MERIT and this collaboration has led to the development of a distinguished research profile with focus on the relation between globalization and innovation. The research in international macroeconomics and monetary economics covers various topics such as macroeconomic theory and policy, exchange rate behaviour and financial crises.

In her teaching and research, the department aims at being a “unity in diversity” and is thus open to innovative and non-orthodox (heterodox) views both in teaching and in research.

Applications and information

The vacancy is based on a structure report for the chair. This report contains more information about the position of the chair in the School and in the department and elaborates on the requirements. This report can be received on request from the chair of AE2, prof. dr. Tom van Veen.

Contact:

Submission of applications should be sent electronically to recruitment-sbe@maastrichtuniversity.nl with reference to vacancy number AT2015.29.

Applications should be sent before 16 May 2015. Selected applicants will be invited to have an interview.

Applications should include a curriculum vitae and a motivation letter. Two letters of reference, assessing the applicant’s teaching and research potential and personality, should be sent independently by the referees.

For further information about the School of Business and Economics of Maastricht University, visit this website.

For further information about the department see here.

University College London, UK

Job Position: Postdoctoral Research Associates (2x)

Project: Economics in the Public Sphere

Salary (inclusive of London allowance) £33,353-£40,313 per annum.

Duties and Responsibilities

UCL Department of Science and Technology Studies seeks to appoint 2 Postdoctoral Research Associates as part of a European Research Council funded project, “Economics in the Public Sphere: USA, UK, France, Brazil and Argentina since 1945”. “Economics in the public sphere” examines the social and cultural factors shaping the media’s representation of economic knowledge. It sets out to study newsrooms as sites for the production of knowledge. From this vantage point we examine how journalists’ parse competing claims of expertise by scholars, political elites and social movements. We look at the formation of journalistic genres and interrogate how they frame representations of the economy, of value, and of economic reason.

The postholders will contribute to the overall project objectives, and will undertake specialised research on the national economic press since 1945 for one national case study, to be assigned by the project director. The two case studies are United Kingdom and Argentina. The postholders will be expected to define a research agenda within the broad framework of the project’s central questions.

The posts are available for 12 months in the first instance, with an expected start date of no later than 1st September 2015.

Key Requirements

A PhD in an appropriate field, such as economic and cultural sociology, sociology of knowledge, political and social history, Latin American studies is required. Completion is required prior to the start of contract. Candidates experienced in certain research methods (such as oral history, ethnographic observation, content and textual analysis of media) will be preferred.

Project page is available at: www.ucl.ac.uk/sts/econpublic

Further details about the posts and application at http://tinyurl.com/stsucl291

Informal enquiries can be made to Dr Tiago Mata (Email: t.mata@ucl.ac.uk)

University of Amsterdam, Netherlands

Job Position: PhD candidate in Complex Corporate Network Analysis

Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences - Amsterdam Institute for Social Science Research

The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences (FMG) is the largest educational and research institution in the social sciences in the Netherlands. The Faculty serves 7,500 students in numerous Bachelor and Master programmes in Political Science, Sociology, Anthropology, Communication Science, Psychology, Social Geography, Planning and International Development Studies, and Educational Sciences. The academic staff is employed in education as well as research. There are over 1,100 employees at the Faculty department, which resides in a number of buildings in the centre of Amsterdam.

This is a position to work in the new CORPNET research group, funded by the European Research Council and based at the Amsterdam Institute for Social Science Research, University of Amsterdam. The multidisciplinary team of political scientists, computers scientists and sociologists will consist of ca. four PhD projects, two postdoc projects and the PI you will be responsible to is dr. Eelke Heemskerk. The post is available from 1 September 2015.

Project Description

Corporate Network Governance: Power, Ownership and Control in Contemporary Global Capitalism (CORPNET)

Corpnet seeks to do what has so far eluded existing scholarship: to fully explore the global network of corporate ownership and control as a complex system. Using cutting-edge network science methods, the project explores for the first time the largest database on ownership and control covering over 100 million firms. Exploiting the longitudinal richness of the new data in combination with state-of-the-art methods and techniques makes it possible to model and empirically test generating mechanisms that drive network formation.

PhD Project: Networks structures of global ownership and control

This subproject studies the properties of the global network of ownership and control as a complex network. Its objective is to uncover the dynamics and structure of the global network of corporate control as a social-political-economic system. A specific goal is to facilitate the introduction of these methodological advances into the social sciences.

Using advanced social network analysis algorithms and techniques together with the team members’ expertise on corporate ownership and control, this project creates a longitudinal dataset of the global corporate governance network, covering over 100 million firms, their directors, owners and shareholders. The core of this project is devoted to a network analysis of global ownership and control. Part of the project deliverables are new (or adapted) methods and algorithms to study the properties of the entire network.

The successful candidate will be expected to have a high level of competence and motivation to undertake the following tasks:

Requirements

Ideal candidates:

Further information

Additional information about the vacancy can be obtained from:

Appointment

On the basis of a full-time appointment, the gross monthly salary will be €2,125 during the first year, rising to €2,717 during the fourth year, excl. 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end of year bonus. The Collective Labour Agreement for the Dutch Universities is applicable.

The successful candidates will begin their projects on 1 September 2015.

Job application

Applications must contain:

Applications must be sent to sollicitaties-fmg@uva.nl before Monday 8 June 2015. Emailed applications should mention vacancy number 15-160 in the subject line and should contain the documents as an attachment (in one single pdf-file).Please note that incomplete applications will not be considered.

Application form and more information is available here.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Job Position: Postdoctoral researcher or Assistant professor in Global Corporate Governance

Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences – Amsterdam Institute for Social Science Research

The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences (FMG) is the largest educational and research institution in the social sciences in the Netherlands. The Faculty serves 7,500 students in numerous Bachelor and Master programmes in Political Science, Sociology, Anthropology, Communication Science, Psychology, Social Geography, Planning and International Development Studies, and Educational Sciences. The academic staff is employed in education as well as research. There are over 1,100 employees at the Faculty department, which resides in a number of buildings in the centre of Amsterdam.

This is a position to work in the new CORPNET research group, funded by the European Research Council and based at the Amsterdam Institute for Social Science Research, University of Amsterdam. The multidisciplinary team of political scientists, computers scientists and sociologists will consist of ca. four PhD projects, two postdoc projects and the PI you will be responsible to is dr. Eelke Heemskerk. The post is available from 1 September 2015.

Job description

Corporate Network Governance: Power, Ownership and Control in Contemporary Global Capitalism (CORPNET)

Corpnet seeks to do what has so far eluded existing scholarship: to fully explore the global network of corporate ownership and control as a complex system. Using cutting-edge network science methods, the project explores for the first time the largest database on ownership and control covering over 100 million firms. Exploiting the longitudinal richness of the new data in combination with state-of-the-art methods and techniques makes it possible to model and empirically test generating mechanisms that drive network formation.

POSTDOC Project: Corporations, finance, and states in the global corporate regime

This subproject first zooms in on the role of the state as owner in the global network of ownership and control. Although national states, as analytical and geographical category, are less important than before, states re-emerge in the global political economy as actors. Increasingly, states are owners of corporate businesses, in particular in emerging markets. This leads to urgent questions on the geopolitical implications of state influence through corporations. This project deepens thoroughly our understanding of the position of states in the global corporate governance networks and explores the geopolitical consequences. Second, the project investigates the role of financial institutions in the network. How central are financial institutions to the overall structure, cohesion and connectivity of the global corporate governance network? And how does this differ for different regions, sectors and firms?

Requirements

Ideal candidates:

Further information

Additional information about the vacancy can be obtained from:

Appointment

The appointment will be on a temporary basis for a period of 2 (or 3) years for 38 hours per week. In the first instance, a contract will be given for 12 months; if positively evaluated, the contract will be extended for another 12 or 24 months. The gross monthly salary will be between €3,324 and €4,551, excl. 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end of year bonus, based on a full-time appointment and depending on the appointee's qualifications and experience. The Collective Labour Agreement for the Dutch Universities is applicable.

The successful candidates will begin their projects on 1 September 2015.

Job application

Applications must contain:

Applications must be sent to sollicitaties-fmg@uva.nl before Monday 8 June 2015. Emailed applications should mention vacancy number 15-159 in the subject line and should contain the documents as an attachment (in one single pdf-file).

Closing Date for both: 7 June, 2015

Application form and more information is available here.

University of Denver, US

Job Position: Visiting Assistant Professor - International Development

The Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver is an interdisciplinary professional school of international studies that prepares students for careers in the public, private and non-profit sectors. Our program provides students with the knowledge, skills and networks to design policies, implement programs, and realize outcomes that enhance human capabilities around the world.

The Josef Korbel School of International Studies seeks to fill a non-tenure track one-year, Visiting Assistant Professor position in the M.A. program in International Development, with the possibility of renewal. We are interested in applicants from political science, development studies, geography, sociology, and anthropology with specialization(s) in some or all of the following areas: politics of development, the global architecture of development assistance, social policy and development, gender and development, youth and development, and Asian studies. Candidates will be expected to teach Politics of Development as well as courses in their areas of expertise.

Required Experience

Preferred Experience:

Instructions for candidates:

Candidates must apply online through www.dujobs.org (or via the link below) to be considered. Only applications submitted online will be accepted. Once within the job description online, please click New Resume/CV at the bottom of the page to begin application. If you have questions regarding this position please contact: Emily Hinga, emily.hinga@du.edu

Interested applicants should submit a letter of interest, CV, writing sample (or publication), teaching statement, sample syllabi, and teaching evaluations (if available) with the online application. Please combine documents to avoid the 5 document upload limit.

In addition, candidates should arrange to have letters of reference sent via email to emily.hinga@du.edu or by mail to Emily Hinga, Human Resources and Operations Manager, Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver, 2201 South Gaylord Street, Denver, CO 80208.

Salary is competitive. Please see our extensive benefit package here.

The University of Denver is committed to enhancing the diversity of its faculty and staff and encourages applications from women, minorities, members of the LBGT community, people with disabilities and veterans. The University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.

Application form and more information is available here.

Journals

New Political Economy, 20 (3)

Jeremy Green & Colin Hay: Towards a New Political Economy of the Crisis: Getting What Went Wrong Right

Andrew Baker: Varieties of Economic Crisis, Varieties of Ideational Change: How and Why Financial Regulation and Macroeconomic Policy Differ

Ronen Palan: Futurity, Pro-cyclicality and Financial Crises

Johnna Montgomerie & Mirjam Büdenbender: Round the Houses: Homeownership and Failures of Asset-Based Welfare in the United Kingdom

Erik Bengtsson & Magnus Ryner: The (International) Political Economy of Falling Wage Shares: Situating Working-Class Agency

Anastasia Nesvetailova: A Crisis of the Overcrowded Future: Shadow Banking and the Political Economy of Financial Innovation

Stephen Bell & Andrew Hindmoor: Taming the City? Ideas, Structural Power and the Evolution of British Banking Policy Amidst the Great Financial Meltdown

Cambridge Journal of Economics, 39 (3)

Articles

David A. Spencer: Developing an understanding of meaningful work in economics: the case for a heterodox economics of work

Marina Della Giusta and Sarah Jewell: Unpaid work and conformity: why care?

Bruce Philp, Gary Slater, and Daniel Wheatley: New Labour and work-time regulation: a Marxian analysis of the UK economy

Fátima Suleman: The employment relationship in an (almost) structureless labour market: the case of domestic work

Elif Karacimen: Interlinkages between credit, debt and the labour market: evidence from Turkey

Umit Akinci and Yigit Karahanogullari: Convergence of monetary equivalent of labour times (MELTs) in two Marxian interpretations

Eduardo da Motta e Albuquerque: Visible seeds of socialism and metamorphoses of capitalism: socialism after Rosdolsky

Jean Cartelier: Early classics and Quesnay after Sraffa: a suggested interpretation

Graham White: The new Keynesian view of aggregate demand: some reflections from a classical-Sraffian standpoint

Jamie Morgan: What’s in a name? Tony Lawson on neoclassical economics and heterodox economics

Financialisation, income distribution and crisis

Dany Lang: Financialisation, income distribution and the crisis

Laurent Cordonnier and Franck Van de Velde: The demands of finance and the glass ceiling of profit without investment

Michel Husson: Unemployment, working time and financialisation: the French case

Eckhard Hein: Finance-dominated capitalism and re-distribution of income: a Kaleckian perspective

Engelbert Stockhammer: Rising inequality as a cause of the present crisis

Servaas Storm and C.W.M. Naastepad: Europe’s Hunger Games: Income Distribution, Cost Competitiveness and Crisis

Constitutional Political Economy, 26 (2)

Federico Traversa: Income and the stability of democracy: Pushing beyond the borders of logic to explain a strong correlation?

Martin Paldam: The public choice of university organization: a stylized story of a constitutional reform

Brad R. Taylor: Strategic and expressive voting

Marco M. Sorge: Lobbying (strategically appointed) bureaucrats

James Green-Armytage: Direct voting and proxy voting

Barbara Krug & Alexander Libman: Commitment to local autonomy in non-democracies: Russia and China compared

Ecological Economics, 115

Carl Shapiro, Greg Arthaud, Frank Casey, Dianna Hogan: Ecosystem services science, practice, and policy: Perspectives from ACES, A Community on Ecosystem Services

Lynn Scarlett, James Boyd: Ecosystem services and resource management: Institutional issues, challenges, and opportunities in the public sector

Mary Ruckelshaus, Emily McKenzie, Heather Tallis, Anne Guerry, Gretchen Daily, Peter Kareiva, Stephen Polasky, Taylor Ricketts, Nirmal Bhagabati, Spencer A. Wood, Joanna Bernhardt: Notes from the field: Lessons learned from using ecosystem service approaches to inform real-world decisions

S. Maynard, D. James, A. Davidson: Determining the value of multiple ecosystem services in terms of community wellbeing: Who should be the valuing agent?

Carrie Presnall, Laura Lopez-Hoffman, Marc L. Miller: Adding ecosystem services to environmental impact analyses: More sequins on a “bloated Elvis” or rockin' idea?

Susan Harrell Yee, John F. Carriger, Patricia Bradley, William S. Fisher, Brian Dyson: Developing scientific information to support decisions for sustainable coral reef ecosystem services

Leslie Richardson, John Loomis, Timm Kroeger, Frank Casey: The role of benefit transfer in ecosystem service valuation

Moneta e Credito, 68 (269)

Riccardo Bellofiore: Claudio Napoleoni e il Capitale monopolistico di Baran e Sweezy

Claudio Napoleoni: Il capitale monopolistico di Baran e Sweezy e la teoria marxiana del valore

Emiliano Brancaccio, Orsola Costantini, Stefano Lucarelli: Crisi e centralizzazione del capitale finanziario

Massimo Cingolani: Sylos Labini su Marx: implicazioni per la politica economica

PSL Quarterly Review, 67 (272)

Carlo D'Ippoliti: Introduction

Daud Vicary Abdullah, Hossein Askari, Abbas Mirakhor: The moral foundation of collective action against economic crimes

Giulio Guarini: Complementarity between environmental efficiency and labour productivity in a cumulative growth process

Daniel Karl Detzer: Financial Market Regulation in Germany - Capital Requirements of Financial Institutions

Review of International Political Economy, 22 (2)

Eleni Tsingou: Club governance and the making of global financial rules

Photis Lysandrou & Anastasia Nesvetailova: The role of shadow banking entities in the financial crisis: a disaggregated view

Lucy M. Goodhart: Brave New World? Macro-prudential policy and the new political economy of the federal reserve

Kristen Hopewell: Different paths to power: The rise of Brazil, India and China at the World Trade Organization

Cameron G. Thies: The declining exceptionalism of agriculture: identifying the domestic politics and foreign policy of agricultural trade protectionism

Yang Jiang: Vulgarisation of Keynesianism in China's response to the global financial crisis

Helen Callaghan: Something left to lose? Network preservation as a motive for protectionist responses to foreign takeovers

Kendra E Dupuy, James Ron & Aseem Prakash: Who survived? Ethiopia's regulatory crackdown on foreign-funded NGOs

Socio-Economic Review, 13 (2)

ARTICLES

Patrick Emmenegger, Paul Marx, and Dominik Schraff: Labour market disadvantage, political orientations and voting: how adverse labour market experiences translate into electoral behaviour

Carsten Jensen and Henrik Bech Seeberg: The power of talk and the welfare state: evidence from 23 countries on an asymmetric opposition-government response mechanism

Silja Häusermann, Thomas Kurer, and Hanna Schwander: High-skilled outsiders? Labor market vulnerability, education and welfare state preferences

Michael Dobbins and Marius R. Busemeyer: Socio-economic institutions, organized interests and partisan politics: the development of vocational education in Denmark and Sweden

Mooweon Rhee and Tohyun Kim: The role of experience in a governmental regulatory investigation in the US automobile industry: organizational learning versus reputational dynamics

Kimberly Chong and David Tuckett: Constructing conviction through action and narrative: how money managers manage uncertainty and the consequence for financial market functioning

Helen Callaghan: Who cares about financialization? Self-reinforcing feedback, issue salience, and increasing acquiescence to market-enabling takeover rules

STATE OF THE ART

Lena Hipp, Janine Bernhardt, and Jutta Allmendinger: Institutions and the prevalence of nonstandard employment

PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS: SASE Annual Meeting 2014

Bruce G. Carruthers: Financialization and the institutional foundations of the new capitalism

The European Journal of the History of Economic Thought, 22 (3)

Introduction

Arnaud Orain: On the difficulty of constituting an economic avant-garde in the French Enlightenment

Articles

Loïc Charles & Christine Théré: Jeux de mots, narrative and economic writing: The rhetoric of anti-physiocracy in French economic periodicals (1764–1769)

Arnaud Orain: Figures of mockery. The cultural disqualification of physiocracy (1760–1790)

Florence Magnot-Ogilvy: A body without a voice: A literary approach to Linguet's opposition to the physiocrats over the free trade in grain

Thierry Demals & Alexandra Hyard: Forbonnais, the two balances and the Économistes

Théophile Pénigaud: The political opposition of Rousseau to Physiocracy: government, interest, citizenship

Pierre Henri Goutte & Gérard Klotz: Turgot: a critic of physiocracy? An analysis of the debates in Éphémérides du Citoyen and in correspondence with Dupont

Alain Clément: Nicolas Baudeau, an anti-physiocrat? Éphémérides du citoyen prior to “conversion” (1765–1766)

The Review of Austrian Economics, 28 (2)

Petrik Runst & Steven Horwitz: Alienation and rationality—The retreat of postwar socialism

Simon Bilo & Richard E. Wagner: Neutral money: Historical fact or analytical artifact?

Nicolas Cachanosky: Expectation in Austrian business cycle theory: Market share matters

Marta Podemska-Mikluch: Elections vs. political competition: The case of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

Ben O’Neill: Some statistical aspects of precautionary reserves in banking

Randall G. Holcombe: Capital and labor, Past and present, in the context of Piketty’s Capital

Gene Callahan: Virgil Henry Storr: Understanding the culture of markets

Lynne Kiesling: Klein, Daniel B., Knowledge and coordination: A liberal interpretation

G. P. Manish: Jagdish Bhagwati and Arvind Panagariya, Why growth matters: How economic growth in India reduced poverty and the lessons for other developing countries

Books and Book Series

Economic Growth and Development: Theories, Criticisms and an Alternative Growth Model

By Hasan Gürak | 2015, Peter Lang

Mainstream economic theories today are logical, consistent and even explanatory in many ways, when their relevance is tested in real economic situations, they often fail to correctly explain normal economic transactions. Thus they are only successful in explaining a fictional world and fictional economic relations that are largely based on unrealistic assumptions. Economic Growth is a study of new and alternative theories and models to replace the parables of these mainstream ideologies and hopes to appeal to open minded economists as a constructive contribution for the further development of new economic ideas.

Link to the book is available here.

Asymmetric Crisis in Europe and Possible Futures: Critical Political Economy and Post-Keynesian Perspectives

Edited by Johannes Jäger and Elisabeth Springler | 2015, Routledge

The crisis in Europe is often discussed as a crisis of European integration or a crisis of national economies within Europe. Both the ‘methodological Europeanism’ and ‘methodological nationalism’ miss out the important links between economic and political processes at different spatial scales within Europe, and therefore, asymmetries and phenomena of uneven development. In addition, a discussion of possible scenarios which systematically addresses the implications of anti-crisis policies is missing.

This volume seeks to close this gap by systematically integrating the analysis of economic policy or ‘technical’ solutions to the crisis within a broader framework of political economy. It argues that combining critical political economy approaches and post-Keynesian perspectives allows for a systematic understanding of the economic and political dimensions of the crisis. Although both approaches have the capacity to deal with asymmetries and uneven development, the heterogeneity in Europe has been an often largely neglected dimension of analysis. However, this recent crisis has shown that this is an essential dimension which has to be addressed in order to better understand the dynamics of European development and integration. Hence, this book aims to deal with asymmetries in Europe and to bridge the gap between the two perspectives.

This work will initiate an integrative debate that is crucial for a deeper understanding of the current crisis and is an important resource for all students and scholars of IPE, European political economy and European politics.

Link to the book is available here.

Capitalism’s Crisis Deepens

By Richard D. Wolff | 2015, Democracy at Work

The crisis that erupted in 2007 continues to inflict immense and uneven costs on modern society. “Recovery” becomes yet another luxury that bypasses the vast majorities in capitalist nations. The articles and essays gathered in, “Capitalism’s Crisis Deepens: Essays on the Global Economic Meltdown 2010-2014”, explore current aspects of the deepening crisis as they became clear, caught the public’s attention, or defined a particular historic moment.

The organization of the essays in this work, at once topical, but also chronological, seeks to enable readers to grasp the crisis as a moving, evolving stage in capitalism’s history. Its accessibility and depth offer deep insights for those attempting to understand or educate others about the current crisis, its roots and expansion as well as alternative solutions. For this reason the book makes a great companion to any introductory or advanced course covering economics or the study of contemporary capitalism.

Link to the e-book is available here.

New Directions in Comparative Capitalisms Research: Critical and Global Perspectives

Edited by Matthias Ebenau, Ian Bruff, Christian May | 2015, Palgrave Macmillan

For at least a decade, scholarship on capitalist diversity was inextricably associated with the emblematic 'Varieties of Capitalism' perspective. However, the subsequent debate has exposed the manifold flaws of this approach, flaws that the global economic crisis after 2008 has made ever more obvious. Comparative political economists are therefore searching for new directions in Comparative Capitalisms research in order to come to terms with the multi-faceted reality of contemporary capitalism. While some do so through a renewal of institutionalist theory, others seek to (re-)introduce critical – including neo-Marxist, feminist and post/decolonial – perspectives. This collection presents the first sustained dialogue between these post-VoC and critical approaches, one that engages both long-standing protagonists in debates on capitalist diversity and a younger generation of scholars, from Europe and the Americas. Its main objective is that of contributing to the development of a new generation of Comparative Capitalisms scholarship.

Link to the book is available here.

Religion without Redemption: Social Contradictions and Awakened Dreams in Latin America

By Luis Martínez Andrade | 2015, Pluto Press

The world’s eyes are on Latin America as a place of radical political inspiration and as an alternative to the neoliberal model. Each country in the region deals differently in its method of government, yet there are common cultural themes that tie the continent’s trajectory together. Religion without Redemption looks at the sociology of religion, political philosophy and the history of ideas of the continent, in an attempt to show how Western understanding fails to come close to a correct analysis of how and why political and economic characteristics work as they do.

Luis Martínez Andrade focuses on how the centrality of religion for the people of Latin America has influenced how they interact with the changes in the modern economic system. Capitalism, for example, has taken on religious characteristics: it has sacred places of worship (the shopping mall) as well as its own prophets. Martínez Andrade discusses how this form of ‘cultural religion’ accompanies many aspects of life in a contradictory manner: not only does it fulfil the role of legitimating oppression, it also can be a powerful source of rebellion, unveiling thus a subversive side to the status quo.

Religion Without Redemption advances the ideas of liberation theory into the 21st century, and challenges the provincialism to which many Latin American thinkers are usually consigned.

Link to the book is available here.

Social Media, Politics and the State

Edited by Daniel Trottier and Christian Fuchs | 2014, Routledge

This book is the essential guide for understanding how state power and politics are contested and exercised on social media. It brings together contributions by social media scholars who explore the connection of social media with revolutions, uprising, protests, power and counter-power, hacktivism, the state, policing and surveillance. It shows how collective action and state power are related and conflict as two dialectical sides of social media power, and how power and counter-power are distributed in this dialectic. Theoretically focused and empirically rigorous research considers the two-sided contradictory nature of power in relation to social media and politics. Chapters cover social media in the context of phenomena such as contemporary revolutions in Egypt and other countries, populism 2.0, anti-austerity protests, the fascist movement in Greece's crisis, Anonymous and police surveillance.

Link to the book is available here.

The Demise of Finance-dominated Capitalism: Explaining the Financial and Economic Crises

Edited by Eckhard Hein, Daniel Detzer and Nina Dodig | 2015, Edward Elgar

This book provides an overview of different theoretical perspectives on the long-run transition towards finance-dominated capitalism, on the implications for macroeconomic and financial stability, and ultimately on the recent global financial and economic crisis. In the first part, the macroeconomics of finance-dominated capitalism, the theories of financial crisis and important past crises are reviewed. The second part deals with the 2007-09 financial and economic crisis in particular. The special focus is on the long-run problems and inconsistencies of finance-dominated capitalism which played a key role in the crisis and its level of severity.

Contents

  1. The transition towards finance-dominated capitalism: French Regulation School, Social Structures of Accumulation and post-Keynesian approaches compared
    Eckhard Hein, Nina Dodig and Natalia Budyldina
  2. Finance-dominated capitalism, distribution, growth and crisis – long-run tendencies
    Eckhard Hein and Nina Dodig
  3. Theories of financial crises as cumulative processes – an overview
    Daniel Detzer and Hansjörg Herr
  4. Financial crises leading to stagnation – selected historical case studies
    Nina Dodig and Hansjörg Herr
  5. Five explanations for the international financial crisis
    Trevor Evans
  6. Income distribution and the financial and economic crisis
    Jo Michell
  7. Global and European imbalances and the crisis: a critical review
    Carlos A. Carrasco and Felipe Serrano
  8. Financial deregulation and the 2007-08 US financial crisis
    Özgur Orhangazi
  9. The role of incentives for the Great Recession: securitization and contagion
    Giampaolo Gabbi, Alesia Kalbaska and Alessandro Vercelli
  10. Risk management, the subprime crisis and finance-dominated capitalism: what went wrong? A systematic literature review
    Sérgio Lagoa, Emanuel Leão and Ricardo Barradas

Link to the book (including chapter download) is available here.

The Happiness Industry: How the Government and Big Business Sold us Well-Being

By William Davies | 2015, VersoBooks

What was a Buddhist monk doing at the 2014 World Economic Forum in Davos lecturing the world’s leaders on mindfulness? Why do many successful corporations have a ‘chief happiness officer’? What can the chemical composition of your brain tell a potential employer about you? In the past decade, governments and corporations have become increasingly interested in measuring the way people feel: ‘the Happiness index’, ‘Gross National Happiness’, ‘well-being’ and positive psychology have come to dominate the way we live our lives. As a result, our emotions have become a new resource to be bought and sold.

In a fascinating investigation combining history, science and ideas, William Davies shows how well-being influences all aspects of our lives: business, finance, marketing and smart technology. This book will make you rethink everything from the way you work, the power of the ‘Nudge’, the ever-expanding definitions of depression, and the commercialization of your most private feelings. The Happiness Industry is a shocking and brilliantly argued warning about the new religion of the age: our emotions.

Link to the book is available here.

Vanity Economics: An Economic Exploration of Sex, Marriage and Family

By C. Simon Fan | 2015, Edward Elgar

This book presents an accessible and sometimes controversial economic exploration of numerous issues surrounding sex, marriage and family. It analyses the role of ‘vanity’, defined as social status and self-esteem, in social and economic behaviours.

In Veblen’s theory of conspicuous consumption, vanity is associated with the consumption of luxuries such as expensive handbags and cars. In this book, C. Simon Fan provocatively argues that vanity is obtained by having a spouse and children with perceived ‘high-quality’ values, for example, a beautiful wife, a tall husband or intelligent offspring. He demonstrates from various perspectives that vanity plays a crucial role in male–female relationships and intergenerational relationships. In doing so, he challenges the conventional frontier of economics and contributes to other social sciences.

This unique book will appeal to the educated general reader and interested academic alike.

Link to the book is available here.

Newsletters

Association for Social Economics

Link to the latest issue of the newsletter is available here.

Global Development And Environment Institute

Jeronim Capaldo: Overcooked Free-Trade Dogmas in the debate on TTIP

Global Labour Column

Link to the newsletter is available here.

Union for Radical Political Economics, 46 (3)

Link to the newsletter spring 2015 is available here.

World Economics Association Newsletter, 5 (2)

Link to the latest issue of the newsletter is available here.

Calls for Support

Appeal to support the resisting Greek people and its "Truth Commission on Public Debt"

To the people of Europe and the whole world!

To all the men and women who reject the politics of austerity and are not willing to pay a public debt which is strangling us and which was agreed to behind our backs and against our interests.

We signatories to this appeal stand by the Greek people who, through their vote at the election of 25th January 2015, became the first population in Europe and in the Northern hemisphere to have rejected the politics of austerity imposed to pay an alleged public debt which was negotiated by those on top without the people and against the people. At the same time we consider that the setting up of the Greek Public Debt Truth Commission at the initiative of the president of the Greek Parliament constitutes a historic event, of crucial importance not only for the Greek people but also for the people of Europe and the whole world!

Indeed, the Truth Commission of the Greek Parliament, composed of volunteer citizens from across the globe, is destined to be emulated in other countries. First, because the debt problem is a scourge that plagues most of Europe and the world, and secondly because there are millions and millions of citizens who are rightly posing basic and fundamental questions about this debt:

"What happened to the money that made up this loan? What were the conditions attached to it? How much interest has been paid, at what rate? How much capital has been repaid? How was the debt allowed to accumulate without benefiting the people? Where did the capital go? What was it used for? How much was diverted, by whom, and how was this done?

“And also: Who took out this loan and in whose name? Who granted the loan and what was their role? How did the state become involved? By what decision, taken with what authorisation? How did private debts become ‘public’? Who set up such inappropriate schemes, who pushed in this direction, who profited from them? Were offences or crimes committed with this money? Why has penal civil, criminal and administrative responsibility not been established?"

All these questions will be subjected to rigorous analysis by the commission, which has an official mandate to "gather all information relevant to the emergence and disproportionate increase in public debt, and to subject the data to scientific scrutiny in order to determine what part of that debt can be identified as illegitimate and illegal, odious or unsustainable, during the period of the Memoranda, from May 2010 to January 2015 as well as in the preceding years. It must also publish precise information – which must be accessible to all citizens, provide the evidence to back up public declarations, raise awareness among the Greek population, the international community and international public opinion, and finally draw up arguments and demands calling for cancellation of the debt.

We consider that it is the most basic democratic right of every citizen to demand clear and precise answers to these questions. We also consider that refusal to reply constitutes a denial of democracy and transparency on the part of those at the top who invented and use the "debt-system" to make the rich richer and the poor poorer. And even worse: we consider that by jealously keeping for themselves the monopoly right to decide the fate of society, those at the top deprive the overwhelming majority of citizens not only of their right to make decisions but above all of the right to take their destiny and the fate of humanity into their hands!

This is why we are launching the following urgent appeal to all citizens, social movements, ecological and feminist networks and movements, trade unions and political organizations that reject this ever less democratic and humane neo-liberal Europe: Show your solidarity with the Greek resistance by supporting in action the Greek Public Debt Truth Commission and its work in identifying that part of the Greek public debt which is illegal, illegitimate, odious and/or unsustainable.

Defend it against the outrageous attacks it has been subjected to from all those forces in Greece and the rest of the world who have an interest in keeping the truth about the "debt-system" hidden from view.

Actively take part in the citizen debt audits that are being developed throughout Europe and elsewhere.

Share your support and solidarity on your social networks, since this support and international solidarity is the only way to thwart the ruling powers' plan to suffocate Greece and the people who are fighting against our common enemy: the politics of austerity and the debt that is strangling us!

We are confronted by an experienced adversary, united, well-coordinated, armed with extraordinary powers and absolutely determined to pursue its offensive against every one of us to the bitter end: we who constitute the overwhelming majority of our societies. We cannot allow ourselves the luxury of resisting separately, each in his own corner. So let us unite our forces in a vast movement of solidarity with the Greek resistance and support for the Truth Commission of the Greek Parliament, multiplying such debt audit commissions everywhere where that is possible. Because the struggle of the Greek people is our struggle and their victory will be our victory. Our unity is our only strength

United we stand; divided we fall!

If you wish to support the international appeal below regarding the TRUTH COMMISSION ON PUBLIC DEBT set up by the President of the Greek Parliament, please send your name, title, and affiliation to Giorgos Mitralias <giorgos.mitralias@gmail.com>.

For Your Information

"Fear the Economics Textbook (Story of the Next Crook)": A Rap Video

I believe that you would like to know about a much anticipated reply to the popular (but limited) Hayek-Keynes rap video.

Here is "Fear the Economics Textbook (Story of the Next Crook): A Rap Video," by Stephen T. Ziliak and the RU Ready 4Justice Collective, that is, my students of economics and social justice studies at Roosevelt University.

see also: http://blogs.roosevelt.edu/sziliak/fear-the-economics-textbook-a-rap-video/.

Open Letter for the renewal of the AHE Committee

The Annual General Meeting of the Association for Heterodox Economics will take place at the AHE 17 annual conference at Southampton Solent University, July 2 to the 4. Several of the current AHE committee members are coming to the end of their constitutionally defined period of office. In keeping with the AHEs commitment to be a representatively democratic organization we are taking this opportunity to remind members (and potential members) that they can seek membership of the committee. This can be either as an ordinary member or for a particular post.

This is an important period for heterodox economics. The curriculum is still in flux after the global financial crisis. Students have been motivated to push for access to a greater range of approaches, encompassing many schools of thought and alternative positions. The mainstream is also under pressure to be more plural and innovative in terms of theory and research and various organizations are now promoting and funding this. The AHE can be a mobilising presence to support positive change in economics. But this is only possible if we are prepared to commit some time and energy to doing so collectively. It is important that we continue to do so, not least because of the untimely death of Professor Fred S. Lee, whose unflagging energy provided a focal point for heterodox economics.

So we urge you to get involved, to have your voice heard and to contribute to the collective presence that ensures heterodox economics in all its guises persists and flourishes.

Below is a list of positions for which one may seek to be nominated (that may then be confirmed at the AGM):

The position of Treasurer continues to be filled by Professor Bruce Cronin

The current coordinator Jamie Morgan is willing to act as Secretary but would encourage others to also be nominated in the spirit of diversity.

Alan Freeman currently holds the position of membership secretary/membership list manager. Alan feels someone younger ought to take on the post and is happy to provide transitional support.

The position of Gender Diversity Officer continues to be held by Wendy Olsen

The position of student liaison officer continues to be held by Neil Lancastle. However, Neil would encourage current active postgraduate students to become involved and seek nomination, since he is now staff. He is happy to liaise.

The current position of Webmaster continues to be filled by Anders Ekeland.

The current position of postgraduate workshop convenor continues to be filled by Andrew Mearman.

Membership of the committee is not an onerous task. It provides an opportunity to contribute ideas and opinion through an e-mail system in order to ensure the AHE remains representative and is also represented in as many places and networks as possible. As pluralists we encourage contributions from adherents to all schools of thought and none. It is expected that committee members will make every effort to attend the annual conference but we acknowledge that this may not be possible every year.

Please send expressions of interest and nominations to: jamiea.morgan@hotmail.co.uk

Current ordinary committee members also include:

Review of Radical Political Economics: New Editor

The editorial board of the Review of Radical Political Economics is pleased to announce that Enid Arvidson of the University of Texas Arlington will be their Managing Editor effective January 2016.

Our current Managing Editor, Hazel Dayton Gunn, is retiring after 20 years of service.