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201. Digital Entrepreneurship: Expanding the Economic Frontier in the Mediterranean

Author:
Santana Moisés
Publication Date:
09-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
IEMed/EuroMeSCo
Abstract:
The goal of this paper is to introduce the promotion of technology-based entrepreneurship as an engine for Mediterranean economic growth, with an emphasis on the role of entrepreneurs. Without avoiding or undermining current problems or challenges, this document takes a look at the Mediterranean Basin free of stereotypes and from a constructive viewpoint. Hence it applies to the Mediterranean the words spoken by Shimon Peres when he received the Nobel Peace Prize together with Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin in 1994: “A Middle East that is not a killing field but a field of creativity and growth.”
Topic:
International Political Economy and International Security
Political Geography:
Global Focus

202. The Qatar Crisis

Author:
Marc Lynch and Stephanie Dahle
Publication Date:
10-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS)
Abstract:
On June 5, 2017, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates launched a campaign against Qatar. Tensions between these Gulf Cooperation Council members were nothing new, but few anticipated the sudden escalation or the intensity of the campaign. The anti-Qatar campaign leaders then failed to achieve a rapid resolution of the crisis in their favor through a Qatari capitulation. More than four months later, the GCC remains badly divided and both sides are increasingly entrenched in their positions. To make sense of this political conflict, POMEPS is pleased to release this collection of essays by a wide range of leading scholars published in The Monkey Cage and in POMEPS Studies over the last several years. The collection is divided into four major sections: the origins and course of the current conflict; regional responses; how the Arab uprisings impacted the GCC; and background on the divisive question of Islamism and the Muslim Brotherhood.
Topic:
International Political Economy and International Security
Political Geography:
Middle East

203. Olive Cultivation in the Galilee, 1948–1955: Hegemony and Resistance

Author:
Jeffrey Reger
Publication Date:
06-2017
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Palestine Studies
Institution:
Institute for Palestine Studies
Abstract:
Drawing on Arabic, English, and Hebrew language sources from the British and Israeli archives, this article seeks to bridge the catastrophic rupture of 1948 to the early 1950s and to trace the changing relationship between ordinary Palestinian olive cultivators in the Galilee and the newly established Israeli state. In contrast with studies that center on the continued expulsion of Palestinians and extension of control over land by the state and state-supported actors in the aftermath of the Nakba, this study examines those Palestinians who stayed on their land and how they responded to Israeli agricultural and food control policies that they saw as discriminatory to the point of being existential threats. Beyond analysis of Israeli state policy toward olive growers and olive oil producers, this article brings in rare Palestinian voices from the time, highlighting examples of Palestinian resistance to the Israeli state’s practices of confiscation and discrimination.
Topic:
Human Rights, International Political Economy, and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Israel

204. The Political Economy of Carbon Pricing Policy Design

Author:
Joseph E. Aldy
Publication Date:
10-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:
This paper examines the choice between—and design of—CO2 cap-and-trade and tax policies through a political-economy lens. It draws from insights in economics and political economy to highlight important public policy principles and policy options in carbon-pricing policy design. The paper illustrates each of these insights with examples from cap-and-trade and tax-policy experiences. Revealed political preferences about carbon-pricing-policy design can, in practice, inform our understanding of how decision-makers weigh various policy principles, as well as policy objectives. The balance of the paper examines the following design choices: establishing and phasing-in policy targets; setting the point of compliance and scope of coverage; addressing uncertainties in emission and cost outcomes under carbon pricing; updating carbon-pricing targets over time; using revenue and other forms of economic value created by carbon pricing; mitigating adverse competitiveness impacts of pricing carbon; accounting for the existing, complex policy landscape in designing carbon pricing; and linking of carbon-pricing programs. The final section concludes with a discussion of policy implications and next steps for policy-relevant scholarship.
Topic:
International Political Economy, Climate Finance, and Global Political Economy
Political Geography:
Global Focus

205. International Gas Outlook and Implications for Developing Tanzania’s Gas Projects

Author:
Columbia Centre on Sustainable Investment
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Abstract:
This brief, reviews recent international gas developments, the outlook in this regard and implications for the development of proposed offshore gas projects in Tanzania. As the country aims to benefit from its gas discoveries by increasing its domestic gas use, it also outlines some of the trade-offs and considerations that need to be taken into account when negotiating the domestic gas allocation.
Topic:
International Political Economy and Climate Finance
Political Geography:
Tanzania

206. The Role of IPAs in Advancing Sustainable Development

Author:
Columbia Centre on Sustainable Investment
Publication Date:
11-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre for East European Studies, University of Warsaw
Abstract:
Every year the World Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA) surveys its members. This survey, conducted in 2017, polled over 90 agencies on numerous aspect
Topic:
International Political Economy and International Trade and Finance
Political Geography:
Global Focus

207. Green Foreign Direct Investment In Developing Countries

Author:
Columbia Centre on Sustainable Investment
Publication Date:
10-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Abstract:
The message is by now clear: our global economy must be fundamentally reoriented and redeployed in order to achieve the SDGs and the commitments of the Paris Climate Agreement. This requires action by all stakeholders, including non-financial and financial firms, debt and equity investors, government policymakers, and consumers. In terms of the amount of money required, it has been estimated that meeting the SDGs will require $5 to $7 trillion annually, with investment needs for developing countries amounting to roughly $3.3 to $4.5 trillion per year. While a big picture view of and strategic thinking regarding the entire economic ecosystem is necessary to generate such investments, this paper, produced in conjunction with the UN Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System, focuses on the actual and potential role of one type of financial flow—FDI—in achieving the transition to a low-carbon, just and sustainable world and, more specifically, FDI flows into developing countries.
Topic:
International Political Economy and Climate Finance
Political Geography:
Global Focus

208. Designing a Legal Regime to Capture Capital Gains Tax on Indirect Transfers of Mineral and Petroleum Rights: A Practical Guide

Author:
Columbia Centre on Sustainable Investment
Publication Date:
10-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Abstract:
When a local asset (or a right relating to such asset) is sold, a country will generally have jurisdiction to levy a capital gains tax on the sale, both under domestic law and international treaty. This is called taxation of a “direct” transfer of a local asset. However, taxation becomes increasingly complicated when a company located offshore owns the local asset. Further difficulties arise when the local asset is held by a chain of corporations located in tax havens. An “indirect” transfer occurs when the shares of the domestic subsidiary, the shares of the foreign company with a branch in the country, or the shares of the holding company are sold, instead of the asset.
Topic:
International Political Economy
Political Geography:
Global Focus

209. Conference Report: Climate Change and Sustainable Investment in Natural Resources: From Consensus to Action

Author:
Columbia Centre on Sustainable Investment
Publication Date:
03-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment
Abstract:
A conference report on CCSI’s Conference on “Climate Change and Sustainable Investment in Natural Resources: From Consensus to Action” is available here, and a shorter outcome document , which was disseminated at COP22, is available here. These documents summarize the discussions at the eleventh annual Columbia International Investment Conference, which took place on November 2-3, 2016, at Columbia University. The Conference offered a high-level opportunity to discuss how countries can reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in accordance with the Paris Agreement, while also advancing the Sustainable Development Goals, and in particular the important implications for the world’s approach to natural resource investments. It featured leaders from government, the private sector, civil society, and academia, and brought together nearly 400 participants. In the lead-up to the Conference, CCSI also published a Blog Series on the Earth Institute’s State of the Planet Blog.
Topic:
Climate Change and International Political Economy
Political Geography:
Global Focus

210. Informe sobre sostenibilidad en España 2017

Author:
Ana Belén Sanchez
Publication Date:
11-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Fundación Alternativas
Abstract:
Lo que este IIº Informe sobre sostenibilidad plantea es que conviene pasar a la acción, sin más demora, si queremos evitar situaciones catastróficas. Los datos son concluyentes. En 40 años hemos doblado las emisiones de carbono, dentro de unos años habrá más plásticos que peces en los mares, con la desaparición de miles de especies marinas; la energía sigue dependiendo de materias fósiles y 7 millones de personas mueren al año por contaminación. Los desórdenes atmosféricos se suceden, amenazando territorios y millones de personas. Es como si la madre naturaleza protestara ó castigara los despropósitos de sus descarriados hijos, los humanos.
Topic:
International Political Economy and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Spain