Thinking global, living local: Voices in a globalized world

Global Issues

Globalization is ongoing, and its effects can be felt everywhere. Future Challenges exists to explore the benefits and problems of globalization, sharing diverse perspectives from around the world. The Global Issues are big themes – for example trade, migration or austerity policies. Each Global Issue provides a spark of inspiration for our bloggers, and they respond with stories from their own lives and countries.

  • Poor Women in Cities: Challenges and Innovations

    The urban environment presents unique challenges as well as opportunities for its residents. Cities often have diverse populations with varying income levels and backgrounds, yet these individuals must coexist in a finite space, often with differential access to everything from cultural goods to public transportation and basic sustenance. We want […]

  • Austerity: Less is More?

    What can the experiences of people and communities tell us about the value of austerity measures? Have austerity policies exacerbated inequality in our societies, or rendered us all more equal? How do people in different countries view austerity policies?

  • Free Trade: Bane or Benefit?

    How do the expectations and attitudes of people in different regions towards international trade differ? Do people believe that international trade affects their daily lives? And if so, how? Where do they see the opportunities and risks of efforts to lower barriers to trade?

  • What’s Texas Without the Twang?

    As economically-driven migration changes the composition of communities and cities all over the world, what is happening to us as individuals and as distinct cultures? Are we retaining our distinctiveness as it has always been, or are we becoming cultural mash-ups? How does this experience help or hurt us in a globalized economy?

  • Women’s Work

    Economic imperatives and demographic shifts worldwide necessitate ever greater participation by women in the worldwide workforce. On the occasion of International Women’s Day, our bloggers share their views on this trend – what is gained, and what, if anything, is lost?

  • Relationship Trouble

    What is the future of the relationship between the state and its citizens? Will the social-welfare state rise supreme, or some variety of unfettered capitalism, with minimal state involvement? Will new models rise instead? What can citizens expect from their governments in the future?

  • Contagion

    With ever-stronger bonds across borders and oceans, an economic crisis in one part of the world is bound to impact others. How can we ensure that our growing connectivity makes each of us stronger and more resilient to crises?

  • Help Wanted

    With stiff international and intergenerational competition for work, will the world be more or less stable in the years ahead? Explore the way our bloggers from around the world think about the future of work in their regions!