Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL Interviews the world's leading thinkers, and the people shaping the century.

At a very fundamental level, war is about defending against a perceived or actual threat.  Such aggressions have been frequently used throughout history to defend ideas, ideologies and territories- but more recently, economies. Unlike any other defence environment, the theatre of nuclear war exists in a state of near-permanent checkmate. …

 

In my article of September 01st 2010 “Thinking Ourselves Into Another Recession” I discussed how psychology plays a critical role in the well-being of an economy.  Using the paradigm of eating disorders, we discussed how: “…When we talk of economic confidence, business confidence, or even confidence in global markets, we…

 

As the Economist reported, “On September 12th the Basel Committee, a club of supervisors and bank regulators, finally reached agreement on how much extra stuffing needs to go into the cushions [of banks] to absorb losses and buffer the financial system against the next crisis.” The “Basel III” recommendations set…

 

Reporting on the increased perceived risk of a double-dip recession, the Huffington Posted noted how there is “..a growing sense of doom among some prominent economists“.  They went on to cite Nouriel Roubini, the cofounder and chairman of Roubini Global Economics and a professor at New York University’s Stern School…

 

UN Dispatch reported the words of Ban Ki Moon (UN Secretary General), who visited the Pakistan floods, saying, “This has been a heart-wrenching day, and I will never forget the destruction and suffering that I have witnessed.  I have visited the scenes of many natural disasters around the world, but…

 

In July 2010, the Economist observed how non-profit organisations “…are commonly advised to become more like for-profit businesses. Management experts and consultants view them as horribly inefficient due to the absence of the concentrating power of the profit motive… [however] there has been barely any reciprocal pressure on for-profit firms…

 

In his 1817 book, “On the Principles of Political Economy and Taxation“, David Ricardo explained the principle of economic comparative advantage.  He drew example from the production of wine and cloth in England and Portugal and explained, “In England it is very hard to produce wine, and only moderately difficult…

 

There is little doubt that taxation is an economically necessary and ethically valid part of society’s structure.  “Taxes” stated Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. “…are the price of civilisation.” Many cite taxation as having four ‘key’ roles in society, The generation of revenue for the state to provide infrastructure, education, defence,…

 

In this interview, we speak to Professor Charles Wyplosz who is Professor of International Economics at the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva, where he is Director of the International Centre of Money and Banking Studies and an Independent Economic Advisor to the President of the European Commission. We…

 

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Corruption is a phenomenon that has existed for thousands of years, but only now is it becoming an unacceptable event. Corruption destroys societies, hinders development and undermines security. Note what happened in the Middle East and North Africa… corruption was one of the triggers of unrest in these countries. It appears that people are fed-up of corruption, they want change, and they want it now.

— Yury Fedotov
Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Even if it's not your mistake, it could still be your responsibility. That's one element of maturity – owning up to things even when they weren't caused by your actions. What you should truly be striving for as an entrepreneur is creating new standards of success, redefining what success means beyond monetary wealth.

— Kevin Kelly
Founding Executive Editor of Wired Magazine & Technology Thinker

Economics depicts humanity as a character called rational, economic man. I'd say he has to be a man- he has no dependants. He's a man standing alone with money in his hand, ego in his heart, a calculator in his head and nature at his feet. When we show-up, we're told that we're competitive and self-interested, the traits of the market.

— Kate Raworth
Creator of the Doughnut Economics framework for sustainable development

Salman Abedi, Khalid Masood, Khuram Butt, all of these people and the people in ISIS, Al Qaeda, Boko Haram, Al-Shabaab… We tend to think sometimes that they are extremism. But the reality is they didn't breed extremism. Islamist extremism bred them.

There is a rationality to believing in conspiracy theories that purport to identify somebody acting in secret to harm or gain an advantage that's illegal or immoral, over somebody else without their knowledge or consent.

— Michael Shermer
Founder of The Skeptics Society & Science Communicator

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Long-form Interviews with the World's Leading Thinkers — Thought Economics


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