Category Archives: Topics

Topics covers the following areas:

The following sections have not been done adequately, though they cover important topics. Capitalism and imperialism,  Income Distribution – Inequality, and Poverty and hunger.

Critiques of orthodox economics 2022

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Manifold exploitations: toward an intersectional political economy Nancy Folbre Review of Social Economy August 2020 (access to full article)
The distinction between oppression and exploitation is overstated in traditional Marxian theory. Defined in terms of economic advantages gained from unfair bargaining power, exploitation can take manifold forms, characterized by intersections, overlaps, and interactions within complex hierarchical systems in which actors often find themselves in somewhat contradictory positions.

IMF: Fossil fuel subsidies $5.9 trillion or 6.8 percent of GDP in 2020

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Still not getting energy prices right: A global and country update of fossil fuel subsidies Ian Parry, Simon Black, Nate Vernon International Monetary Fund September 24, 2021
Globally, fossil fuel subsidies were $5.9 trillion in 2020 or about 6.8 percent of GDP, and are expected to rise to 7.4 percent of GDP in 2025. Just 8 percent of the 2020 subsidy reflects undercharging for supply costs (explicit subsidies) and 92 percent for undercharging for environmental costs and foregone consumption taxes (implicit subsidies). Efficient fuel pricing in 2025 would reduce global carbon dioxide emissions 36 percent below baseline levels, which is in line with keeping global warming to 1.5 degrees, while raising revenues worth 3.8 percent of global GDP and preventing 0.9 million local air pollution deaths.

Organized violence 1989-2020

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Organized violence 1989-2020, with a special emphasis on Syria Therése Pettersson Shawn Davies, Amber Deniz Journal of Peace Research July 1, 2021
This article reports on trends in organized violence, building on new data by the Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP). The falling trend in fatalities stemming from organized violence in the world, observed for five consecutive years, broke upwards in 2020 and deaths in organized violence seem to have settled on a high plateau. UCDP registered more than 80,100 deaths in organized violence in 2020, compared to 76,300 in 2019. The decrease in violence in Afghanistan and Syria was countered by escalating conflicts in, for example, Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), Azerbaijan and Tigray, Ethiopia. Moreover, the call for a global ceasefire following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic failed to produce any results. In fact, the number of active state-based and non-state conflicts, as well as the number of actors carrying out one-sided violence against civilians, increased when compared to 2019. UCDP noted a record-high number of 56 state-based conflicts in 2020, including eight wars. Most of the conflicts occurred in Africa, as the region registered 30 state-based conflicts, including nine new or restarted ones.

Global trends in violence against women journalists

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The chilling: Global trends in violence against women journalists UNESCO November 1, 2021 5
There is nothing virtual about online violence. It has become the new frontline in journalism safety – and women journalists sit at the epicentre of risk. Networked misogyny and gaslighting intersect with racism, religious bigotry, homophobia and other forms of discrimination to threaten women journalists – severely and disproportionately. Threats of sexual violence and murder are frequent and sometimes extended to their families. This phenomenon is also bound up with the rise of viral disinformation, digital conspiracy networks and political polarisation. The psychological, physical, professional, and digital safety and security impacts associated with this escalating freedom of expression and gender equality crisis are overlapping, converging and frequently inseparable. They are also increasingly spilling offline, sometimes with devastating consequences.Here, we present an edited extract from a major interdisciplinary study produced by the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) under commission from UNESCO.