core-econ
Free access to the beta version of a remarkable new textbook that aims to change economics education:
http://core-econ.org/
For a review by Econ4’s David Bollier, see here.
Rethinking Economics: a new international student network
“An international network of rethinkers coming together to demystify, diversify, and invigorate economics”:
http://www.rethinkeconomics.org/
German network of pluralist economics students
German students organize for new economic thinking:
https://www.plurale-oekonomik.de/home/
Learning from history
A new animation sums up the differences between the “Golden Age”of 1948-71 and the “Great Moderation” of 1985-2007:
Source: http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2014/05/myth-great-moderation.html.
Students call for pluralism in economics education
There is growing demand from students around the world for profound changes in how economics is being taught:
We, 42 associations of economics students from 19 different countries, believe it is time to reconsider the way economics is taught. We are dissatisfied with the dramatic narrowing of the curriculum that has taken place over the last couple of decades. This lack of intellectual diversity does not only restrain education and research. It limits our ability to contend with the multidimensional challenges of the 21st century – from financial stability, to food security and climate change. The real world should be brought back into the classroom, as well as debate and a pluralism of theories and methods. This will help renew the discipline and ultimately create a space in which solutions to society’s problems can be generated.
Read more here.
And The Guardian‘s coverage here.
Post-crash economics
Students at Manchester University lay out the case for changes in economics education:
In short, we argue for pluralism of perspectives and the inclusion of ethics, history and politics. We advocate an approach that begins with economic phenomena and then gives students a toolkit to evaluate how well different perspectives can explain it. The discipline should be conceptualised as an ecosystem, as the importance of diversity and the cross-fertilisation of paradigms are key to success.
Read more here.
For some background on this initiative, see here.
Rethinking economics
Demand from students for reality-based, ethically grounded economics is growing around the world:
When the financial crisis hit in 2007, economics students at respected institutions around the world found that theories handed down in classrooms failed to explain the reality outside, and an international movement began to demand a change in the way economics is taught.
Read more here.
Wealth-building strategies for America’s communities
Resources for democratic, community-based economic development from the Democracy Collaborative:
Inequality for All
Here’s the trailer for the new film “Inequality of All,” featuring Robert Reich:
Read more about the film and the facts behind it here.
The over-supplyside economy
Daniel Alpert explains why the economy ain’t what it used to be:
We are in an age of global oversupply: an oversupply of global labor (hence high underemployment); an oversupply of global productive capacity (hence ultra-low inflation); and an oversupply of global capital (hence low interest rates)….
[O]ne can’t properly understand the financial crisis without appreciating how the rise of the emerging nations distorted the economies of rich countries. And you can’t chart a course to more growth and stability in the developed world without recognizing that many of these distorting forces are still at work. Cheaper credit through monetary easing, for example, doesn’t yield much in an era when cheap capital already exists in abundance.
Can we get out of this mess? We can, but we need a fresh playbook.
Read his Times op-ed piece here.
