Global Issues
The end of economic convergence? Not quite
Given that emerging economies continue to grow two or three times faster than advanced economies, the persistent gloom about their prospects is puzzling. The latest example comes…
Commentary
Australia won't 'better mankind' in Iraq if we instinctively reach for our military
Australia won't 'better mankind' in Iraq if we instinctively reach for our militaryJames BrownThe Guardian4 September 2014Please click here for the online text…
Obama and ISIS: Snowden leaks reveal tough choices
Though the US President will be the last to trumpet it, a revelation from the Edward Snowden National Security Agency dossier unveiled late last month might provide some context…
The environment and the news cycle
I loved this bit from US environmental activist Bill McKibben, who is guest blogging on Andrew Sullivan's site:
Every day there’s something more immediately important happening…
A breakthrough in Chinese climate policy? Not likely
I argued back in April that China's 'synthetic natural gas' (syngas or SNG, which is gas made from coal) is 'bad economics, bad science and an environmental catastrophe'. I also…
Just how expensive is renewable energy?
I raised this topic recently when The Economist pointed to a new Brookings study which argued that the cost of renewables had been severely underestimated. There was some…
From the comments thread: Green energy
Two reader comments I'd like to flag in response to my piece highlighting new research by the Brookings Institution's Charles Frank, written up in The Economist, which suggests…
Green power still too expensive
This piece from The Economist would have been useful context for the green-energy puff piece broadcast on the ABC's flagship current affairs show Four Corners on 7 July.
The…
Time to put security issues on G20 agenda
Given developments in the Ukraine and tensions elsewhere in the world, the time has come to put security and geo-political issues directly on the agenda for the meeting of G20…
MH17: What does international law say?
In the days following the shooting down of MH17, the UN and governments around the world have quickly turned to discussing how to bring the perpetrators to justice. While the most…