Newsletter: December 2024

Expectations, Inflation, and Crisis: Celebrating 75 Years of Daniel Heymann

December 16-17, 2024. Buenos Aires, Argentina. Hosted by the University of Buenos Aires.

Martín Guzmán celebrating the legacy of economist Daniel Heymann.

At the University of Buenos Aires, a conference was held to celebrate the renowned Argentinian economist Daniel Heymann. Participants, including former students of Professor Heymann, gave presentations and engaged in conversations related to his economic vision.

Martín Guzmán (IPD; Columbia University, SIPA) delivered a welcome keynote address, “75 Years of Daniel Heymann.” In addition, Guzmán gave the presentation, “Uncertainty in Macroeconomics and Intertemporal Coordination: the Heymann’s connection.” The slides for the presentation are available here (in Spanish).

The Independent Commission for the Reform of International Corporate Taxation (ICRICT) Annual Meeting

December 13-14, 2024. The Forum, Columbia University, New York. Hosted by ICRICT.

During the ICRICT annual meeting, experts on taxation reform met to discuss the initiatives advanced in 2024 and those that will be pursued next year when the IV conference for finance for development, the COP in Brazil and the G20 presidency of South Africa can provide further momentum for the reform of international tax cooperation.

On the first day of the meetings, Joseph E. Stiglitz (IPD, Columbia University) chaired a discussion titled, “International tax cooperation: a changing landscape” as well as one titled “A protocol on cross border services.” Jayati Ghosh (ICRICT, University of Massachusetts Amherst) chaired the discussions “Taxing the rich: a protocol on taxing the high-net-worth individuals” and “Corporate taxation and tax incentives.” On the second day, Professor Stiglitz chaired the session “A protocol on IFFs.” Together Professors Stiglitz and Ghosh led the closing session on the way forward.

7th Workshop on New Developmentalism — New Developmentalism Theory Twenty Years Later

December 6-7, 2024. São Paulo, Brazil. Hosted by The Center for Studies on New Developmentalism of the Sao Paulo School of Business Administration at Getulio Vargas Foundation.

The 7th Workshop on New Developmentalism: “New Developmentalism Theory, twenty years later: Next advances and propositions” was held in São Paulo, Brazil. The program included a mini course on new developmentalism in which the latest developments of the ND theory were presented; two keynote speeches by renowned international specialist in macroeconomic development; a masterclass about current development challenges of Brazil; two discussion panels with specialists from Brazil and Latin America; sessions during which papers were presented.

Martín Guzmán both delivered a keynote address and gave a master class, “Sovereign Debt, the International Financial Architecture and Power Dynamics.” His presentation during the master class described the power imbalances that contribute to the macroeconomics of sovereign debt distress and proposals for reform, including better contracts, enhanced collective action clauses, and the expanded adoption of capital account regulations. The slides from the presentation are available here.

In his keynote, “Free trade without transfer of knowledge in economies with learning by doing may be neo-colonialism,” Guzmán presented research co-authored with Joseph E. Stiglitz (IPD, Columbia University).

Book Discussion with Professors Joseph Stiglitz and Glenn Hubbard

December 5, 2024. Columbia Business School. Hosted by Columbia Business School.

In his new book, “The Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society,” Joseph E. Stiglitz argues that it’s time for the United States to articulate a broader conception of freedom than the one co-opted by the right. Rather than free markets, this type of freedom means citizens are able to realize their economic potential through good education, access to healthcare, job opportunities and livable wages.

Dean Emeritus Glenn Hubbard (Columbia Business School) and Professor Stiglitz discussed how the book describes the past 40 years of neoliberalism and maps out a way forward that focuses on the wellbeing of all of society.

The 2024 Understanding China Conference

December 3-4, 2024. Guangzhou, China. Organized by the China Institute for Innovation and Development Strategy (CIIDS), the Chinese People’s Institute of Foreign Affairs, and the Guangdong Provincial Government.

Leaders from across politics, business, academia, and civil society met at the Guangzhou Yuexiu International Congress Center to attend the 2024 Understanding China Conference, which was themed “Carrying Reform Forward: Chinese Modernization and New Opportunities for World Development.” The conference provided an international platform for dialogue on China’s development strategy.

Joseph E. Stiglitz participated in the conference by delivering a plenary speech and engaging in a conversation with moderator Xu Weixin (Chairperson of CIIDS) and Huang Qifan (Executive Vice Chairman of Academic Committee of the CIIPS). Professor Stiglitz also participated in discussions about China-U.S. relations moderated by Li Junru (Executive Vice Chairman, Academic Committee of CIIDS) and Li Cheng (Founding Director of the Centre on Contemporary China and the World at the University of Hong Kong). As U.S.-China relations are at a crossroads, discussants shared ideas about how the two countries can stabilize bilateral relations, avoid tensions, and work toward mutual coexistence and win-win cooperation.

The Resurgence of Industrial Policy and the New Protectionism

December 1, 2024. Beijing, China. Hosted by Peking University.

Justin Yifu Lin and Joseph E. Stiglitz (from the left) at Peking University.

At Peking University, Joseph E. Stiglitz was in conversation with Professor Justin Yifu Lin (Peking University) as part of the Peking University Global Fellowship lecture series. Stiglitz delivered the lecture, “The Resurgence of Industrial Policy and the New Protectionism,” during which he discussed how enhanced industrial policy can address global challenges such as supply chain disruptions and climate change. The lecture also discussed how traditional neoliberalism has overlooked the dynamic effects of knowledge and learning. Professors Lin and Stiglitz then engaged in a lively discussion about the resurgence of industrial policy and protectionism and lessons learned in recent years.

Financing for Development: A Systemic View

November 25-27, 2024. Geneva, Switzerland. Hosted by UN Trade and Development.

The 8th Intergovernmental Group of Experts Meeting on Financing for Development (IGE FfD) was held in Geneva, Switzerland. The focus of the meeting was the high cost of development finance. The discussion between policymakers, international experts, and representatives from multilateral organizations took place amid rising debt service obligations, global financial tightening, and volatile currency markets. Participants discussed the systemic factors driving those issues as well as potential policy solutions.

Martín Guzmán presented on a panel during a session titled, “The role of international financial institutions, Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs), and development financial institutions (DFIs) in ensuring affordable development finance for developing countries.”

The discussion focused on the question: “How and through which mechanisms, such as SDR rechanneling, can IFIs enable more affordable, long term development financing?” The panel was moderated by H.E. Mrs. Clara Manuela da Luz Delgado Jesus (Ambassador of Cabo Verde to the UN). Fellow panelists were: Hassatou Diop N’Sele (Vice President for Finance and Chief Financial Officer of African Development Bank Group), Betty Wainaina (Associate Director of the Multilateral Reform Program of Center on International Cooperation, New York University) and Chris Humphrey (Senior scientist at Swiss Federal Institute of Technology’s Centre for Development Cooperation).

Slides from Martin Guzmán’s presentation are available here.

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