Global Economy and Corporate Responsibility

Focusing on the Common Good

From a progressive perspective, there is no doubt that global economic, trade and tax policies serve a higher goal. Primarily, they are instruments to reduce inequality within and between states and between the Global North and Global South. A beneficial global economic order serves the common good: It provides solutions to social issues, instead of exacerbating them.

With the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the United Nations have created a set of guidelines for the economic system of the future, and for our work as well.

Together with our partners, we are committed to shaping the global economic system so that it benefits the common good, and to implementing the Goals of the 2030 Agenda – all over the world. In this, our emphasis is on trade and tax policies and also the topic of corporate and investor responsibility.

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News About Global Economy and Corporate Responsibility

A child is climbing a pyramid on which a map of Europe and the EU flag can be seen.

We need the EU to finance the transformation

A funding problem haunts the future of the German and European economies. How the EU can launch a common investment push in the new mandate.


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Flowers at the memorial site for the victims of the Rana Plaza disaster in Savar, Bangladesh.

Breakthrough with Obstacles

The passing of EU Supply Chain Directive by the EU Parliament has been a lengthy process. Our new publication looks at what it means for the European...


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Young woman at a call center

Women, automation and the future of work

Women are more exposed to AI automation in the workplace compared to men. Our upcoming research project baims to specifically examine this issue.


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Laptop mit grüner Schrift, Südkorea Flagge im Hintergrund

Platform algorithms: A new stage of labor exploitation

The age when algorithms control humans. How true is it?

 

 

 

The destructive controlling aspect of platform algorithms reveals the true nature of...


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Interview Supply chain governance. Bildausschnitt von einer Person, die eine bunte Matte aus Pflanzenfasern knüpft.

Supply chain governance: Arguments for worker-driven enforcement

Interview with Marlese von Broembsen, head of legal affairs at the international organization WIEGO (Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and...


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The Changing World – Due Diligence Laws as the Opportunity?

Hybrid International Conference, October 18, 2022, 9:00 am – 2:00 pm with Hubertus Heil, Lara Wolters, Dr. Bärbel Kofler and others. Register here.


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More articles are available here.


Publications

Jirmann, Julia; Trautvetter, Christoph

Taxing billionaires fairly

A German perspective on the Brazilian G20 proposal for a globally coordinated tax on ultra-high-net-worth individuals
Bonn, 2024

Download publication (300 KB, PDF-File)


Chinaʿs European bridgehead?

The Chinese economic presence in Hungary
Budapest, 2024

Download publication (630 KB PDF-File)


China-Pakistan economic corridor beyond 2030

A green alliance for sustainable development
Islamabad, 2024

Download publication (48 MB, PDF-File)



Guzmán, Martín; Stiglitz, Joseph E.

The practices of sovereign debt sustainability analysis

Bonn, 2024

Download publication (480 KB, PDF-File)


Chomola, Ruth

Seen but not heard: The socio-economic realities of street vendors in Bulawayo

Survey report 2024
Harare, 2024

Download publication (1,1 MB, PDF-File)



Global Economy, Corporate Responsibility and Progressive Politics

Seen from the progressive standpoint of Social Democracy, there is no doubt that the role of economic policy must be to promote prosperity for society as a whole, and to reduce inequality within and between countries. A progressive global economic order solves social issues instead of exacerbating them.

First and foremost, this means that the social benefit derived from economic actions needs to be front and center at all times. The interests of powerful, well-connected players such as investors or corporations must not be allowed to override the common good. Just like a state's citizens, economic actors have both rights and obligations: They are protected by the state but must also: adhere to the law, preserve public assets such as the environment, pay taxes, and be held responsible for any damage caused.

Because large transnational corporations often put these obligations last, states and parliaments must regulate them. The economy should be under democratic control, both nationally and internationally. Strong and democratically legitimate institutions are required to provide oversight of the global economy. The establishment of an effective system for “Global Economic Governance” is one of the most important tasks of our time, to ensure that all human beings – and not just the “1 percent” – can benefit from economic growth.

2030 Agenda: A Guide to Tomorrow's Economy

With the United Nation's 2030 Agenda, the international community has given itself a set of guidelines for shaping the global economy in the future: One person's prosperity should not come at another person's expense, or at the expense of upcoming generations. Future economic activity needs to be guided by sustainability principles and the common good. This is the only way in which states will reach the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which cover issues such as reducing poverty and inequality and addressing the effects of climate change.

In our work on economic issues, we are committed to:

  • reining in international financial markets,
  • reforming international trade policy,
  • fundamentally reshaping the international tax system and
  • making transnational corporations adhere to labor rights, human rights and environmental standards.
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