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Realist fantasies: a review of Martin Wolf’s The Crisis of Democratic Capitalism
Realist fantasies: a review of Martin Wolf’s The Crisis of Democratic Capitalism
Wolf’s diagnosis of what is ailing democratic capitalism is clear-eyed and compelling; his prescription for saving it is anything but.
Richard Roberts
May 1, 2023
What comes after Spreadsheet Capitalism?
What comes after Spreadsheet Capitalism?
The humble spreadsheet was the shareholder value revolution’s “killer app”. Now it’s time to make decisions differently — but how?
Richard Roberts
Sep 22, 2022
The Demographic Forces Shaping the Post-COVID World
The Demographic Forces Shaping the Post-COVID World
Demographic trends are among the most powerful and predictable forces shaping humanity’s future. We should pay more attention to them.
Richard Roberts
Sep 6, 2021
The Making of a Democratic Economy — Book Review
The Making of a Democratic Economy — Book Review
A new book provides an excellent introduction to the theory and practice of building a democratic economy.
Richard Roberts
Aug 16, 2019
Can Competition Cure Capitalism?
Can Competition Cure Capitalism?
A new book proposes an old remedy for the US economy’s failure to deliver shared prosperity.
Richard Roberts
May 9, 2019
The Most Important (and Least Asked) Questions in Economics
The Most Important (and Least Asked) Questions in Economics
What is value? And what’s the purpose of economic activity? Two recent books have put these fundamental questions in the spotlight.
Richard Roberts
Feb 15, 2019
Four Home Truths About The Struggle To Build A Sustainable Economy
Four Home Truths About The Struggle To Build A Sustainable Economy
A new book by four leading lights of the sustainability movement tells us much about what it will take to create a regenerative economy.
Richard Roberts
Nov 28, 2018
Decarbonisation Is Not Enough
Decarbonisation Is Not Enough
People in Canada are dying because it’s too hot. Roads in the UK are melting. It hit almost 32°C in Glasgow recently. And spare a thought…
Richard Roberts
Jul 16, 2018
Illuminating the venture capital industry’s blind spots
Illuminating the venture capital industry’s blind spots
‘Our innovation economy is broken,’ writes American venture capitalist-cum-impact investor Ross Baird in his excellent new book, The…
Richard Roberts
Nov 6, 2017
The future of trust is distributed
The future of trust is distributed
Are we — are you — too trusting?
Richard Roberts
Oct 5, 2017
Can sustainable development provide the growth engine for capitalism’s next phase?
Can sustainable development provide the growth engine for capitalism’s next phase?
2017 is a landmark year for the sustainable development movement. It’s 30 years since the World Commission on Environment and Development —…
Richard Roberts
Jun 2, 2017
The unlikely habits of successful innovators
The unlikely habits of successful innovators
There are certain truths about successful innovators that we hold to be self-evident. They have outsized risk appetites. They move faster…
Richard Roberts
Feb 20, 2017
Tom Friedman: stubborn optimist in an accelerating world
Tom Friedman: stubborn optimist in an accelerating world
Tom Friedman is a self-described optimist. His sunny outlook, as he is the first to admit, is in large part a product of where he comes…
Richard Roberts
Feb 5, 2017
The Innovation Illusion and how to avoid it
The Innovation Illusion and how to avoid it
Imagine it’s 2030. We’ve failed to achieve the SDGs. We haven’t even got close. Instead, we’ve gone backwards on several of them. We’ve…
Richard Roberts
Dec 19, 2016
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