When a Rose Isn’t Just a Rose: How Trade Policy Was Used to Fight Drugs from Colombia
Americans will give each other 200 million roses over the Valentine season. The majority were grown in Colombia. How did this come to be? For decades, U.S. Government trade, development, and drug eradication policies were designed to move South American growers away from cultivating the coca plant used to make cocaine by substituting commercially profitable production of cut flowers.
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Who and What is the G20?
What's important about these summits is not the prepared statements delivered at the main table, but the frank discussions and informal meetings that take place in the corridors and meeting rooms around the main conference.
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Toward a Global Cashless Economy
At some point between the start of the Thanksgiving holiday and Cyber Monday, did you reach for your credit card or use another secure payment system like PayPal to make a purchase online? You’re in good company: 259 million Americans routinely buy online. Last year, internet sales in China on “Single’s Day” reached $25.3 billion -- $6 billion more than what Americans purchased online over the entire Thanksgiving weekend. In the future, the whole world just might be cashless.
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The New Blueprint for U.S.-Backed Development Financing
The BUILD Act enjoyed bipartisan support in the Congress because it represents to many in the development policy community a smarter, more modern way to advance development objectives. The new development financing agency it creates will also provide an alternative to China's aggressive financing of infrastructure projects in developing markets.
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China is Outpacing and Outspending the U.S. in Diplomacy and Development
At the same time the United States is considering cutting funding for diplomacy and development by 30 percent, China doubled its diplomacy budget over the last five years, proposing to increase its foreign affairs budget by 15 percent in 2018 alone.
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Tracking U.S. Trade Capacity Building
At the same time the United States is considering cutting funding for diplomacy and development by 30 percent, China has proposed increasing its foreign affairs budget by 15 percent in 2018 alone, after doubling its diplomacy budget over the last five years. Experts at the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition bring you the story of China’s growing influence vis-à-vis the United States in developing countries.
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Trade and the Triple Bottom Line
First launched in 2016, the Hinrich Foundation Sustainable Trade Index ranks each economy’s ability to participate in global trade in a way that creates sustainable growth, encourages foreign direct investment, and attracts support from multilateral development agencies.
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Sri Lanka’s Sustainable Approach to Underwear Production
Underwear, panties, intimates, undergarments, bras, lingerie, undies – whatever you call it, American women buy a lot of it every year. Much of it comes from Sri Lanka. In recent years, Sri Lanka has shown it not only makes intimates designed to accentuate a woman’s curves — it's also getting ahead of the sustainability curve.
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Import Substitution: From Cars to Soccer Stars
Last year, almost 70 percent of the players in England's Premier League were from other countries. Could this be causing a hollowing out of talent when the World Cup rolls around? Does the home country need to be more “protected” by setting aside more spots for local talent? Or does a “free trade” approach drive up the level of competition?
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The Gold Medal of Export Growth
Countries that have hosted the Olympics -- and even those that bid and lose -- enjoy a permanent increase in national exports of around 30 percent. That's potentially more impactful than entering into trade agreements.
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