Development in Transition

Development cooperation, climate change, geoeconomics and geopolitics are currently undergoing radical transformations. The Global North and South will be affected differently by these transformations. How can we understand these changes? Or better: What shall we do? Do we need pragmatic solutions within the existing system or is a systemic change necessary? The Great Transformation, which followed the world economic crisis in 1929, examined by Karl Polanyi and first termed a Great Transformation, led to a new inclusive growth model in the Global North and to a wide-spread strategy of catching-up development in the Global South. The current crisis which came to public awareness via the climate change shock in 2007 and the economic crisis from 2008 onwards, has to be seen as an intertwined crisis in economics, society and nature. How shall we react to that? Are new adaptations sufficient or do we need a transition towards a new technolgocial fix or even a different development model, a new world order, a distinct mode of living and producing? Which differences and commonalities do the dynamics in the Global North and South have?  It is the objective of this conference to analyse the ongoing socio-ecological transformations and to discuss to the relationship between the intertwined processes in the Global North and South. In doing so, it is necessary to include in the reflections social ecology as well as development cooperation as a form of global cooperation. The conference is organized by WU (Institute for the Environment and Regional Development, master program “Socioecological Economics and Policy) and civil society partners. It will be a Preparatory Workshop for the 6. Austrian Development Conference “Entwicklung im Umbruch”, on November14th to 16th 2014 in Salzburg. Registration via http://www.pfz.at/article1555.htm Substantive goal of the Conference: 1) Discussing ecological and social questions as intertwined
2) Connecting developments in the Global South with dynamics in the Global North Registration: Will be opened in spring 2014. Hosts: Institute for the Enviroment and Regional Development