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Towards the End of Global Poverty
Abstract
Global poverty is still an ongoing problem, leading to human tragedies and various related problems. Rich nations become rich faster than the poor nations develop. As a result, despite large efforts in the development aid sector, inequality in the world has increased over the last decades and the absolute share of poor nations in a growing global population remains high. A new paradigm is needed that goes beyond current improvements being made in the development aid sector. Based on the new insights presented in this research, it is proposed to innovate the development aid sector by adopting the Global Poverty framework (GPF) in combination with the Cyclic Innovation Model (CIM). With these two theoretical frameworks in mind, the actors in the development aid sector are recommended to start a fundamental reform of their organizations worldwide. It is shown that this reform can take place by integrating a nonlinear poverty forecast with a shared ambition and transition path for developing nations, leading to development programs and its projects. This research also provide an effective communication system between world institutions, national governments, NGOs, companies and consumers to improve collaboration to accelerate the reduction of global poverty.
... Since then the model has been further developed when it was used for analysing the technology policy of Delft University of Technology, the Dutch water sector (Sommen et al., 2005), innovation in the chemical process industry (Kroon et al., 2008) and several other cases (Berkhout et al., 2006, Berkhout, 2007). Parallel to the writing of this thesis, Van den Noort is using CIM to study innovation in international economic development aid programs (van den Noort, 2011) and Boosten is used CIM to study innovation in the bio-mass sector (Boosten, forthcoming). The current status of CIM is captured in a forthcoming book (Berkhout, forthcoming). ...
In many established companies the pace of innovation is low. The Non-Destructive Testing sector is an example of a sector where the pace of innovation is very slow. Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) refers to the set of non-invasive activities used to determine the condition of objects or installations without causing any damage. Many of the technologies used in NDT are also used in medical diagnosis, for example X-Ray photos and ultrasonic echoes. In NDT, however, they are used on plants, pipelines, bridges, aeroplanes, etc. On average, it takes 30 years to bring a new technology from idea to a commercial success which is slow even compared to sectors using similar technology. This is a problem as by this time patents are no longer valid and it will be difficult to earn back investments.
Non-Destructive Testing is generally performed by a service company which has large industrial corporations as its clients. The activity is heavily regulated and is used by clients to comply with government regulations in the area of safety and management of hazardous materials. Innovation in a service company offers a complex challenge: how can the value of innovation be appropriated when faced with powerful clients and competitors that can easily copy your product. In the NDT sector an added factor is that inspections are primarily performed for the benefit of the general public, and the commercial benefit for the client is often unclear.
The research was performed by modeling the roles in the innovation process, using the Cyclic Innovation Model. Four roles are identified; scientific exploration, technological research, product development and market transition. These roles are connected by four feed-forward and feedback relationships. A fifth role, the role of the entrepreneur, functions as a driver and coordinator in the innovation process. Data was collected by interviewing people active in these roles in the sector, which the aim of finding out how the roles interact, and why innovation is slow.
The result of the research is a clear overview of the system errors that cause slow innovation, and a set of recommendations for policy change in the companies that are involved, towards faster innovation, more safety and more business value.
In view of the dominant importance of agricultural employment in most densely populated developing countries, there is no alternative to an agricultural policy which fixes prices at a high enough level to stimulate production and follows a land saving innovation strategy. The reasons why such policies are not followed are the weakness of agricultural pressure groups and the strength of the non-agricultural interests of the governing groups. Official development aid from industrialized countries is pulled between the need to take account of their own foreign policy and trade interests while encouraging the aid-takers to introduce necessary political and economic reforms.-from WAERSAGeorg-August-Univ Gottingen, Nikolausberger Weg 9c, 3400 Gottingen, FRG.
This book was originally published by Macmillan in 1936. It was voted the top Academic Book that Shaped Modern Britain by Academic Book Week (UK) in 2017, and in 2011 was placed on Time Magazine's top 100 non-fiction books written in English since 1923. Reissued with a fresh Introduction by the Nobel-prize winner Paul Krugman and a new Afterword by Keynes’ biographer Robert Skidelsky, this important work is made available to a new generation.
The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money transformed economics and changed the face of modern macroeconomics. Keynes’ argument is based on the idea that the level of employment is not determined by the price of labour, but by the spending of money. It gave way to an entirely new approach where employment, inflation and the market economy are concerned.
Highly provocative at its time of publication, this book and Keynes’ theories continue to remain the subject of much support and praise, criticism and debate. Economists at any stage in their career will enjoy revisiting this treatise and observing the relevance of Keynes’ work in today’s contemporary climate.
