The Left surge in Latin America

Latin America continues to turn to the Left. Michelle Bachelet became president of Chile in March and has promised fiscal reform; Salvador Sanchez Ceren took over as president of El Salvador in June and will tackle inequality; and in Costa Rica too, the centre-left Luis Guillermo Solis assumed power


War report under wraps

Down the decades, every government has shown reluctance to declassify the contents of the Henderson Brooks Report, preventing a deeper analysis of what went wrong during the 1962 India-China war. In the absence of this, the key findings of this report remain shrouded in secrecy


BRICS versus the G8?

A new equation is emerging between the BRICS countries and the informal grouping of the most industrialized economies, called the G8. The G8 has been reduced to G7 following Russia’s suspension. Of late, BRICS have taken an assertive stand against the G8 in economic as well as the geo-political fora


Redefining economic progress

The need to build ‘alternative’ economic systems that can enable people to lead spiritually fulfilling lives was the focus of discussions at the ‘Economics of Happiness' conference held in Bangalore. The answer, many believe, lies in strengthening local, community-based economies


U.S.: prolific on sanctions

The recent U.S. sanctions against Russia and the Ukraine is the latest in a long list of countries and organisations that have been targeted by Washington over the past decades. In the table below, Gateway House looks at the U.S.’s prolific sanction programme


Rethinking material progress

At a recent conference on the ‘Economics of Happiness’ in Bangalore, opponents of globalisation outlined a vision of an economic system rooted in community, localisation and fairness. However, convincing everyone to think beyond GDP growth and look at harmonious “intelligent growth” will be a challenge


CSR: need for creative alliances

The new Companies Act makes it mandatory for all listed Indian companies to contribute 2% of their annual net profits towards corporate social responsibility. Robust participation through CSR has the potential for socio-economic change, but innovative ideas are needed to ensure it is effective and widespread