Globalization
Selected Research, Commentary and Congressional Testimony
U.S. Science is Holding its Own: Despite Cries of Alarm, We Remain the Global Leader in Innovation — Jul. 9, 2008
Since the end of the Cold War, many observers have feared the United States is losing its leadership in science and technology, but RAND research shows that the U.S. has more than kept pace with its peers by several measures, write Titus Galama and James Hosek.
Commentary
Science and Technology Research Area
Russia's Soccer Diplomacy — May 29, 2008
Despite its authoritarian political system, Russia is in many ways increasingly open. Its people are part of a consumer society that models its consumption habits after Western Europe, says Lowell Schwartz.
CommentaryInternational Affairs Research Area
Our Misplaced Yuan Worries — Dec. 15, 2007
To reduce the bilateral imbalances between China and the U.S. requires more carefully crafted policies than revaluation of the yuan, else the results could be perverse, writes Charles Wolf Jr.
CommentaryInternational Affairs Research Area
Responsibility in the Global Information Society — Jun. 11, 2007
In a world where information and communication technologies (ICT) are fast becoming ubiquitous and indispensable, the ICT industry has a crucial enabling role in social, economic and human development.
Full Document
Paradoxes: Liberal…Conservative…Go Figure — Mar. 27, 2007
One of the few matters that Democrats and Republicans apparently agree on these days is the use of “liberal” and “conservative” as shorthand for the political left and right, respectively. Their agreement on these labels is ironic, because the economic policies associated with liberals and conservatives in America are the mirror images of what they stand for in the rest of the world, writes Charles Wolf, Jr.
Commentary
Which Economy Will Run Into Trouble First: The US or China? — Feb. 08, 2007
Both the US and Chinese economies are highly diversified, highly globalized, competitive economies run by institutions and leaders who are usually capable of reacting proactively to potential problem. The key risk is not that one would collapse, but that both would simultaneously get into trouble, writes William H. Overholt.
Commentary
Central Asia's Other 'Turkmenbashis' — Jan. 15, 2007
A dictator's sudden death almost always triggers political instability. But it is doubly dangerous when it poses a risk of regionwide destabilization and a scramble for influence among the world's greatest military powers — the United States, Russia and China, writes F. Stephen Larrabee.
Commentary
Public: Leaner, Fitter, Meaner? — Jan. 04, 2007
To ensure their continued survival in a global economy, public services should aim their wares at the middle classes, argues Tom Ling.
Commentary
A Mighty Country's Progress and Regress — Jan. 04, 2007
Where is the Russian economy heading? Toward decentralised resource allocation by competitive markets, or backward toward decision-making by the state and its bureaucracies? The answer remains highly uncertain, writes Charles Wolf.
Commentary
Globalization's Unequal Discontents — Dec. 21, 2006
Protectionists who characterize free trade as almost treasonous are on a crusade to build new barriers around America in an effort to keep jobs in and imports out, writes William Overholt.
Commentary
Regulatory Reform on Both Sides of the Atlantic — Aug. 15, 2006
Global trade is increasingly connecting the world, bringing consumers lower prices and a wider selection of goods, and creating jobs. But when government regulations vary enormously from one nation to the next, they become roadblocks to the smooth flow of international commerce, and hurt both consumers and workers, writes John Graham.
Commentary
Securing America's Ports — Mar. 26, 2006
The decision by Dubai Ports World to back out of its deal to manage port facilities in six American cities will not solve serious security problems plaguing U.S. ports. Regardless of who runs them, ports on America's Pacific, Atlantic and Gulf coasts remain dangerously vulnerable to terrorist attack because global trade has interconnected economies and sharply increased shipping traffic, write Henry H. Willis and David Ortiz.
Commentary
Doing Business with the Euro — Dec. 29, 2005
A conference co-sponsored by RAND and the Delegation of the European Commission to the U.S. explored the ways in which U.S. corporations have successfully adjusted their accounting, financial management, and European operations to adapt to the post-euro economy.
Full Document
Puts & Calls: Concerns Over U.S.-China Trade Deficit Are Overblown — Oct. 30, 2005
To hear some critics of U.S. trade with China tell it, China and its army of low-wage workers laboring long hours are like a giant vacuum cleaner sucking up American jobs, American factories, American dollars and ultimately American prosperity and transplanting them across the Pacific. But claims that U.S.-China trade is benefiting China at American expense don't hold up on close examination, writes Julia F. Lowell.
Commentary
Preparing Officers for Interagency and Multinational Service — Oct. 18, 2005
As the U.S. confronts increasingly complex threats, military leaders must learn to work with civilian agencies and military leaders of other nations. A strategic approach that manages experience and education would help prepare officers for this service.
Full Document
Research Brief
Securing U.S. Supply Chain — Aug. 29, 2005
The next time you buy a low-priced DVD player, pause to consider that you are the final link in a vast global network. This network spans seaports, railroads and trucking routes to deliver products, like the DVD player, to store shelves, write David Ortiz and Henry H. Willis.
Commentary
The Effects of National Power on Global Relations — Jun. 7, 2005
A workshop hosted by RAND and the CIA's Strategic Assessments Group, in cooperation with Barry Hughes and his International Futures model, explored how power is wielded on a continuum ranging from persuasion, through economic aid, to military action.
Full Document
National Security Research Area
China and Globalization — May 19, 2005
China has transformed itself from the world's greatest opponent
of globalization into a committed advocate of globalization—a
turn that has been one of the greatest foreign policy triumphs of
American history. Our successes, however, provide no assurance that
China will always be friendly. But if we welcome China's prosperity,
we maximize the chances of an auspicious outcome. If we reject it,
we ensure the worst outcome, according to Bill Overholt recently
testifying before the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission.
Congressional Testimony
Improving Global Health and Public Preparedness — May 12, 2005
Drawing on RAND's expertise in health and foreign policy, the Center for Domestic and International Health Security strives to improve global health, prepare Americans to cope with the psychological effects of terrorism, and strengthen the U.S. public health system.
Read More
Health and Health Care Research Area
The Falling Dollar: A Silver Lining for Pittsburgh — May 8, 2005
The good news about the falling value of the dollar is that it is creating a rising demand for U.S. exports. Over the past 24 months, U.S. manufacturers have had a respite from hammering by foreign competition, especially European manufacturers of machinery and equipment, write Barry Balmat and Keith Crane.
Commentary
Health Resource Tracking Can Improve Global Aid Effort — Mar. 28, 2005
Developed countries, international organizations, and others provide substantial aid each year to improve health in developing countries.These global efforts could be further advanced by a more comprehensive system for tracking health resources.
Full Document
International Affairs Research Area
The World Should Share Its Science — Aug. 25, 2004
Four decades ago, the "space race" between the US and the Soviet Union was in full swing. The costly competition pitted scientists from the two countries against each other just like soldiers on the battlefield, each working to defeat the other, duplicating research and keeping key information secret to win the cold war competition to be the first to land a man on the Moon. Dominance in science was a key part of the push for political dominance, write Yee-Cheong Lee and Caroline Wagner.
Commentary
Will the Gene Revolution Mirror the Green Revolution? — Aug. 18, 2004
The world is on the cusp of a new agricultural revolution. Can genetically modified crops address chronic agricultural problems, and what are the limits of biotechnology?
Full Document
Science and Technology Research Area
The Future at Work — Trends and Implications — Feb. 7, 2004
What are the forces that will continue to shape the U.S. workforce and workplace over the next 10 to 15 years? With its eye on forming sound policy and helping stakeholders in the private and public sectors make informed decisions, the U.S. Department of Labor asked RAND to look at the future of work. The authors analyze trends in and the implications of shifting demographic patterns, the pace of technological change, and the path of economic globalization.
Full Document
News Release
Research Brief
Globalization's Security Implications —2003
Globalization is increasing the dangers of a variety of transnational threats. More analysis is needed on how to counter the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. But global technological and economic developments can promote economic prosperity, eradicate disease, and advance political freedom, which in turn hold out the possibility of ameliorating transnational threats, if stakeholders — governments, multilateral institutions, private businesses, and NGOs — pursue them seriously and effectively.
Read the Issue Paper
Population and the Environment — Dec. 22, 2003
Given continued population growth and global environment change, it has become critical to improve our understanding of the role played by human population dynamics in environmental change.
Read More
Energy and Environment Research Area
Iraqi Oil and the Global Economy — Jan. 6, 2003
If Saddam Hussein is ousted as leader of Iraq, the United States will face critical decisions about the future of the world's second-largest oil reserves. Should the United States support greatly increased Iraqi oil production? Or should America protect the status quo of artificially high oil prices?, writes James T. Bartis.
Commentary
Globalization: Less Than Meets the Eye — Aug. 10, 2001
Globalization is becoming obscured as much as illuminated by the rhetoric surrounding it. If we define it as greater access to markets by foreign businesses, then there is considerably less globalization than has been presumed, writes Charles Wolf Jr.
Commentary
The Global Technology Revolution — 2001
Various technologies have the potential for significant and dominant global effects within the next few decades. This report provides a quick look at global technology trends in biotechnology, nanotechnology, and materials technology and their implications for information technology and the world in 2015.
Full Document
International Cooperation in Research and Development — March 25, 1998
Testimony presented to the Committee On Science United States House Of Representatives Hearing On International Science: "Although we can calculate how much the United States government spends on international research, and RAND has done this, assessing and monitoring the benefits of this activity is a good deal more difficult, although this testimony discusses a case study we conducted to assess the benefits of cooperation in one area of science," says Caroline S. Wagner.
Congressional Testimony
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