5 TED Talks About the Global Economy – Master of Accounting Degrees

Industry has changed over the years from local-based companies to national corporations and now, with the Internet and the ability to transport large amounts of goods from continent to continent, a Global Economy has evolved. There are implications and consequences associated with people in one nation becoming consumers of goods from another, differing trade laws and differing ideas of what constitutes a successful economy. Along with that, there are global issues like global warming and human rights that must be addressed by all nations. The following five Ted Talks look at what global economies mean and how global citizenships might follow.

Michael Metcalfe—A Provocative Way to Finance the Fight Against Climate Change.

In 2008 there was a global economic crisis that shook most of the industrialized nations on the globe. The issue was addressed by individual nations as well as by international consortiums through a “Whatever It Takes” approach. Metcalf uses the example of his grandfather, who was a coal miner. He accepted the pollution and all the other problems that arise from the exploitation of fossil fuels as a necessary evil. Those problems, however had ramifications and that generation gets the blame for much of the pollution today. In the same way, the financial crisis of 2008 will be blamed for stalling out the progress against global warming by diverting funds essential to the battle toward stopping the financial bleed. Metcalf believes the same tools that were used globally to stem the tide of sliding economies can be directed toward the fight against climate change.

Dambisa Moyo —Is China a New Idol for Emerging Economies?

Moyo’s talk begins with past western values and the idea that freedom and democracy are the most fertile ground to grow economies. She points out the ingenuity of American inventors that resulted in major developments in technology and culture. Today, however, 90 percent of the world’s population lives in emerging economies and their primary concerns are not political or individual freedom, but survivalist issues like shelter, food and healthcare. Into this picture, China emerges as a powerful economy based not on private capitalism but on state capitalism, and global industry depends upon acceptance and utilization of this model as well as traditional values.

Gordon Brown—Global Ethic VS National Interest.

Gordon Brown is the UK Prime Minister and his TED talk centers upon the idea of an emerging global citizenship. The question he addresses is how nationalism and patriotism fit into a world-wide economy. How, he asks, do we find a balance between the two?

Parag Khanna—How Megacities are Changing the Map of the World.

In his TED talk, Khanna says that the global economy can be compared to a human body: the skeleton is transportation, the vascular system is energy and the nervous system ifs the Internet. These things no longer relate to borders between cities or countries, however, because they have international implications. He has created the term connectography to explain how the communication and commerce between huge cities as resources and consumers is reshaping the way we look at boundaries.

Robert Palmer—The Panama Papers Exposed a Huge Global Problem. What’s Next?

The largest data leak ever took place in April; of 2016. That leak threw a light on the very rich all over the globe hiding huge amounts of money in off-shore accounts to avoid paying taxes or other financial obligations. Because of this, less money is available to address global issues like hunger and global warming. The impact of the information expose of the issue is that global leaders are uniting to pursue reclaiming some of the capital to address the issues on a world-wide basis.

These Ted talks are short bites of information that, when looked at in context of one another, paint a vivid picture of a changing financial world. Technology and common issues have spurred the growth of a Global Economy.