| IN THE NEWS |
| Jim Kolbe discusses global poverty and the next president |
The Bush administration has generally gotten positive reviews for its focus on aid to Africa and other developing parts of the world. But some people are already pushing the next president -- whether Democratic or Republican -- to become more strategic in using foreign aid as a diplomatic tool. The WAMU 88.5's Kojo Nnamdi Show brought together three guests, including GMF Senior Transatlantic Fellow Jim Kolbe, to discuss the Bush administration's strategy on foreign aid, and how the next President may approach this issue.
Global poverty and the next president
|
|
| EVENT |
| Panel discusses role of philanthropic foundations in international development cooperation |
|
On July 14, GMF hosted Jan Martin Witte, Associate Director of the Global Public Policy Initiative (GPPi) and Country Representative for Living Goods Uganda, for a roundtable discussion on his co-authored GPPi research paper, "Transforming Development? The Role of Philanthropic Foundations in International Development Cooperation." Jan Martin Witte was joined by Geoffrey Lamb, Managing Director for Public Policy at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
|
|
| SPEECH |
| Kolbe tesitifes before House Committee on Foreign Affairs |
|
Senior Transatlantic Fellow Jim Kolbe, a former Member of the U.S. House of Representatives, testified April 23 before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs about foreign assistance reform in the next administration.
|
|
| EVENT |
| GMF sponsored conference: Systemic Implications of Transatlantic Regulatory Cooperation and Competition |
|
On May 8-9, 2008, GMF will sponsor a conference in conjunction with the University of Michigan, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy to explore a number of regulatory issues involving trade and related policies that cut across the economies of the United States and European Union and that have wider ramifications for the global trading system as a whole.
|
|
| EVENT |
| Assessing the outcomes of the U.S.-EU biofuels working group |
|
On February 22, GMF hosted a roundtable meeting on the European proposal for a new EU directive on the use of renewable energy and to assess the outcomes of the February 21 meeting of the EU-U.S. biofuels working group under the EU-U.S. Strategic Energy Cooperation. The speakers featured Alexandra Langenheld, a national expert on regulatory policy and promotion of renewable energy at the European Commission's Directorate General for Energy and Transport, and Jeff Skeer from the office of policy and international affairs at the U.S. Department of Energy.
|
|
| PRESS RELEASE |
| Daimler Senior Vice President Robert Liberatore joins GMF as Senior Transatlantic Fellow |
|
Robert G. Liberatore will join GMF this summer as a Senior Transatlantic Fellow. At GMF, Liberatore will work on issues surrounding the transatlantic business relationship and the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
|
|
| PRESS RELEASE |
| New study says converting to cropland adds greenhouse gas emissions to the cost of biofuels |
|
A study published on February 7, 2008 by Science magazine and Tim Searchinger, a GMF transatlantic fellow, finds that biofuels that use cropland are likely to increase greenhouse gases because previous analyses of biofuels ignored a crucial factor - the use of land. Most prior studies have found that substituting biofuels for gasoline will reduce greenhouse gases because biofuels sequester carbon through the growth of the feedstock. However, these analyses have failed to count the carbon emissions that occur as forests and grasslands are converted to new cropland for biofuel production.
|
|
 |
| September 5: Doha Still Percolating, ACRE, and the CAP |
Doha
Reuters writer Doug Palmer reported yesterday that, “Senior trade officials will meet in Geneva next week to explore options for reviving world trade talks two months after the negotiations collapsed, U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab said on Thursday.
“‘Our approach to this hasn’t changed … We want to see the Doha round succeed,’ Schwab told reporters [...]
|
|
| September 4: Farm Bill, Doha, and EU CAP “Health Check” |
Farm Bill
DTN writer Chris Clayton reported yesterday (link requires subscription) that, “Farmers should be cautious when contemplating expected effects of the new farm program, such as the Average Crop Revenue Election program, because USDA hasn’t laid out the rules and may not do so until after the next administration is sworn in.
“Farm-policy experts spoke to [...]
|
|
| September 3: Brazil: Trade Concerns Regarding Ethanol |
|
Correction / Clarification: With respect to recent comments made by Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer on the Farm Bill and the WTO, rather than Secretary Schafer saying that, “The ACRE program, the disaster program, are not WTO compliant,” as was indicated in yesterday’s FarmPolicy update; Secretary Schafer actually stated that, “It’s clear that Congress [...]
|
|
| More Keith Good's FarmPolicy.com |
|
 |
 |
Development as a Strategy: A U.S.-European Business Dialogue
Jonathan White
GMF Policy Brief
Based on a symposium convened in Chicago on May 15-16, 2008 and organized by GMF, the
Chicago Council on Global Affairs,
the Initiative for Global Development,
and Business Action for Africa, this policy brief seeks to inform the wider business and development communities about the challenges and opportunities of pursuing long-term development objectives in business strategies. It aims to contribute to greater knowledge
in this field through a robust
transatlantic dialogue. |
If Not Now, Then When?
GMF Opinion Brief
Joe Guinan and Courtney Phillips-Youman
As ministers gather around the WTO negotiating table the week of July 21 in Geneva, there are troubling questions about whether the deal that is at hand is really worth doing and whether it is even possible to conclude an agreement at present, given the political constraints-especially those associated with a U.S. presidential election year. |
The U.S. Presidential Election and the Prospects for Transatlantic Trade and Investment
Joseph Quinlan
GMF Opinion Brief
The transatlantic partnership over the past eight years has been under constant strain, creating an atmosphere of disappointment and distrust on both sides of the Atlantic. This brief examines the transatlantic economic partnership on trade and investment and the prospects of whether or not that relationship will continue to flourish under a new U.S. administration in 2009 or whether there will be a new tide of protectionism.
|
Walking a Tightrope: World Trade in Manufacturing and the Benefits of Binding
GMF Policy Brief
Written by Patrick Messerlin
Negotiators in Geneva are still struggling to conclude the Doha Round of multilateral trade talks at the World Trade Organization (WTO). Doubts have been fueled by the modesty of recent estimates of the gains on the table in the negotiations on Non-Agricultural Market Access (NAMA).
This policy brief argues that a completed Doha Round has more to offer to the U.S. and European private sector than cuts to already low applied industrial tariffs. The real gold mine in the Doha negotiations is the increased certainty that would flow from large cuts to bound tariff rates.
|
Narrowing the Transatlantic Climate Divide: A Roadmap to Progress
GMF Policy Paper and Brief
Written by Nigel Purvis
Most climate change opinion leaders on both sides of the Atlantic have modest expectations for the July Summit in Hokkaido, Japan—the location of both the G-8 leaders’ meeting and the Major Economies Meeting (MEM), an initiative launched by President Bush last year that involves the world’s 16 major economic powers and emitters, plus the EU. Transatlantic allies seem to be an ocean apart over how quickly Europe, the United States, and other major economies should reduce emissions over the next decade, but downplaying Hokkaido could be a serious mistake. |
|
