Economic and Social Issues: Global and Local Perspective

Abstract

The process of globalization and its impact on societies and peoples everywhere are topics of great importance today. Recent experiences have been characterized by growing frustration with globalization, reflecting unsatisfactory processes and outcomes in many areas. In the economic area, high financial volatility and a broad sustained deficit have resulted in a frequency of national and international financial crises, and in a global financial crisis unprecedented since the Great Depression. In the social area, disappointment is the result of the uneven way the benefits of globalization have spread in both developed and developing economies. In the environmental area, no effective action has been taken so far to face the unprecedented challenges affected by climate change and the massive destruction of biodiversity. Our world is suffered by environmental problems that consume natural resources and strain livelihoods, many of which are arisen from by poor industrial practices. Environmental problems negatively impact economic and social life, directly and indirectly, environment-related diseases lead to loss of time and efficiency. All these deterioration encompasses a large set of areas, from the economy to social development, to inclusive growth, to macroeconomic and financial stability, to environmental sustainability. In this perspective, the European Congress of Economic Issues (ECOEI) held in Kocaeli in November 2017, which was the second in a series that started in March 2017. The aim of this congress was to assess the disruptive results of globalization in economic and social area and to explore the policy strategies that could help it become a reality. Therefore, this congress was reflected in having special sessions devoted to economic and social issues, including a wide array topics in global trade, economic growth, energy, environment and human development.