Tag Archives: China

China and the challenge to western scientific and technological hegemony

Economics, Science Diffusion, Science Policy, ,

Caravani M., Sylos Labini F. (2025), “La Cina e la sfida al primato scientifico e tecnologico
occidentale”, Moneta e Credito, 78 (311), pp. 1-22.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.13133/2037-3651/19012

Abstract


Since the time of Adam Smith, the debate on economic development has
generated significant theoretical reflections. However, since the 1980s,
with the advent of structural adjustment programmes, a neoliberal
paradigm has prevailed, promoted by the Washington Consensus.
Imposed on countries in the Global South, these policies have led to
deindustrialization, declining per capita GDP, and a loss of economic
sovereignty. In response, China has pursued an alternative path: the
Beijing Consensus, based on a gradual, planned, and autonomous
strategy of industrialization and innovation. By avoiding rapid
liberalizations and indiscriminate privatizations, China has achieved an
average growth rate above 5% for over forty years, surpassing the United
States in terms of GDP at purchasing power parity. This article examines
the role of the state and the Chinese Academy of Sciences in planning
technological and economic development. The analysis challenges the
negative predictions of Western economic literature and offers crucial
insights for rethinking development policies in the Global South.

From the U.S. to China: The Rise of the Rich and Growing Inequality

Editorials, ,

In his farewell speech, President Biden warned about the formation of an oligarchy in the United States, made up of ultra-wealthy individuals, describing it as a threat to democracy, fundamental rights, and individual freedoms. However, this oligarchy did not emerge solely under the Trump administration—it has been consolidating over the years of American unipolar dominance, from 1991 to today, with a significant acceleration over the past decade. The flip side of this trend—the increase in inequality—is not just a Western phenomenon; it has also impacted other global economies, including China.

According to the Oxfam 2025 report, between November 2023 and November 2024, the total wealth of the billionaires listed in Forbes increased by a staggering $2 trillion in real terms, with the number of billionaires rising by 204, adding nearly four new billionaires per week. On average, billionaires saw their fortunes grow by $2 million per day, while the ten richest billionaires experienced a daily increase of about $100 million.

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Chinese solar can save us from the climate crisis

Editorials, , , , , ,


Like every year, the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (Ecmwf), an independent European intergovernmental organisation, presented data relating to the Copernicus space programme, the European Union’s flagship program for Earth observation, the monitoring of the atmosphere and climate change. The situation, in the almost generalized indifference, is increasingly dramatic. 2024 has been confirmed as the warmest year on record since 1850, with a global average temperature of 15.1°C, beating the previous warmest year 2023 by 0.12°C. This places it at 1.6°C above an estimate of the pre-industrial level, making it the first calendar year to exceed the 1.5°C threshold.

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