cool global BIZ

BOOKS: Fusion Entrepreneurs: Cross-Cultural Execs & Companies Revolutionizing the Global Economy by Edward Iwata

 

Updated Sept. 2012:  Fusion Entrepreneurs: Cross-Cultural Execs & Companies Revolutionizing the Global Economy, a new e-book by award-winning American journalist Edward Iwata, can be found at Amazon's Kindle Store, Apple's iTunes and iBookstore, Barnes & Noble, Diesel eBookStore, Kobo, Mark Coker's Smashwords, the Sony Reader Store, and other e-book retail and library channels.*  Fusion Entrepreneurs is distributed by Smashwords, an independent e-book distributor in Silicon Valley.  Thank you for reading and supporting all digital and traditional authors, bookstores, and publishers.  Readers keep our craft alive.  

 

(Cover art by Edel Rodriguez, an acclaimed Cuban American artist/illustrator whose work can be found in the Smithsonian Institution, private galleries, the New Yorker, Time magazine and the New York Times.)

 

* Note:  If you're new to e-books, ideally you'll need an e-reader device or tablet (an Amazon Kindle, a Barnes & Noble Nook, an Apple iPad, etc.) from your favorite e-book retailer. Or you can download free reading "apps" (small software applications) from the stores right into most laptops, desktop computers, and mobile devices.  This will let you read e-books bought from those stores.  Like anything else, this is only confusing the first time for non-techies.  After you get hooked, it's smooth as butter.

 

Eritrea, North Korea, Syria Top List of Most Censored Countries, According to Committee to Protect Journalists

 

The Committee to Protect Journalists and deputy director Robert Mahoney look at the world's 10 most censored countries, led by Eritrea, North Korea, and Syria. Video courtesy of the CPJ, on Vimeo.

 

TOPPING THE MOST censored nations in the world this year is the African nation of Eritrea, where no foreign reporters are allowed and where all domestic media are controlled by the dictatorship. Next are North Korea, Syria, and Iran -- "three nations where vast restrictions on information have enormous implications for geopolitical and nuclear stability," according to a recently released report by the Committee to Protect Journalists:

 

"The 10 most restricted countries employ a wide range of censorship techniques, from the sophisticated blocking of websites and satellite broadcasts by Iran to the oppressive regulatory systems of Saudi Arabia and Belarus; from the dominance of state media in North Korea and Cuba to the crude tactics of imprisonment and violence in Eritrea, Uzbekistan, and Syria . . . .

"One trait they have in common is some form of authoritarian rule," according to the CPJ. "Their leaders are in power by dint of monarchy, family dynasty, coup d'état, rigged election, or some combination thereof . . . .

"Lagging economic development is another notable trend among heavily censored nations. Of the 10 most censored countries, all but two have per capita income around half, or well below half, of global per capita income, according to World Bank figures for 2010, the most recent available."

 

As global businesses and investors charge into emerging markets, they know that Western-style freedoms, rule of law, and strong corporate governance and oversight are the long-run pillars of stable economies and countries. And more developing countries know that investors won't pour money and capital into markets plagued by corruption, political chaos, and weak regulation and enforcement.

Also critical to economic growth: financial disclosure and the free flow of business information, provided by the free and uncensored media. More than 900 journalists worldwide have been killed since 1992, according to the CPJ, with Iraq, the Philippines and Algeria as the top three most dangerous countries for journalists.

 

OECD: More Education, Entrepreneurship for Women Equals Stronger Economies

 

 

A new report by the Paris-based OECD reminds business leaders and policymakers that more educational and entrepreneurial opportunities for women will lead to more vibrant economies around the world. Video courtesy of the OECD. See: oecd.org/gender.

 

Are U.S. Trade Restrictions with Russia and Cuba an 'Economic Dead End?'

 

"The Blues" by HannaNik (Hannah Nikkanen), under a Creative Commons license on flickr. Nikkanen is a journalist based in Helsinki, Finland.

 

HOW TO BALANCE economic growth with human rights in semi-democratic nations and dictatorships? The question of the 21st century will be the question of free trade vs. liberty.

Hundreds of Millions Rise From Extreme Poverty and $1.25 a Day, World Bank Says

 

"Lifting Women Out of Poverty" by Gates Foundation, under a Creative Commons license on flickr. A community workshop for women in Gujurat, India, by the Self Employed Women's Association of India.

 

GOOD NEWS AMID the usual horrific news. As civilians die in Syria and other war zones, new data by the World Bank shows that the number of people living in extreme poverty fell dramatically in the developing world from 2005 to 2008. Some 22%, or 1.3 billion, of the developing world's population lived on $1.25 or less a day in 2008. That's down from 43% in 1990 and 52% in 1981.

If Jeremy Lin Runs for President, He Can Take On the New World Order and "Pax Pacifica"

 

MOST OF US don't see the megatrends until they suddenly surface and smack us. Geopolitical experts have been saying for years, decades even, that the world economic order is shifting, that U.S. dominance will be challenged this century by our allies and rivals in Asia. Some in the West scoffed at the idea, or stayed stuck in denial. The latest blunt warning comes from former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd. The era of Pax Americana will be succeeded by "Pax Pacifica," he recently  told the Asia Society in New York.

"The world today is approaching a turning point of truly historic proportions," Rudd said. "Historical trends are by definition slow to emerge. They then gather pace, often with a sudden burst of momentum . . . often well before the political community and broader public opinion has fully woken up to the fact. And so it is with the global economic power of the United States of America. For the last 130 years the United States has been the world’s largest economy. Within the current decade, that will no longer be the case when China takes its place."

From Africa to Asia, Colors (Colours) are Changing the Global Beauty Industry

 

 

"The State of the Global Beauty Industry: Entering a New Chapter"  by Euromonitor International, via YouTube.  Irina Barbalova, Euromonitor's head of cosmetics research, recapping her presentation made at In-Cosmetics 2010 in Paris, France.

 

MISS UNIVERSE CONTESTANTS might look like Barbie dolls in different shades. But beyond glitzy pageants, the colors (colours) of beauty are slowly but surely changing global consumer culture and the beauty industry, according to SkinInc.com ("Skin Color of the United States" by Daphne Kasriel-Alexander) and a new book by Harvard Business School professor Geoffrey Jones (Beauty Imagined: A History of the Global Beauty Industry).

World Bank: Creating Global Opportunities for Women is Smart Economics

 

 

A World Bank video on economic inequality among women in the global economy. Video courtesy of WorldBank's channel on YouTube.

 

IT'S SMART ECONOMICS to create more business opportunities for women globally, says a recent World Bank report. In agriculture alone, equal access to resources for women farmers would boost output in developing countries by up to 4 percent, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization. World Bank chief economist Justin Yifu Lin said in a news release: ""Blocking women and girls from getting the skills and earnings to succeed in a globalized world is not only wrong, but also economically harmful." World Bank Group President Robert B. Zoellick added that the World Bank -- which has spent $65 billion over the past five years on women's business, health and education initiatives -- must "mainstream our gender work and find other ways to move the agenda forward to capture the full potential of half the world’s population."

 

• World Bank, "World Development Report 2012: Gender Equality and Development."

 

CoolGlobalBiz, October 3, 2011

 

Leading Global Economic Indicator: Donald Trump's Miss Universe 2011 Show

 

New economic indicator? Leila Lopes of Angola recently was crowned Miss Universe 2011 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Monday. Video courtesy of OfficialMissUniverse's channel on YouTube.

  

FORGET INTEREST RATES and investment flows. The best signpost of the global economy is Donald Trump's Miss Universe pageant. Look at the top finalists from Monday's show in Sao Paulo. A whole lot of women from emerging markets: Miss Brazil. Miss China. Miss Ukraine. Miss Philippines. Not an American or European in sight. The winner: Leila Lopes of Angola, Africa. "Every woman that competes is the embodiment of national pride," says Paula Shugart, president of the Miss Universe Organization, in the company's promo video. Aiya! Don't follow the money. Follow the beauty queens.

 

• Washington Post, "Angolan beauty queen wins Miss Universe: A primer on the African country" by Sarah Anne Hughes.


• People magazine, "5 Things to Know About Miss Universe Leila Lopes" by Liz Raftery.


• Global Post, "Angola Beauty Wins Miss Universe" by Freya Petersen.

 

CoolGlobalBiz, September 14, 2011

 

A New Era of Globalization, Cross-Border Business & Cultural Diversity

 

 

"Tower of Babel" by Peter Brueghel the Elder, from Wikimedia Commons under a Creative Commons license.
 

CoolGlobalBiz is an independent, non-partisan blog that explores the nexus and cross-border fusion of business and culture. Links to CoolGlobalBiz can be found on Guy Kawasaki's online news directory Alltop (economics or small business) and other sites. Every few generations, we're rocked by economic and cultural upheaval, from the Industrial Age to the Information Age. Now we're at the cusp of another major epoch, an era of quickening change, innovation and global diversity. The seasons are turning, turning. This ain't your Daddy's economy. The world: curved or flat? No matter, the convergence of business and culture won't wane. For better and worse, the new world is here.

Founded by Edward Iwata, a California-based journalist, former USA Today business writer and author of Fusion Entrepreneurs: Cross-Cultural Execs & Companies Revolutionizing the Global Economy.