Italy’s measured reopening after the acute stage of the pandemic has been distinguished by a steady flow of information, but that Italy has yet not learned how best to promote itself is problematic. Here’s the paradox: although rich in appeal of various sorts, the country remains incapable of making the most of its strong points.
The emergency that erupted in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic has some important lessons to offer the Italian healthcare system. Although it is clearly difficult to compare the healthcare models of regions affected asymmetrically by the virus, it is undeniable that coordination at various levels has proven to be one of the system’s weak points. The situation has generated confusion along the chain of control and implementation of measures, and immediate intervention regarding operational aspects – even before institutional prerogatives – is imperative.
As the deadline approaches for the UK government to decide on whether they will ask for an extension to Brexit negotiations, the discussion of the future of EU relations couldn’t be more crucial. In this episode, Marta Dassù, Senior Advisor for European Affairs at the Aspen Institute Italia and the former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Italy, moderates a conversation between Anthony Gardner, former US Ambassador to the EU and Ambassador João Vale de Almeida, EU Ambassador to the UK and former EU Ambassador to the UN.
The Covid-19 emergency has hit the audio-visual sector at a moment of profound transition, and has accelerated a series of trends. The lockdown has had a noteworthy impact on the production of digital content that has run parallel to a sharp rise in web use. On-demand platforms have seen a spike in subscriptions, while television networks have had to face a slump in advertising revenue with the suspension of some important sources of programming, such as sports events.
Italia ed Europa stanno provando a superare la fase dell’emergenza legata alla pandemia di coronavirus. Si tratta di un frangente delicato in cui gli Stati, le banche e le imprese devono lavorare insieme per lasciare alle spalle la crisi e costruire una “nuova normalità”. Se in questo momento la priorità è offrire liquidità alle imprese e gli strumenti messi in campo sono le moratorie, le garanzie pubbliche e il sostegno del canale bancario, nel futuro diventerà cruciale riparare ai danni creati dal virus e sostenere la capitalizzazione delle aziende.
The main thread of the meeting could be summarized in this initial question: How can political relations between two culturally similar countries like Italy and Germany be so fragile and apparently unstable despite the solid trade relationship they enjoy? The parameters of the search for an answer were broad and deep, proof of the historic breadth of an Italo-German relationship dating back to the Renaissance and marked today by the shared values and principles of the European Union.
With lockdowns in place practically all over the world, the peak of the pandemic has morphed into a sort of vast air pollution control experiment, especially in major urban areas, whose very tangible public health benefits will certainly be short-lived and are still difficult to quantify but, in any case, point to an abnormal and clearly unsustainable “remedy”. Nevertheless, there is a considerable overlap between post-pandemic measures and environmental protection efforts.
For Italy, as for many other countries of the world, Covid-19 has been nothing less than a social “stroke” that has forced the economy and society into a slow recovery that is going to take at least two years, if not four, as the less optimistic are predicting. According to DOXA, 65% of Italians consider the health emergency still the prevailing concern, 35% are more fearful of the pandemic’s economic consequences, 66% are convinced they will not be able to maintain their standard of living or protect their savings, while only 8% have no personal economic worries.
The pandemic crisis now under way is only the latest chronologically since 9/11, the Arab Spring, the 2008 financial downturn and Brexit; not to mention climate change, which acts as a sort of umbrella for all recent emergencies.
The economic, social and geopolitical impact of Covid-19 presents challenges that, as they are confronted, will have significant, long-term consequences for the country’s future. In Italy, one of the nations most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, preexisting economic structural weaknesses make an effective response to the emergency not only strategic but especially difficult.
An evaluation of European economic prospects could being with the observation that we are in the throes of an exogenous shock, symmetrical in origin yet asymmetrical in its effects (the economic conditions at the outs
The future of work was the main theme of the digital panel discussion set up with the collaboration of the national council of the association of job consultants, where a paper entitled “More and better jobs in the great global transformation” was presented.
The discussion focused on the difficulties reviving productive activities such as services in the presence of a pandemic. Much will depend on the effectiveness of the measures adopted to ensure the survival of businesses and labor relations during the lockdown and as the recovery begins.
A virus that has morphed into a pandemic is bringing the world economy to its knees. Covid-19 is a phenomenon of epic proportions spreading at unprecedented speed; it is highly adept at evolving and has a powerful capacity for penetration, especially among the most vulnerable segments of the population.
The pandemic has caught the United States at a delicate pre-electoral moment. The incumbent president is counting heavily on solid and sustained economic growth, while the Democratic Party is offering an alternative at least partly founded on a larger government role in income distribution and in providing essential services – including healthcare.
The fourth Aspen University Fellows roundtable was devoted to the theme of Italy’s compatibility with the newer generations and the role of those generations in a society whose complexity often generates uncertainty and pessimism.
The European Union is confronting a series of long-term structural challenges that, nevertheless, require the immediate implementation of high impact, broad-spectrum policies. An initial issue is climate change, naturally a planet-wide concern for which Europe has already set goals, such as carbon neutrality within 2050 (which will obviously have direct effects on the energy sector).
The Artificial Intelligence debate, which started back in the 1950s, has become particularly topical today. The benefits of AI are recognized as undeniable but, at the same time, there is growing fear and resistance owing to the evolution of the man/machine – or subject/tool – relationship.
