This seminar got underway with the participants noting that the Italian industrial system has succeeded in weathering the global crisis whilst maintaining the country’s position as a leading manufacturer both in Europe and worldwide. The more or less stable performance of the Italian production system has enabled the economy to respond to stimulus, though the signs of recovery remain weak.
This session focused on the crucial role played by infrastructure in any given country’s economic development. It was observed that an adequate endowment of tangible infrastructure is a necessary prerequisite for competing in the global market, and that boosting infrastructure levels is an undeniable priority both for Italy and for Europe. The question of trans-European infrastructure is especially gaining increasing importance.
This session of the Aspen Seminars for Leaders examined various institutional scenarios, viewed from the perspective of changes taking place at the European and global level and the reform processes that these call for within Italy. It was observed that, on the one hand, the search for more stable global macroeconomic balances has been accompanied by European debate concerning the tightening of fiscal regulation, changes to the Growth and Stability Pact, and putting in place adequate mechanisms to deal with emergency situations.
In this seminar, the participants examined what were identified as the major areas requiring action to enable Italy to face the new and increasingly impelling global challenges. The three areas singled out were: innovation policies, tangible and intangible knowledge-system infrastructure, and education models conducive to promoting employment and competitiveness.
The discussion in this session focused on the role of culture in the wake of the global crisis. In this regard, the participants highlighted the increasing search for a more harmonious, sustainable and forward-looking social model, yet one that is anchored in the roots of national identity. With the global crisis, this quest for a new kind of paradigm of development has, even in Italy, once again focused what perhaps was otherwise languishing interest on the crucial importance of “culture”.
The participants launched proceedings at this National Conference with the observation that the role of technical and professional training institutes, once the powerhouse of the postwar economic boom in Italy, has been steadily declining since the early 1970s, with enrollment numbers falling inexorably. The result is that, today, these key components of Italy’s education system are no longer capable of supporting the country’s economic development, nor of keeping pace with technological advances.
The challenges, opportunities and constraints facing future generations is the recurring theme of the Aspen Junior Fellow Breakfasts, examined from an international perspective. In this breakfast debate, it was acknowledged that Europe, despite the level of prosperity, social cohesion and intellectual output it has achieved, is progressively offering fewer opportunities than other geographical areas.
The members of the first panel analyzed the multiple repercussions of the crisis that began in 2008 on the Western economies, as well as on their political systems and societies. The impact has been profound, putting in question the growth model and the sustainability of the welfare state in its current forms. Major tensions have also emerged between short term needs – such as the bailouts – and longer term goals. The very close link between modern states and capitalism, which in the Western world is captured by the expression “market democracy”, has become more evident than in the past.
This discussion over the extent of governmental and parliamentary reform required in Italy today commenced with the observation that the currently prevailing approach to institutional reform seems to be rooted in an awareness of the need for cultural change. Thus the debate between whether to carry out the minimum change required or to enact sweeping reforms appears to have been superseded by an approach that leaves behind attempts to pay mere lip service to reform and firmly seeks to address actual needs.
More than three years after the outbreak of the crisis which engulfed the world economy, Italian businesses have shown that they have, on the whole, withstood the impact of the economic and financial tsunami. The country remains the fifth-ranking global manufacturing power and the second in Europe after Germany, running counter to the trend that has seen a progressive reduction in the market shares of traditional industrial economies – the US and Japan in particular.
The Conference got underway with an acknowledgement that savings have played a key role in maintaining Italy’s stability during the more acute phases of the recent financial crisis, and may play an even more important role now as a driver of the country’s economic recovery and growth.
The Secretary General laid out the most urgent priorities for the Alliance, in the run up to the new Strategic Concept which will be adopted at the November Summit in Lisbon. Besides the ongoing commitments – first and foremost the Afghanistan mission, which is almost certainly going through a decisive phase – there are great medium and long-term challenges in the effort to adapt NATO to a rapidly shifting global context.
The financial crisis has considerably modified the environment in which Italian firms operate. It has introduced new problems in the export sector that are related not only to structural changes in the capital markets but also to difficulties in accessing credit.
Federalism is now at the center of the Italian political debate, despite having been considered a heterodox if not inflammatory idea not even a decade ago. Reassigning roles and responsibilities among the different levels and bodies of government is a necessity shared by all advanced democracies given the increased complexity of our economies and of the relationship between citizens and the state.
Given the current uncertainty over the global economy’s recovery, interest in the prospects of the South American continent, which seems finally able to express its true potential, has increased. All too often the expectations over the EU / Latin American accords have been set too high. Today, the increase in commercial and financial exchange are guided by a bottom-up logic; promising forms of interdependence are emerging in a pragmatic way and are producing concrete benefits.
The roundtable session got underway with an acknowledgement by the participants of the crucial importance of reviving Italy’s artisan culture – a tradition synonymous with the production of high-quality goods through the accumulation, pooling and dissemination of know-how.
