AI: a new alliance between technology, business and society
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.
Assessing risk: business in global disorder
Prospects for the global system, in economic/financial as much as political/strategic terms, are suffering the lack of a clear-cut ordering principle. There is no doubt that the international order is changing: Fragmentation and insufficient governance are a serious risk, with the rise of problems that cannot be confronted at national, and possibly not even regional level, ranging from financial rules to big data and privacy, and from climate change to migration.
The US economy and its global impact: internal trends, trade tentions and alliance management
The global economic picture is raising concerns over the (partially synchronized) slowdown being observed in various regions and the uncertainty caused by trade tensions, resulting in a mix of cyclical economic factors, financial concerns (fiscal and monetary policies, debt amount) and geopolitical issues with a pronounced technological dimension. United States and European policies can determine what instruments will be adopted to address these challenges as well as long-term transatlantic cohesion.
The tech revolution and the future of business
The globalization trends of the last two decades and the resulting interdependence between countries, from trade to technological infrastructure, imply that any disruption to business activities can have consequences on a global scale. The latest geopolitical tensions suggest that such disruptions can derive from conventional measures, most recently through the imposition of bilateral tariffs, or from unconventional ones – such as cyberattacks.
The great convergence. Innovation in the energy sector and and the new economy
The technological and economic convergence of electrical and gas grids will be what marks the future energy transition, and it will be up to a modern delivery system to create a more sustainable, efficient and circular energy system. The move is toward a change in the energy mix. Indeed, although 46% of electrical power is produced today from coal and nuclear, considerable growth in the use of renewable energies is expected for 2030. The most effective management of the transition, then, will mean keeping environmental and economic sustainability in mind.
Foreign investments as a driver of growth in Italy
Italy has great potential to attract investments but many factors still hinder the influx of foreign capital. Data on the presence of multinationals offer a mottled picture. As regards the manufacturing sector, the more important of the second ranked European industrial power, nearly 20% of employees answer to foreign multinationals, a percentage that rises to 25% in the field of mechanical engineering, the pride of the “made in Italy” brand.
Aspen Junior Fellows Annual Conference – Reconciling the environment and development
The 2019 annual Aspen Junior Fellows conference was dedicated to the choices that must be made to reconcile environment and development, and the importance of the time factor. As the perception of climate change spreads, the emergence of the “Greta phenomenon” and demonstrations by young people around the world demanding attention, are proof of the individual and collective ethical questions that have come to the surface and of the increasing intergenerational friction. Some doubts remain on the conclusions of some scientific analyses and related responses.
Labour market: innovation and skills development
The global economy is undergoing deep and rapid changes that are revolutionizing how production is organized. The very concept of the “job market” seems outdated in a world where skills are increasingly becoming the real currency. If the most innovative firms’ main demand is for talent, however, it is impossible to imagine a future without policies tailored to the transition that the majority of workers are going to have to face as they adapt to the continuing changes imposed by digitalization.
Focus on Industry: Competitiveness and the new industrial triangle
The new industrial triangle (Lombardy, Veneto, Friuli) is currently one of the European continent’s most dynamic drivers behind growth in GDP, exports and value added manufacturing. A performance made possible by an intersection of business, universities and public administration anchored to major technological and research platforms. The data are gratifying but, at the same time, they raise questions. In a country characterized by such exasperated dualism, it becomes urgent to understand how the new industrial triangle can bring the rest of the country with it.
The car of the future: Made in Italy, technology, competition
The automobile industry is riding the crest of a major innovative wave involving the digitalization of products and processes, the science of materials and solutions for sustainable mobility. This automotive evolution concerns automobiles produced for “mobility” and vehicles for “fun”. Indeed, these two broad categories are becoming increasingly divergent and often have antithetic specifications.
Climate change, soil, food: from crisis to growth
Contemporary society is paradoxical: the number of global deaths for lack of food is equal to those linked with illnesses due to over-eating. This immoral division of food resources is all the more problematic if you consider that the food production chain (from farm to consumer table) accounts for nearly 40% of harmful gas emissions.
Value and values of a new Corporate Social Responsibility
Not just for profit. With the end of the “turbo-capitalism” era, the world economy is turning increasingly clearly towards a new model. Therefore, while growth and positive economic results will remain essential, it will also be crucially important to achieve the right relationship with the local context, a renewed sense of community and a closer focus on environmental issues.
The requalification of industrial areas in crisis: a vision for the future.
The crises of 2008 and 2011 had a greater impact on Umbria than they did on other parts of Italy and Europe. Conditions had already begun to deteriorate in the early 2000s, creating a division between Umbria, a region with a great manufacturing tradition, and the wealthier parts of the country. The study presented at the conference cited microeconomic data about the origins of the crisis and highlighted a sharp polarization of companies’ competitiveness.
Efficiency, innovation and sustainability in the water industry
Water is an undeniable human right essential to the life and health of all citizens. Its distribution, however, is a complex process that presupposes the existence of a proper industrial sector equipped to deliver it from the supply source to the private home while maintaining high standards of quality and service.
The digital economy and the changing workplace
Innovations ranging from robotics to artificial intelligence, digital platforms to blockchains, is having a growing impact on the work world. The transformations under way concern not only professional and corporate spheres, but also everyday life. Due to the ageing of the population on the one hand, and millennial lifestyle choices on the other, robotics are going to be used more and more for household chores.
Assessing risk: business in global disorder
Proceedings at this International Conference got underway with an acknowledgement that the increase being witnessed in political risk factors — both in number and intensity — is linked to certain adverse effects of globalization, namely: the perception of growing inequalities, the rapid introduction of new pervasive technologies, the sense by nation-states of loss of control over their own destiny, and the shift in the balances of power between states.
The future of labor: uncertainty and emerging values
This roundtable devoted to examining the workplace of the future also marked the launch of a new Aspen Institute Italia initiative, the Aspen University Fellows group, aimed at students that are at an advanced stage of their university studies. It was observed that these members of generation Z, the post-Millennials born after 1995, are called upon to grapple with two challenges: the creative destruction of jobs caused by technological innovation and the need to build a new social contract that ensures shared prosperity, inclusion, and competitiveness.
Making the most of Italy’s energy resources
Discussions at this roundtable kicked off with the observation that global economic growth, which has been particularly strong over the past year, has brought with it well-known benefits in terms of development (helping to combat extreme poverty, for instance), yet it has also marked a reversal in the trend of CO2 atmospheric emissions, which, after having stabilized for a three-year period, are rising again at a rate of around 1.5%. This once again poses the question of what measures are needed to decouple growth from emissions.
Business, youth, innovation
Debate at this Conference for the Aspen Junior Fellows focused on the role of Italian businesses, which, in order to establish themselves within a global market, must perforce be engines of innovation, while at the same time creating social value that goes beyond the figures in their profit and loss accounts and balance sheets. The discussion also addressed the issue of youth employment, dwelling on the necessity of setting up training courses that heed the needs of the labor market and are capable of responding effectively to the changing requirements of firms.