Could a fairer globalisation, in the interest of the people, be possible?
Today radical forces from the left, as well as the right, are demanding a re-nationalisation or bypassing of the market economy once again. But protectionism, the restriction of the market economy and free trade, didn't improve people's lives in the 20th century. In fact they contributed to the economic crisis in the 30s and therefore, ultimately, to the triumph of National Socialism.
For political scientist and best-selling author Colin Crouch, the neoliberal market economy isn't an alternative. It's increasingly deprived of democratic control and subject to the influence of large multi-national corporations, which impose their own desires for power with the help of lobbyism.
In conversation with Peter Engelmann, he asks: what could a just globalisation look like? Can democracy and neoliberalism be reconciled with each other?
In light of today's political, economic and social crises, the focal point of the 2017 Passagen Talks is the question of philosophy's potential for intervention: How can critical thinking help meet the pressing challenges of our times? How can we conceive of a world beyond the old categories?
