14 September 2012
Welfare, Wealth and Work for Europe
Economists from the University of Dundee are part of a pan-European research consortium seeking to transform socio-ecological thinking and policy across the continent.
Dundee is one of 33 research institutions from 12 European countries contributing to the Welfare, Wealth, and Work for Europe (WWWforEurope) project, which aims to lay the analytical foundations for a new development strategy to enable high levels of employment, social inclusion, gender equity and environmental sustainability.
WWWforEurope started in April 2012 as a four year research project within the 7th Framework Programme funded by the European Commission. The research consortium is coordinated by the Austrian Institute of Economic Research (WIFO). The project coordinator is Karl Aiginger, the director of WIFO.
Bringing together researchers with interdisciplinary expertise from economics and ecology to history, demography, political science and gender research, WWWforEurope will explore how Europe can cope with the challenges of the financial crisis, globalisation, demographic shifts, climate change and new technologies. It seeks to guarantee social inclusion, wellbeing and environmental quality.
The Dundee team, led by Professor Catia Montagna, will bring their expertise in the areas of work and wellbeing, and macro and international economics to the project. Their research agenda will address the sustainability of welfare state institutions in the face of globalisation and impact of active labour market policies on international competitiveness.
Professor Montagna said that WWWforEurope was a timely project as Europe needed to urgently re-examine its attitude to economic development and its relationship to wellbeing and sustainability.
"Europe faces huge challenges, ranging from globalisation and demographic shifts to new technologies and ecological challenges" she said. "But in light of long neglected deficiencies in the present growth path, such as high unemployment and public debt, that the financial crisis has exposed, how do we deal with these challenges?
"That's what the project will be looking at - a fundamental transition in our current socio-ecological model, one that is consistent with social inclusion, high employment, equity, environmental sustainability."
WWWforEurope will address essential questions for implementing socio-ecological transition:
- What are the challenges to the European welfare state?
- What is the impact of environmental sustainability on growth and employment?
- What is the role of industrial and innovation policy as drivers for change?
- What are necessary adjustments of governance structures at the European level?
- What is the role of the regions in the socio-ecological transition?
These investigations will be undertaken within a coherent, inter-disciplinary framework which highlights how the different policy instruments work together to identify potential synergies, conflicts and trade-offs, as a starting-point for the development of a coherent strategy and policy design for a socio-ecological transition.
With this robust research as a foundation the ultimate impact of the project will be to contribute to a change in the current course of economic policy in the direction of a socio-ecological transition. To achieve this end and make an impact, WWWforEurope will engage in an ongoing dialogue with policy makers, stakeholders and representatives of civil society, supplying them with evidence based policy recommendations while at the same time integrating their expertise and views in the design of the transition strategy to be developed.
Project coordinator Karl Aiginger, Director of WIFO, said the ultimate aim is for Europe to act as a socio-ecological role model for the world.
"Change must not point in the direction of reducing social inclusion, postponing environmental goals and opting for price/cost-competitiveness," he said. "Our vision is that Europe should become a role model for a development strategy that enables a socio-ecological transition to high levels of employment, social inclusion, gender equity and environmental sustainability. And WWWforEurope will work towards it."
For details on WWWforEurope see: www.foreurope.eu
For media enquiries contact:
Grant Hill
Press Officer
University of Dundee
Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384768
E-MAIL: g.hill@dundee.ac.uk
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