The Chinese government’s emphasis on reducing dependency on foreign technology and fostering homegrown innovation reflects a broader strategy to consolidate its economic sovereignty and global influence. India’s economic nationalism is characterized by initiatives such as “Make in India” that aim to boost domestic manufacturing, reduce import dependence, and enhance the competitiveness of Indian industries. The United States has seen a shift towards protectionism and policies to prioritize American industries and workers. This includes renegotiation of trade deals, imposition of tariffs, and initiatives to revive domestic manufacturing. This panel considers the rise and return of economic nationalism and industrial policy in India, China, and the United States, the emergence of regional blocs, and the ensuing implications for technology sectors, manufacturing, and the global economy.

SPEAKERS

Ravi Kanbur is T.H. Lee Professor of World Affairs at Cornell University. He previously taught at Oxford University, Cambridge University, Princeton University, and Columbia University, among others. He has held several senior staff positions at the World Bank, including Resident Representative in Ghana, Chief Economist of the African Region, and Principal Adviser to the Chief Economist of the World Bank. Kanbur has also served as Co-Chair of the Food System Economics Commission, Chair of the Board of United Nations University–World Institute for Development Economics Research, President of the Human Development and Capability Association, and President of the Society for the Study of Economic Inequality. He holds a PhD from Oxford University. Kanbur’s research is focused on public economics, development economics, and economic theory. His publications have covered topics of inequality, poverty, structural adjustment, agriculture, urbanization, and labor, among others. He is well known in the field of international development, not just for his ample academic work, but for his public engagement and policy analysis. Kanbur has published in leading economic journals, including Review of Economic Studies, Journal of Economic Theory, Journal of Political Economy, and American Economic Review. He is also a co-editor of the recent books International Development: Ideas, Experience, and Prospects, and Climate Justice: Integrating Economics and Philosophy.

 

William Milberg is Professor of Economics at the New School for Social Research. His research focuses on the relation between globalization and income distribution, and the history and philosophy of economics. He has written extensively on global value chains and their implications for economic development, financialization and intellectual property. His recent work focuses on the economic causes and consequences of the multinational retreat from liberal democracy, including an edited issue of Social Research and a book published by The New Institute. His current book project is on the relation between globalization and sports. Milberg has worked as a consultant to the UNDP, the ILO, the UNCTAD and the World Bank. He is the author of Outsourcing Economics: Global Value Chains in Capitalist Development (with Deborah Winkler). Two previous books, The Crisis of Vision in Modern Economic Thought and The Making of Economic Society were co-authored with the late Robert Heilbroner. He serves on the editorial boards of Politics & Society, The Journal of Post Keynesian Economics, The International Review of Applied Economics and is on the Advisory Board of Socio-Economic Review. Milberg served as Dean of the New School for Social Research from 2013-2023.

 

Min Ye is a Professor of International Relations at the Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University. Ye has received numerous grants and fellowships, including the Smith Richardson Foundation grant and the East Asia Peace, Prosperity, and Governance Fellowship. She was also selected as a Public Intellectual Program fellow by the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and as the Rosenberg Scholar of East Asian Studies at Suffolk University. She holds a PhD from Princeton University.

Ye’s research interests include Chinese political economy, China and India comparison, East Asian international relations, and globalization, focusing on transnational immigration and foreign investment. Her research is particularly relevant for understanding the complexities of China’s Belt and Road Initiative and its growing influence around the world. Ye is the author of The Belt, Road and Beyond: State-Mobilized Globalization in China 1998–2018 and Diasporas and Foreign Direct Investment in China and India. Her published journal articles cover topics such as the impact of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, the role of diasporas in foreign direct investment, and the intersection of globalization with regional and national political agendas.

MODERATOR

 

Manjari Mahajan’s work lies at the intersection of Science and Technology Studies, Development Studies, and Anthropology. Her research and teaching are on the topics of global health, philanthrocapitalism, and digital governance. Much of her empirical focus has been on India and South Africa, and more recently, on global organizations such as the Gates Foundation and the World Health Organization. She has held fellowships at the Asia Research Institute at the National University of Singapore, the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology at Halle, Germany, and the Social Science Research Council in the United States. Her papers have received prizes from the Society for Social Studies for Science and the American Anthropological Association. She received her PhD in Science and Technology Studies from Cornell University, her MSc in Science and Technology Policy from SPRU Sussex University, and her BA from Harvard University.