Fashion’s Flaws
Environmental historian Adam Rome considers the destructive history of fashion and style.
Are Millionaire Taxes Self-Defeating?
A common argument against increasing taxes on high earners is that the wealthy will simply move out of the city or state with higher taxes.
The High Cost of Sand in Southeast Asia
The clean, green garden city of Singapore has been built on sand extracted—at significant environmental cost—from its neighbors.
How Progressives Legalized Usury
In the early twentieth century, reformers united with capitalists to promote high-interest lending, overthrowing opposition to usury rooted in Christian tradition.
The Rewards and Risks of Islamic Finance
The principles of Islamic finance date to the seventh century. What do they have to offer to the contemporary global financial system?
Bye-Bye, Russian Gas!
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sparked an energy revolution, forcing European states to reconsider their dependence on Russian oil imports.
What Is the Cost of Sustainability?
In a global financial system dedicated to profits, a growing number of voices are suggesting that sustainable practices can pay off financially.
Global Gentrification
The transnational mobility of lifestyle migrants and digital nomads has led to the globalization of rent gaps and the pricing out of locals in some cities.
How a Rice Economy Toppled the Shogun
The co-existence of economies—one based on rice, the other on money—pushed the Tokugawa government toward financial misery and failure.
Economics in Ancient Greece
The modern term “economics” comes from the Greek word “oikonomia,” but the ancient Greeks had a very different way of thinking about material life.