Skip to main content

PS - The World's Opinion Page

  1. haass178_Alex KentGetty Images)_zelenskytrump Alex Kent/Getty Images

    Diplomacy Is the Newest Front in the Russia-Ukraine War

    Richard Haass

    With the United States under President Donald Trump pressing for peace, matters could come to a head by this summer, when the pipeline of congressionally-approved arms for Ukraine runs out. Far from bringing peace, however, a US military cutoff of Ukraine could actually bring about an escalation in the fighting.

    explains why an enforceable ceasefire must precede, perhaps by many years, final-status negotiations.
  2. nye268_John MooreGetty Images_trumpUN John Moore/Getty Images

    How World Order Changes

    Joseph S. Nye, Jr.

    World order is a matter of degree: it varies over time, depending on technological, political, social, and ideological factors that can affect the global distribution of power and influence norms. It can be radically altered both by broader historical trends and by a single major power's blunders.

    examines the role of evolving power dynamics and norms in bringing about stable arrangements among states.
  3. sirimanne1_Visual China Group via Getty ImagesVisual China Group via Getty Images_robotelderly Visual China Group via Getty Images

    Will AI Close or Widen the Development Gap?

    Shamika Sirimanne & Xiaolan Fu call for multilateral action and grassroots pressure to ensure that the technology serves all countries.
  4. buruma226_Picture AllianceGettyImages_tel _aviv_antiwar_protests Picture Alliance/Getty Images

    Israel’s Blind Spot

    Ian Buruma explains the lack of sympathy, even among the country’s many anti-war protesters, for Palestinian suffering.
  5. haldar44_ Ann Ronan PicturesPrint CollectorGetty Images_aristotle Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images

    How Aristotle Can Save Us

    Antara Haldar touts a conception of society in which politics and education cultivate the virtue of its members.
  6. dickinsongoodman1_DrAfter123Getty Images_datasurveillance DrAfter123/Getty Images

    Don’t Let Governments Break Encryption

    Jessica Dickinson Goodman & Ezequiel Passeron Kitroser urge citizens and lawmakers to fight for the privacy that previous generations took for granted.
  7. bandura1 Getty Images

    Paydays and Maydays in the Global South

    Romina Bandura surveys the biggest risks and opportunities facing workers across developing countries.
  8. fbirol4_UCGGettyImages_south_africa_power_grid UCG/Getty Images

    What African Electrification Requires

    Fatih Birol & Alain Ebobissé highlight the need for greater private-sector participation to boost investments in power grids.
  9. op_vaheesan1_Bettmann ContributorGetty Images_FDRdam Bettmann Contributor/Getty Images

    Getting Abundance Right

    Sandeep Vaheesan urges the creation of public utilities to accelerate decarbonization and improve living standards.
  10. Introductory Offer: Save 30% on PS Digital
    PS_Digital_1333x1000_Intro-Offer1

    Introductory Offer: Save 30% on PS Digital

    Access every new PS commentary, our entire On Point suite of subscriber-exclusive content – including Longer Reads, Insider Interviews, Big Picture/Big Question, and Say More – and the full PS archive.

    Subscribe Now

Q1-GettyImages-1782198740-4896x1224px

PS Quarterly

Subscribe to PS Premium to secure

the Work and Fate magazine 

Upgrade Your Subscription

Latest

  1. What African Electrification Requires
    fbirol4_UCGGettyImages_south_africa_power_grid UCG/Getty Images

    What African Electrification Requires

    Apr 1, 2025 Fatih Birol & Alain Ebobissé highlight the need for greater private-sector participation to boost investments in power grids.

  2. How World Order Changes
    nye268_John MooreGetty Images_trumpUN John Moore/Getty Images

    How World Order Changes

    Apr 1, 2025 Joseph S. Nye, Jr. examines the role of evolving power dynamics and norms in bringing about stable arrangements among states.

  3. Israel’s Blind Spot
    buruma226_Picture AllianceGettyImages_tel _aviv_antiwar_protests Picture Alliance/Getty Images

    Israel’s Blind Spot

    Apr 1, 2025 Ian Buruma explains the lack of sympathy, even among the country’s many anti-war protesters, for Palestinian suffering.

  4. Will AI Close or Widen the Development Gap?
    sirimanne1_Visual China Group via Getty ImagesVisual China Group via Getty Images_robotelderly Visual China Group via Getty Images

    Will AI Close or Widen the Development Gap?

    Apr 1, 2025 Shamika Sirimanne & Xiaolan Fu call for multilateral action and grassroots pressure to ensure that the technology serves all countries.

  5. Don’t Let Governments Break Encryption
    dickinsongoodman1_DrAfter123Getty Images_datasurveillance DrAfter123/Getty Images

    Don’t Let Governments Break Encryption

    Apr 1, 2025 Jessica Dickinson Goodman & Ezequiel Passeron Kitroser urge citizens and lawmakers to fight for the privacy that previous generations took for granted.

Trending

  1. op_vaheesan1_Bettmann ContributorGetty Images_FDRdam Bettmann Contributor/Getty Images

    Getting Abundance Right

    Sandeep Vaheesan urges the creation of public utilities to accelerate decarbonization and improve living standards.
  2. GettyImages-465335816

    Jorge Heine on the BRICS, active non-alignment, the US dollar, and more

    Jorge Heine urges the Organization of American States to demonstrate leadership in Haiti, shows how small countries can implement a foreign policy based on active non-alignment, calls on China and Europe to diversify the global monetary system, and more.
  3. op_detter1_utah778Getty Images_balancesheet utah778/Getty Images

    Fixing Public Finances Without a Chainsaw

    Dag Detter urges cash-strapped countries to adopt a commercial approach to management of government-owned assets.
  4. GettyImages-2176801438 TANG CHHIN SOTHY/AFP via Getty Images

    The Global South’s Path to Economic Resilience

    Anwar Ibrahim explains how Malaysia and other middle powers are navigating increasingly uncertain geopolitical terrain.
  5. coyle38_DrAfter123Getty Images_AI DrAfter123/Getty Images

    Diane Coyle on innovation, AI, economic data, and more

    Diane Coyle suggests ways to account for “free” digital services in economic frameworks, considers how to prevent the emergence of AI monopolies, warns that cutting funding for basic research is tantamount to destroying the US economy’s foundations, and more.
  6. op_livingston6_cienpies_handsmoney cienpies/Getty Images

    Abundance and Its Discontents

    James Livingston asks why the absence of economic scarcity is viewed as a problem rather than a cause for celebration.

The “future of work” has become an increasingly frequent and capacious subject of inquiry, reflecting the fact that “work” is not just a private concern but a fundamental component of social, political, and economic life. If it is undergoing profound changes as a result of evolving technological, demographic, and global political factors, so will much else.

Learn more
PSQuarterly-Q12025-darkgreybg

Sustainability Now is brought to you in part by:

View all
  1. jmccarthy1_CRISTINA ALDEHUELAAFP via Getty Images_cocoaghana Cristina Aldehuela/AFP via Getty Images

    Central Banks Must Stem the Nature Crisis

    Julie McCarthy urges monetary authorities to use their tools to mitigate the financial risks of environmental disruption.
  2. jclapp2_NurPhotoGettyImages_cargo_ship NurPhoto/Getty Images

    The Biofuel Sham Could Worsen Global Hunger and Inequality

    Jennifer Clapp & Olivier De Schutter urge the UN maritime regulator not to encourage the shipping industry to move from one unsustainable fuel to another.
  3. badre31_EonerenGetty Images_susatinabilityworld Eoneren/Getty Images

    Sustainability in an Unstable World

    Bertrand Badré & Thomas Crampton warn against de-emphasizing climate action in the face of new geopolitical concerns.

Opinion that Moves

  1. Paola Subacchi, et al. Will the World Keep Buying US Treasuries?
  2. Rabah Arezki Developing Countries Need a New Strategy
  3. Lori Wallach What Trump’s Tariff Critics Are Getting Wrong
  4. Ana Palacio Europe’s Security Depends on a European Energy Union

  1. Joseph S. Nye, Jr. How World Order Changes
  2. Adekeye Adebajo South Africa’s Wrestling Match With Trump
  3. Zaki Laïdi Trump vs. Europe
  4. Richard Haass Diplomacy Is the Newest Front in the Russia-Ukraine War

  1. Fatih Birol, et al. What African Electrification Requires
  2. William Moore Philanthropy in an Era of Declining Development Aid
  3. Wolfgang Fengler Financial Inclusion Must Reach the Last Billion
  4. Hippolyte Fofack Dismantling USAID Could Boost African Self-Reliance

  1. Montek Singh Ahluwalia Can COP30 Succeed Where COP29 Failed?
  2. Julie McCarthy Central Banks Must Stem the Nature Crisis
  3. Gaston Browne A Defining Moment for Energy Security and Economic Prosperity
  4. Ekhosuehi Iyahen Insuring Coastal and Ocean Resilience

  1. Shamika Sirimanne, et al. Will AI Close or Widen the Development Gap?
  2. Jessica Dickinson Goodman, et al. Don’t Let Governments Break Encryption
  3. Daron Acemoglu Two Models for Agentic AI
  4. Edoardo Campanella, et al. America’s Many Chip Vulnerabilities

  1. Ian Buruma Israel’s Blind Spot
  2. Antara Haldar How Aristotle Can Save Us
  3. Yi Fuxian Why China’s Marriage Crisis Matters
  4. Gordon Brown The Internal Challenge to Afghanistan’s Ban on Girls’ Secondary Education

Africa’s economic rise is a world-changing development, but the sources of its emerging strength – and lingering weaknesses – are little understood. W…

  1. Fatih Birol, et al. What African Electrification Requires
  2. Hippolyte Fofack Dismantling USAID Could Boost African Self-Reliance
  3. Jaynisha Patel The Sahel’s Dangerous Downward Spiral

Today’s media landscape is littered with landmines: open hostility from illiberal and autocratic regimes, mounting censorship in countries such as Hungary, Turkey,…

  1. Jessica Dickinson Goodman, et al. Don’t Let Governments Break Encryption
  2. J. Bradford DeLong Trump’s Smoke and Mirrors
  3. Karen Rønde Danish Media’s United Stand Against Big Tech

Oceans cover over 70% of the planet’s surface and account for 97% of its total water supply; they produce half the oxygen that we breathe and absorb o…

  1. Ekhosuehi Iyahen Insuring Coastal and Ocean Resilience
  2. Dadang Mujiono Empty Promises Won’t Save Marine Ecosystems
  3. Maya Delaney, et al. Turning the Financial Tide for Small Island States