Intergenerational Justice Program: Session on Economic Sustainability
Aspen Institute España, in collaboration with Fundación Iberdrola España, inaugurated the Intergenerational Justice Program with a session on Economic Sustainability. This session brought together around 25 participants from very heterogeneous professional sectors and very diverse ages.
José Ignacio Conde-Ruiz, Associate Professor of Fundamentals of Economic Analysis at the Complutense University of Madrid, Deputy Director at the Foundation for Applied Economics Studies and Visiting Professor at ESADE, was the rapporteur of the debate session and, Áurea Moltó, director of Política Exterior, the moderator.
This first debate allowed the participants to address the reforms and initiatives that must be carried out to face the economic challenges associated with our production system, the sustainability of our Welfare State and the transformations necessary to face the growth of public debt, in a context of population aging in all western societies.
The 2008 financial crisis and the increase in economic and social malaise in many of the neighboring countries have cast doubt on the viability of our economic and social system. This situation has been worsened by the outbreak of the current pandemic, which has put a brake on our production system and will lead to a further increase in inequalities and public debt. This situation represents one of the greatest obstacles to intergenerational justice, both in the sustainability of the current pensions system and in the impact that the enormous public debt will have on the development of sustainable growth policies for the youngest.
Biography of the rapporteur
José Ignacio Conde-Ruiz, Visiting Professor at ESADE. José Ignacio has a doctorate in Economics from the Carlos III University of Madrid (with Extraordinary Prize), Visiting Professor at ESADE, Associate Professor of Fundamentals of Economic Analysis at the Complutense University of Madrid, and Deputy Director of the Foundation for Applied Economics Studies (FEDEA) . He is a member of the Committee of Experts on the development of the Sustainability Factor of pensions 2013 and of the Expert Forum of the Aviva Institute.
Biography of the moderator
Áurea Moltó, editorial director of the magazine Política Exterior. She has been an advisor in the Secretary of State of Global Spain, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation. She has a degree in Information Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid and did postgraduate studies in the Contemporary Latin America program of the Ortega y Gasset University Institute. She has been a Senior Visiting Fellow at The Inter-American Dialogue (Washington DC). Áurea is a member of the Scientific Council of the Elcano Royal Institute and collaborates with RNE, El País, The Objective, El Periódico de Cataluña and Latin American Advisor.
Intergenerational Justice Program
The Program is organized by Aspen Institute España, in collaboration with Fundación Iberdrola and takes place on November 25th, December 3rd and 10th. In this first edition, the program brought together recognized and emerging leaders from various sectors of our society. The questions that lead the dialogue was introduced by experts in these matters and moderated to facilitate an enriching conversation for all. In this way, under the Chatham House Rule, the exploration and analysis of these questions were facilitated through the Socratic method, used in the Aspen Institute España seminars, based on previous readings and questions to guide the discussion.
The purpose of the Aspen Institute España debates is not to reach definitive conclusions or find unique solutions, but rather to foster an exchange of opinions and perspectives from which the ideals, principles and personal relationships that inspire and facilitate a more enlightened leadership in our society can emerge. The climate crisis, the risk of depletion of natural resources, the growth of public debt and the weakening of multilateral institutions force us to ask ourselves again great questions about the future of our societies and the sustainability of our current economic system, both for the current generations as for the next. To address these issues, these debates will be raised from three themes, which in turn are closely related to each other, in order to analyze and understand the complexity of these challenges and address them from a broad and interdisciplinary perspective, integrating voices from different generations.
