Re-Define produces solutions to current and long-term public challenges and helps policy makers implement them
Publications
Because most of the time we work directly with policymakers, the vast majority of our output is not available for public dissemination. However, we have received excellent feedback on the resources that we have made available up until now. So we now have a new target to put up to 50% of our work on the website to serve as a general resource for Policy Makers, NGOs, Academics, other Think Tanks and the Media. - Watch this space!
Recent additions
Here you will find the most recent additions to our website.
These are the first set of public briefs under our soon to be launched Finance Market Watch Program. These are designed for the non-specialists and are meant to be circulated widely.
Lessons from the Financial Crisis
Principles for Financial Reform
How Banks Work and Why they are Fragile
This is the draft summary of our work on the unintended consequences of financial reforms on poor countries
Could the medicine harm the patient's friend (Final report coming soon)
The following policy brief, that Re-Define wrote for the Foundation of European Progressive Studies, deals with the issue of funding adaptation and mitigation.
Tackling Climate Change: Tools to Fund Adaptation and Mitigation
Below you will find our testimony to the German Bundestag on the subject of Financial Transaction Taxes
FTTs: Prudential, Regulatory, Information and Fiscal Tools for the Future (English)
FTTs: Prudential, Regulatory, Information and Fiscal Tools for the Future (German)
This new European Parliament policy paper from Re-Define written by Sony Kapoor considers how globalization has changed the nature of risks we are facing. It shows how, at the same time as idiosyncratic risks have fallen, the threat of system wide risks has risen significantly. This has been accompanied by an ever increasing degree of externalities and faster and larger cross border flows of not just commerce but people, information technologies and pathogens. While the increase in cross border flows has generated new opportunities, it has also exposed us to new threats. This calls for new institutional structures and a new approach to global governance.
The European Union should, as the most integrated region in the world, take the lead in both taking these emergent challenges head on and developing a model for new governance that can be replicated at the global level. This would be beneficial for Europe, and for the world.
In the second part, this paper lays out specific short to medium term measures that Europe must take in order to tackle the triple fiscal, financial and climate crises confronting the world. This would not only help Europe emerge stronger and more integrated but would also allow the Union to take the lead in global affairs.About 95% our writings and publications are tailor made for governments and international institutions and are not public. However we are committed to putting as many of our ideas and policy recommendations in the public domain as possible. (link below)
This new policy brief from Re-Define is a major contribution to the ongoing intergovernmental discussions on financial transaction taxes. It shows that the initial incidence of such taxes will fall primarily on hedge funds and investment bansk and to a lesser extent on commercial banks. Furthermore its shows that these market actors have the capacity to bear the brunt of the tax and policy makers have the right tools to make sure that they do not pass on much of the tax to end users such as pension funds and retail customers. Most of the final incidence of the tax will be borne by high net worth hedge fund investors and highly paid bank and hedge fund employees with a relatively small proportion going to bank shareholders, pension funds and corporate customers.
Moreover the policy brief aslo discusses how a well-designed portfolio of differentiated financial transaction taxes can help address serious problems with the functioning of financial markets such as churning, excessive volatility and short-termism. It shows that FTTs are a flexible tool that can be used to not only reduce these problems but also selectively penalize socially useless financial transactions, complexity and opacity all of which increase systemic risk.
Financial Transaction Taxes: Tools for Progressive Taxation and Improving Market Behaviour
This policy maker brief from Re-Define made a very important contribution to the policy discussions on financial sector reform. It lists, discusses and critiques the proposals put forward by governments in the US and Europe up to and including August 2009. Re-Define will be launching a completely updated and revamped follow up publication as a book along with its partners the Fredrich Ebert Stiftung, the Bertelsmann Stiftung and the European Trade Union Institute on the 23rd of March 2010.
A stock-take of the ongoing financial reform discussions
This policy brief written in April 2009 discusses what financial sector reforms are needed in order to bring about a system that is more stable, more competitive, fairer and that better serves the need of the real economy
What financial reforms are needed
This note talks about how Financial Transaction Taxes can help meet some of the fiscal costs of the ongoing financial bailouts and enable a fairer burden sharing accross society
Using Financial Transaction Taxes for Fairer Burden Sharing
This note on Hedge Fund Regulation is a Response to the European Comission Consultation Written on Behalf of the European Parliament
This note on Private Equity Regulation is a Response to the European Comission Consultation Written on Behalf of the European Parliament
This widely circulated policy brief charts out the policy options for tackling tax flight from developing countries
This briefing paper written for the Norwegian Foreign Ministry shows how illicit financial flows are undermining development
IllicitFinancialFlows-ABriefingPaper.pdf
This concept note, written for the World Future Council looks at the pros and cons of SDRs and the Gold Standard from an Economic Governance Perspective
Are SDRs or a new Gold Standards the right answers?
This concept note suggests how a Technology Adaptation and Insurance Fund could be set up under the UNFCC to help reach a deal at Copenhagen
Technology Adaptation and Insurance Fund
This report shows how FDI has for the most part not lived up to the hype and proposes policies to help improve its development footprint
Foreign Direct Investment - A Critique - Policy Report
This report written for the Norwegian Foreign Ministry charts out the changing landscape that looms before institutions such as the World Bank and the Regional Development Banks
The changing landscape for IFIs
This report, which was comissioned by the German Development Ministry shows how Tackling Tax Flight can help improve the quality of Economic Governance
Tackling Tax Flight - A Step Towards Good Governance
This think piece compares and contrasts emissions trading programs and carbon taxes in terms of their effectiveness in helping reduce emissions
Mitigation - Emissions Trading or Carbon Taxes?
Speeches & Presentations
These seminar notes were presented before the UN Financing for Development conference in 2008
Financing For Development Seminar Notes
Evidence and Official Submissions
A constructive critique of the Norwegian Government's report on Tax Havens