HINT #2 by Hult Think Tank

AN INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE ON:

COUNTRY MATTERS

LATIN AMERICAN ECONOMICS BARBARA CUNHA

EVERYTHING WRONG WITH CSR MARK ESPOSITO

CHINESE INVESTMENT IN AFRICA DANIEL RUKARE

@HTTBOSTON

@HTTDUBAI

@HTTLONDON

AN INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE ON:

COUNTRY MATTERS

LATIN AMERICAN ECONOMICS BARBARA CUNHA

EVERYTHING WRONG WITH CSR MARK ESPOSITO

CHINESE INVESTMENT IN AFRICA DANIEL RUKARE

@HTTBOSTON

@HTTDUBAI

@HTTLONDON

HINT Founder and CEO Viviane Menna Barreto Editor in Chief Giulia Ubertallo

Managing Editor

Editor

Whitney Sims-Rucker,

Moon Jerin, Canada

Sameer Singh, India

United States @HTTBoston

@HTTBoston

In this issue Adnan Al-Khatib, Syria @HTTLondon

Felipe Arantes, Brazil @HTTNewYork

Reet Sen, Australia @HTTBoston

Barbara Boavista, Brazil @HTTBoston

Ivan Maryasin, Russia @HTTBoston

Sameer Singh, India @HTTBoston

Daniel Rukare, Uganda @HTTLondon

Juan Colmenares, Venezuela @HTTBoston

Tatiana Frambach, Brazil @RiodeJaneiro

Deborah Leipziger, Brazil @HTTBoston

Kat Gabriel, United States @HTTDubai

Theocharis Papadopoulos, Greece @HTTLondon

Donata Haque-Bernutz, China and Germany @HTTLondon

Dr. Mark Esposito, United States @HTTDubai

Viviane Menna Barreto, Brazil @HTTBoston

Mark Missirlian, United States @HTTBoston

Yehia Hassaan, Egypt @HTTDubai

Maximilien Meilleur, Canada @HTTSanFran

Zeinab Daou, Mali @HTTBoston

Ebuwa Igho-Osagie, Nigeria @HTTBoston Espen Langaas, Norway @HTTLondon

Ololade Fagbohun, Nigeria @HTTBoston

The views and opinions expressed by Hult Think Tank do not necessarily represent the oﬃcial policy or position of Hult International Business School.

FOREWORD Dear readers, HINT is growing fast, and we are already on our second issue. After less than two months from the launch, HINT amounted 2,500 page views. This is an amazing result, and we are extremely proud of the visibility that we are reaching. The variety of our topics, along with the tremendous insights given by our collaborators and

Giulia Ubertallo Editor in Chief

contributors, represent a powerful, spicy and winning recipe, which we commit to stick to, over the whole lifetime of our journal. Some compounds and ingredients have been mixed up in creating meals that will remain staples throughout Hult Think Tankâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s history. We are still quite small, but we think big, and we believe that HINT is taking part in writing a part of each of our stories. The story of ideas, of thought, that kind of story that breeds itself with the contributions of a wonderfully varied range of thinkers, all around the globe. Being global is in our DNA; in this second issue, we became more international then ever; you will be able to read opinions literally coming from every corner of the world, with writers

from both the Americas, Asia, Europe, Af-

the power and the role that such an old en-

rica and Oceania. And, staying on the

tity still plays on the international arena,

same line, since we know how much coun-

and we decided to explore this topic

tries matter we decided to dedicate our

deeply by taking advantage of a number of

June’s issue to this topic. Countries are

extremely valuable contributions. How do

the foundation of local, regional and inter-

countries interact with the global econ-

national decisions. It would be hard to find

omy? To what extent does the local dimen-

another protagonist that could cross those

sion cross the borders of a state to influ-

three spatial (and time) dimensions better

ence other entities of the same kind? Do

than countries do.

countries still matter? Why?

There are so many definitions of this world

Throughout a lucid analysis of the Venezue-

that one risks to get lost into a forest of dif-

lan crisis, passing through ideas and

ferent meanings. Yet, are those really so dif-

thoughts about emerging markets, with a

ferent? The beauty inside the concept of

focus on Chinese investments in the Afri-

“country” lies in the kaleidoscope of ideas

can continent, HINT’s second issue

that the same orthography conveys, and

stretches from economic issues to social

are intertwined and intercrossed in a com-

considerations, without neglecting technol-

plex, rich whirligig of significances.

ogy. Our hope is that, by reading this jour-

A country is a nation, with its own government, and it occupies a certain territory. But a country is also the people who live in a particular area. We were fascinated by

nal, you will come up with the conclusion that countries do matter. Because, to quote Winston Churchill, “we are still masters of our fate. We are still captains of our souls”.

Economics • HTT Boston, United States

Impact Investing: Emerging Markets

“Don’t fool yourself, there are risks when investing in an overseas market just as there are for any Fortune 500 firms.”

There has been much hesitation regarding

France and $200 billion ahead of Italy. Bra-

investing in emerging markets recently.

zil made it into the top ten economies in

The thing is, without risk, there is no re-

2005 and both Russia and India made it to

ward. As Robert Arnott said, “in investing,

the top ten in 2011. Emerging markets can

what is comfortable is rarely profitable.” Re-

be massive and their growth will only make

cent news has led to investors’ mistrust

them larger players in the global market. In

and doubt regarding the future of emerging

2014, it is estimated that developing coun-

markets as a lucrative, or even meager,

tries will average a 5.1% growth in GDP.

source of income. However, emerging mar-

Compare this with the Eurozone estimate

ket funds continue to perform when look-

at 1% and the estimated world average of

ing from a long-term perspective. These

3.6%. These markets provide the potential

markets are not only a means of extreme

of high-yield returns on investment, espe-

profits but also a possible means of philan-

cially compared to the perceived “more sta-

thropy.

ble” markets.

Emerging markets are not simply small

Don’t fool yourself, there are risks when in-

countries with weak economies and a lack

vesting in an overseas market, just as

of infrastructure, although, these are in-

there are for any global and prosperous

deed some of their elements. The original

Fortune 500 firms. Investors can be

four big emerging markets, the BRICs, are

warded oﬀ by the thought of young and

each in the top ten for the world’s largest

volatile political systems. However, this is a

economies. If we look back ten years ago,

risk that should be taken lightly. Every sin-

this would be a completely diﬀerent story.

gle day there are risks of corruption, riots

China, in 2004, then had the sixth largest

and political takeovers. However, the risk

economy, coming just $200 billion short of

of a temporary decline in stock is not a rea5

son to pull out of emerging market funds

Not all emerging markets are the same. In-

altogether. As Warren Buﬀet said in re-

vestors become paranoid when one emerg-

gards to his famous hamburger prices anal-

ing market has a political or economical is-

ogy, “only those who will be sellers of equi-

sue and, therefore, self-determine that all

ties in the near future should be happy at

emerging market funds would be terrible

seeing stocks rise. Prospective purchasers

investments. Examples of today include

should much prefer sinking prices.” Invest-

the political scandals in Turkey, the worry

ing in these markets can only pay oﬀ in the

of China’s economic growth bottoming out

long run, and that’s exactly what you

and riots in the Ukraine. This has led to de-

should do, invest long-term. In fact, the rea-

creased currency valuations and has been

son US firms have been doing so well re-

one of the root causes in the recent stock

cently is due to the performance of their

market fluctuations. I am not saying all

overseas markets.

emerging markets are good ones. There are some great stocks out there, but, then

Retrieved from bloomberg.com

again, there is some real rubbish. Due dili-

markets but we are also providing a means

gence must be utilized when investing, as

in which entrepreneurs can be given the

always. Investing in developing countries is a highrisk, high-reward market. However, the high-reward is not just regarding an exorbitant cash flow; emerging markets present us with a possible means of philanthropy. Our investments in emerging markets can help the lives of millions of people each day. Infrastructure in some developing na-

tools and skills needed to succeed in their home country. Firms such as Dalberg and the aforementioned Grassroots Business Fund oďŹ&#x20AC;er business advisory services to small companies in emerging markets. Emerging markets are not what they used to be. We are not simply investing in a country without roads or water; it is an in-

tions is weak, to say the least.

vestment in people and their ideas. This

Without willing investors, there is little

tries to decouple from more developed na-

hope in creating a system that can miti-

tions and become independent.

gate localsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; access to resources such as clean water, electricity and education. When investing in these markets, you are not simply putting money into a pot and hoping for it to boil over. Instead, firms such as Imprint Capital, Impact Assets, Grassroots Business Fund and even JP Morganâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Social Finance business unit are taking that money and using it to aid the creation and advancement of roads, health care systems and institutions such as schools and local banks. Impact investing has become a popular trend amongst the Fortune 500. Not only are we creating the literal foundation for survivability by investing in these

further aids in the advancement of coun-

Investments in emerging markets are now becoming mainstream. Since 2009, investors have been reluctant to trust their money with markets that are virtually intangible to them. It can be hard to trust your funds with a firm that is 10,000 miles away, reasonably so. However, we must not let distance and fear of the unknown hinder our ability to not only help those economies that need a lending hand but also earn money while doing so. Today is the opportunity and now is the moment. There is an unwavering support of overseas investment, especially in the developing world. Not only does investing overseas diversify your portfolio but it also opens you up to more than double the 7

Retrieved from calvertfoundation.org

growth opportunities than if you were

not only earn sizable profits but also

to stay invested in the most 3 com-

change the world for the better.

mon stocks. The United States only hosts less than half of the global market capitalization, even while being

BY MARK MISSIRLIAN, United States

the largest market. Yes, the market prices are low, but isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t that a great thing? No one invests in a firm when it is at a peak stock price. That being said, in my opinion, it is imperative that investors take interest in emerging markets if they would like to

Social and Environmental • HTT Boston, Nigeria

Malaria In Rural Nigeria: A View To Healthcare Problem Solving

“We cannot wish them away. But we can change ourselves”

alarming rate, and the deaths were due to malaria and its horrendous complications. In Gwaram, and many parts of northern Nigeria, women and children have a dangerous combination of factors militating against their wellbeing. Poor hygienic practices make helminthiasis (worms) prevalent, and bad, oppressive feeding cultures make them nutritionally deficient. These two factors make the women and children vulnerable to infections. And so when the I resumed at the Primary Health Centre in Gwaram as Medical Oﬃcer in March 2010 and quickly settled into the routine of ward rounds, clinic and frequent calls. Though work was punctuated by the occasional difficult case, life was very normal. Being a doctor was quite rewarding – most patients went home better. Alive. But this was before the rains came. When the rains came, the weather changed and the breezes became cool and refreshing, but our mortality statistics changed. Patients, especially children started dying at an

rains came with stagnant pools of water, mosquitoes and malaria fever became abundant. But it was not the malaria that killed the children. The disease only triggered an explosion of heart failure, recurrent seizures, and severe anemia in already nutritionally deficient women and children. Bad health practices made people human time bombs; the rains and malaria only set them oﬀ. The solution to the infectious disease burden of Gwaram and other aﬀected areas 9

does not lie in provision of anti-malarials

Another step in solving this huge problem

and mosquito nets. These symptom reliev-

would be to implement cascade trainings

ing interventions are laudable but not ade-

within the community. Continuous educa-

quate. A more robust systems’ thinking ap-

tion of community health workers is vital to

proach to healthcare problems oﬀers a bet-

ensure that current practice standards are

ter solution and involves engaging commu-

being implemented in treatments, and also

nity leaders to lead a change in negative

to prevent cookie cutter treatment regi-

cultural feeding practices and personal hy-

mens from being applied to every case

giene. Convincing the custodians of cul-

that presents at the clinics. Health educa-

ture and religion in these societies to re-

tion must also be made to flow from the fa-

verse such customs as reserving fish,

cilities to the community. Mothers should

meat, yoghurt and other protein meals for

be taught to respond immediately to sick

men alone is a vital first step in combating

children. This will tremendously improve

the eﬀects of the disease. In boosting the

health outcomes as health workers will see

nutritional status of women and children,

less and less patients presenting at facili-

along with adoption of hygienic practices

ties after three days of recurrent seizures.

that prevent worm infestations, children

A situation commonly seen in rural parts of

will be better able to cope with the eﬀects

Northern Nigeria.

and complications of malaria infections.

Retrieved from theguardian.com 10

Retrieved from malariaconsortium.org

I have never seen night skies as beautiful

BY EBUWA IGHO-OSAGIE, Nigeria

as the view from my window most nights in Gwaram and as I walked home from the evening markets. But in the rainy season, it seemed beauty lay only in the heavens: the earth was full of death and the dying. We cannot do anything about the rains. We cannot wish them away. But we can change ourselves: we can ensure that we empower and protect women. We can make sure that the children that come in the dry seasons do not go when the rains come.

Barbara Cunha Senior Economist at the World Bank working for the Macroeconomic and Fiscal Management Global Practice on Latin America Economics • HTT Boston, Brazil

Q: What are the three best things about

Q: What has been your biggest impact

working for the World Bank?

so far?

My biggest impact was in relation to a loan

Working directly with National Govern-

ments and helping them with current is-

we were preparing for El Salvador. They un-

sues.

derwent a tax reform that was extremely

Working with excellent professionals

that share the same objectives, and that make the job more productive and interesting.

needed, but they weren’t able to have it approved. This helped stabilize the government’s finances, and gave more money for social expenditure and investment. In terms of client impact, this was a very con-

3. Working with people from diﬀerent countries and learning to deal with different cultural norms.

crete experience that I was involved in and able to help. Q: What has impacted you the most so far? Probably when I visited the country-side of Paraguay to perform an analysis on the impact of a project that connected water and sanitation to indigenous communities. This made an incredible diﬀerence in terms of their quality of life, and they were very proud. They showed me their ditch and the school that they were able to build. This experience has impacted me the most so far. 12

Q: Which are the biggest problems

static, it started to diverge just now, but it

faced by Latin America and the Carib-

was being able to keep its position.

bean today?

Q: Currently, you are responsible for giv-

There are several problems, but I will talk

ing support to Colombia. In what capac-

about my area of expertise. With the de-

ity is the Colombian economy unique?

crease of oil and ore prices, the majority of

What do they have the most diďŹ&#x192;culty

the population in Latin America, who live in

on?

commodity-exporting countries, will face serious financial and economical issues un-

Colombia is between the best in terms of

til they can manage to go back to a certain

macroeconomic stability. It is the only

equilibrium.

country in Latin America that has never defaulted in its external debt and has an ex-

Structurally, one of the most important is-

cellent reputation. They also underwent

sues relates to inequality, but that is actu-

good reforms in terms of both monetary

ally related to the lack of opportunities and

policy and fiscal policy in order to reduce

education for instance.

the external impacts such as oil price insta-

Q: Are these countries converging or diverging from the United States? When we talk about converge or diverge in my field, we measure productivity, or per capita income, from which we compare in order to see how each country is behaving. We are able to separate them in two groups. There is a group of countries that are converging (some faster than others)

bility. On the negative side, they live in great conflict with the FARC. As of implications of poverty, we can name the loss of employability, housing and health. There is a very big inequality: some cities have medium to high income and others really low income. Q: What can you tell us about entrepreneurship in Colombia? Is it a representative economic activity?

such as Peru, Panama and Uruguay - that

We are making a study called Systematic

have a really good growth rate. Others like

Country Diagnostic in order to prepare the

Argentina and Venezuela, for instance, are

bankâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s next strategy at Colombia. We are

diverging, meaning that the gap of per cap-

analyzing which are the main barriers for

ita income is actually growing. Brazil is

poverty reduction, for sustainable eco13

nomic growth e for sustainability in terms

Q: In general, how easy is for Colombi-

of environment e macroeconomics. On the

ans with a Masters degree to find a job

part of growth, we did analyze entrepre-

in their home country? Conversely, how

neurship and the results aren’t that good.

easy is for foreign graduate students to

We have an interesting database that measures the quality of management of the companies. It is a homogenous methodology that is present in many countries around the globe. Colombians are the worst amongst the sample, that includes countries like India and Kenya. They are also the country with the biggest diﬀerence between the quality they believe they have and the actual objectively measured one. There is an information problem, in other words, they don’t know what are the best practices. Q: And do you know the reason for this issue relating to entrepreneurship and the quality of Colombian companies? We do have some hypothesis. One of the factors seems to be related to competition. Colombia is still relatively closed, although it has been making eﬀorts to make free trade agreements, reduce importation and exportation taxes. Exterior trade is still a really small percentage of the economy, so they are not being exposed to external knowledge and practices. Hence, there are little incentives to improve performance.

find a job in Colombia? Relatively easy. There is a good market and a lack of qualified employees. Colombia actually has a disproportional quantity of uneducated workers. In my experience dealing with both private companies and government, they have outstanding professionals and are always looking for more. With regards to foreign employees, I have not met many. I am not sure whether the Colombians don’t hire them or if the foreigners themselves are not interested. Q: Is there an advice that you or your co-workers give with more frequency to economic policy makers? There are a few economic principles that are basic, but normally, the problems we face and solutions we propose are highly dependent on the reality of each country. There is no single recipe; you really need to understand the context of the country you are dealing with... Find out how that problem applies and design a suggestion or recommendation that is tailored to that specific situation.

Nevertheless, this hypothesis has not been

On the case of El Salvador, for example,

tested or proved yet.

they needed to undergo a tax reform in or14

Q: What can countries outside of the America learn from the Latin economy? Every country has its positive and negative sides, but within the region, the most significant aspect of the last decade was the reduction of poverty and extreme poverty. Brazil was one of these, for example. I believe that this is a very important lesson to countries that are currently facing the same issue. Some of the Brazilian poverty programs, in my opinion, are even better than some American ones. I think this would be an interesting lesson. Q: What is your advice for someone that der to greatly increase their revenues, be-

is interested in working for the World

cause they had a fiscal problem. Now Co-

Bank?

lombia recently also underwent a tax reform. This reform was practically neutral in

Study beyond college. Preferably, get a

revenue terms, but it significantly adjusted

Masters degree. Then, try, try and try

the distribution of taxes between the popu-

again.

lation, because previously, the rich paid as much or even less than the middle class. It was more of a distribution than a revenue issue. Q: In your opinion, what is the most important economic concept that every-

I applied more than once. The first time I applied for an Internship and I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get in. Next year I tried again and I began my career. BY VIVIANE MENNA BARRETO, Brazil

one should know? People respond to incentives.

Economics and Politics • HTT Boston, Venezuela

Venezuela: Light At The Tunnel’s End?

“It is impossible to think of an economic solution without considering all the political implications.”

characteristic of small republics is stability: the character of large republics is mutability. (Bolivar, 1815) For a country whose government prides itself for being very patriotic, reality is that its preach is very diﬀerent than its practices. Despite Venezuela’s wealth of natural resources - with some of the largest oil reserves in the world, its current performance provides a poor reflection of its economic potentials. Let me just tune you up Retrieved from operationworld.org

to the Venezuelan’s context:

In spite of political instability and eco-

According to the Organization of Petro-

nomic woes plaguing Venezuela, some

leum Exporting Countries’ (OPEC) data-

believe that today’s troubles paradoxi-

base, Venezuela is a country rich in natural

cally oﬀer hope for the troubled nation.

resources, with some of the largest oil reserves in the world as well as natural gas,

A state too expensive in itself, or by virtue

iron ore, gold, bauxite, diamonds and

of its dependencies, ultimately falls into de-

other minerals. Since 1998, the govern-

cay; its free government is transformed

ment led (or rather, ruled) by Hugo Chavez

into a tyranny; it disregards the principles,

has shifted its economic system into a so-

which it should preserve, and finally degen-

cialist model. In 2001, a Decree was

erates into despotism. The distinguishing

passed whereby the privatization process 16

of PDVSA, Venezuela’s largest oil produc-

abroad, companies dependent on the im-

ing company, which had started in the 90s,

port of resources, and retired workers who

was reverted, letting the government re-

have moved abroad and wish to receive

gain control over the company’s energy re-

their pensions.

sources (PDVSA, 2014). Ever since, the country’s GDP has grown intimately dependent on oil exports accounting for

However, the biggest impact of the currency exchange control has been in the

nearly 95% of it.

production and import sector. Since imple-

Due to growing leakage of capital caused

sizes have struggled to purchase USD and

by uncertainty of PDVSA’s wellbeing, in

other currency to buy raw material. In addi-

2003 an agency called CADIVI was cre-

tion, their “fixed” exchange rate was later

ated by the Council of Ministers through

on increased to Bs. 4.30 and then Bs. 6.30

the Presidential Decree N° 2,302, in order

per USD.

to centrally control all foreign currencies entering and exiting the country aiming to strengthen the value of the domestic cur-

menting this system, companies of all

With an increasing demand of USD by companies, co-ops and ordinary citizens,

rency, the Bolivar.

the government has been unable to supply

Upon its creation, CADIVI implemented a

ernment decided to implement certain

fixed exchange rate of Bs. 2.6 / 1 USD and

strategies such as bond sales which

limited purchase of USD in diﬀerent sec-

quickly failed: bonds bought were ex-

tors of the economy, for example, travel

pected by the Venezuelan Central Bank

and leisure. If you wanted to travel, for ex-

(VCB) to be held for the entire duration of

ample, your debit and credit cards had a

the bond’s maturity.

cap of $5,000 per year for all your hotel

a sustainable amount of dollars so the gov-

and traveling expenses.

They had never been so wrong: a bond

These were the “good” days, really. With

4.30/USD, would be resold by the VCB at

the tightening of these limitations through

67% (starting) value which increased as

fiscal and monetary policies, it’s not only

the bond matured, instead of waiting for its

travelers who are feeling the limitations

maturity at a 10% interest for 6 years. This

nowadays but, for example, also students

would result, in practice, in a purchase of

in search for academic opportunities

$670 for an equivalent of Bsf. 4,300, in-

worth $1,000 at a fixed rate of Bs.

creasing the real, socially traded value of

themed by “sectors” or combination of sec-

USD to a rate of approximately Bs. 6.42

tors. The maximum price to buy or sell will

per USD, feeding a hungry USD black mar-

be determined every new sales round, with

ket. With the VCB having to pay oﬀ their

the minimum being the CADIVI rate of Bs.

debt to bond buyers, they had no time to

6.3/USD. Interested parties need to be reg-

invest the money they sold the bonds for

istered with the VCB and will be catego-

to produce any extra value in USD, but in-

rized into sector: automobile, agriculture,

stead, these got more quickly drained out.

etc.

This limit to foreign currency at the

3. SICAD II: It’s a market whereby citizens

government-imposed fixed rate has

and companies are allowed to buy and sell

pushed companies of all sizes to purchase

currency, legally, through the purchase of

in the black market in order to purchase op-

notes or cash through universal banks

erating resources and supplies for custom-

regulated by the Law of Value Markets to

ers.

avoid illegal, secretive black market trans-

As of October 18, 2014, there are now three (3) diﬀerent, oﬃcial exchange rates regulated by the VCB. These are: 1. CADIVI (now CENCOEX): in charge of administrating currency exchange for travelers, students and pensioned Venezuelans abroad at a fixed rate of Bs. 6.3 / USD. Heavily regulated in popular for denying applications, this rate has progressively disappeared from calculations as it is not

actions. You would then, buy foreign currency from PDVSA, the VCB or other companies interested in selling. Operations would be daily, with a fluctuating rate, currently at a rate of Bs. 49/USD. (Banco Central de Venezuela, n.d.) Sadly, the implementation of new exchange rates and regulating systems, have caused inflation to rise. This is a vague statement so let me explain:

reliable, leaving dependents to purchase at

With the creation of a new system, the pre-

a black market rate for their activities.

vious one loses inflow of USD in order to

2. SICAD: it’s a bidding system based under special general norms designed by the

sell at the next exchange system’s rate, which is proven to be higher.

Venezuelan Central bank for citizens and

By limiting every existing exchange sys-

companies, which operates every 15 days,

tem, access to USD is more and more lim18

Retrieved from thefiscaltimes.com

ited, therefore creating a larger shortage of

With big distributors of basic need prod-

the currency needed to import the supplies

ucts such as Clorox (Investors.com, 2014)

demanded by consumers in Venezuela,

and gradually Empresas Polar (the biggest

such as medicine, food and refined oil-

food and beverage company in the coun-

based products such as plastics.

try), which have been moving to Colombia

This increasing shortage of foreign currency causes companies to purchase it at an exponentially growing black market rate, reflecting the cost in product prices. Furthermore, with this accelerated price rise and a staggering income, inflation has reached more than a 60% in 2014. Not every company manages to survive this unsustainable financial model, causing companies such as Clorox to leave the country. If the giant Clorox would be willing to take this strategic decision, you can imagine what the current financial ecosystem of Venezuela has done to smaller companies with a lower cash flow.

and the US due to political pressures from the government threatening them of expropriation (a common practice of the socialist government), scarcity has hit the Venezuelan population. It has reached the pharmaceutical and food markets in Venezuela to a level where queues are made for up to eight hours for 2 liters of milk, for example. So it’s the end of October 2014, and Venezuela needs to pay Exxon Mobile Corp $1.6 billion due to an arbitrary decision of a World Bank tribunal, in compensation for oil nationalization in 2007 which had since been considered by the Venezuela’s government as a victory for its “sovereignty”.

Considering that it has been reported to be

and big companies have no space for inno-

a sluggish time for oil exports, slapping

vative revenue production.

Venezuela’s 90% of GDP generator, and with an accumulated inflation of over 60% in 2014, the country is in, what experts

Also, elections happen every 6 years with the option to re-run indefinitely, which is

call, “deep s***”.

why Hugo Chavez remained in power for

To think of a solution for Venezuela’s situa-

ing it’s been nearly two years since the last

tion one would need to see as far as 8

elections, one would have to consider the

years’ time, and here’s why:

real possibility of change through elec-

It is impossible to think of an economic solution without considering all the political implications. The government proposes a socialist economy through the centralization and monopoly of growth tools such as import channels (ports, tolls, airports, borders, etc.), foreign currency and all auditing departments. These systems only promote an intimidation climate in which small

so long until his death to cancer. Consider-

tions. Not because we have a transparent and clean Elections Council, but because it’s enough time to let the unsustainable socialist political parties crumble by their own greed, which has started happening due to known conflicts between Chavez’s daughter (now a UN ambassador) and President Maduro, Chavez’s handpicked, unaccredited successor and ex-busdriver-without-a-high-school-degree-or successful-political-experience.

Retrieved from urgente24.com 20

Another important, growing toxic relation-

these long queues for basic needs at outra-

ship is Maduro’s relationship with Dios-

geous inflation rates.

dado Cabello, Secretary of the National Assembley, who is really the visceral puppeteer of Maduro, who keeps humiliating himself in national TV assuring he talks with Chavez’s spirit through a tweeting bird and other similar examples. While all this is going on at the top-level of the government, the lack of economic management due to political diﬀerences is affecting the most socialist supporters of Chavez who have not yet fully transform into Maduro supporters, but slowly realizing the inability of the new government to function without the leadership of Chavez, and paying the consequences through

From bottom to top, and from top to bottom, middle-class society and business owners are paying the consequences on a “sandwich” of pressure eﬀects due to lack of supplies, insecurity and financial limitations. Therefore, I, as a Venezuelan, would say that although Venezuela’s economy is as unstable as it can be, those who stay through the crumbling of this government will be the next market leaders in 8 years’ time. BY JUAN COLMENARES, Venezuela

Economics • HTT London, China and Germany!

Chinese Investment In Africa

“Asking whether or not Chinese investment in Africa is a good or bad thing is a waste of time”

Chinese Investment in Africa has caused

pumping into the country. China has

quite a bit of controversy over the last 10-

helped the continent by injecting capital

14 years. The main question and reason

into local markets, generating important

for controversy around the topic, is

gains for local economies. They are not

whether or not the relationship between

only creating jobs and catering to local de-

the African continent and their Chinese In-

mands but also contributing to the overall

vestors is a symbiotic one, or whether the

GDP growth. Contrary to many people’s

investments are a new form of imperialism.

belief China is not simply exploiting the

China is Africa’s biggest investor and trad-

continent for its resources but has shown

ing partner with investments of $100 billion

genuine interest in supporting the growth

over the last 10 years. The top five trading

of individual states and the continent as a

partners include Angola, South Africa, Su-

whole. The African Union headquarters in

dan, Nigeria and Egypt. The investments

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia received a $200 mil-

are composed of many private investors

lion gift from Beijing, proving that China is

and state agencies and not China as a

not only helping themselves but Africa as

bloc or Communist Party trying to take

well. Furthermore, the level of medical care

over the African continent. Each country

and education many Africans are encoun-

has their own set of agreements and regu-

tering are significantly superior to before

lations with their Chinese investors.

Chinese Investment.

Asking whether or not Chinese investment

The infrastructural and energy improve-

in Africa is a good or bad thing is a waste

ments in oil sectors are other examples of

of time. The focus should be on what Af-

the positive impact Chinese presence have

rica can gain from the capital China is

had in the last ten years. The new eco23

nomic and diplomatic relations that China

and through leveraging natural resources

has enabled Africans to have are of great

and keeping labour costs low, one would

significance. The way these relationships

think that it would be of great interest to Af-

and the power and influence Chinese have

rican countries to follow a similar path with

helped them to attain are used is ultimately

the help of their investors.

up to them. Contrary to popular belief, the way they negotiate their own terms and leverage opportunities is left up to the Afri-

By working together with their investors and eﬀectively collaborating, I believe Afri-

cans.

can states can explore new possibilities,

The idea that China is enforcing a model of

come out with improved living standards

how African countries should develop and

and economies.

grow is also false. The investors know that for African states to prosper it will take time, resources and hard work. Looking at

which were previously out of reach and

BY DONATA HAQUE-BERNUTZ, China and Germany

the way China has managed to emerge as an economic “miracle” with clear goals

Professor Daniel Rukare Professor of Management and Entrepreneurship at Hult International Business School on Chinese Investment in Africa and Developmental Economics Economics • HTT London, Uganda

Originally Videos

Chinese Investment in Africa China-Africa trade passed the $1B mark in 1990 and rose to over $10B in 2000. This is expected to increase 15 fold to over $115B in 2014, surpassing the United States as Africa’s largest trading partner. The Chinese projected share of trade investment and development assistance has led some analysts to front the idea of Beijing assuming the political influence in Africa, which has been historically held by the United States and former European Empires over the last 150 years. Bold assertions indeed, but one does not have to agree with such assertions to recognize that China’s rise in Africa symbolizes a wider attainment of a super-power status acting as a great 21st Century rival to the United States. Now let’s look at Chinese companies and them establishing a competitive advantage globally, but also in Africa specifically.

This increase in competitiveness can be explained by three factors: State Owned Enterprises (SOEs): and commercial entities have become better at what they do. Low cost base: derived by historically unprecedented levels of economies of scale through Chinese factory-cities. Government: intended to support “Going Global” strategies, which has assisted companies to move to Africa. One example of this is how Beijing’s development assistance to Africa has significantly assisted it’s companies in the construction industry as well as export-led manufacturing. This can be seen through the Chinese ImportExport Bank. I would like to look at another aspect that most analysts shy away from. And this is Economic Diplomacy that is linked to both aid and trade. 25

Under this Chinese State Capitalist model, oﬃcials are able to promise three engagement plans amounting to billions of US$ in both aid and investment -- much to the delight of African audiences. Chinese aid and development packages have also been attractive to African governments because of the no-strings attached style of the Chinese model. In conclusion, China’s rise in the African continent has been consistent and a steady one with very little to no interruptions. This relationship deserves attention from Western States not only because of the diversion of African resources, but also because of a deepening relationship with African states, enlarging China’s voting block on the United Nations.

Developmental Economics This is a topic that fosters a debate around the world. Governments are driven to focus predominantly on fiscal and monetary policies and this emphasis is based on revenue collection through taxation and also expenditure that influences the economy. This debate is driven predominantly by the Bretton Woods institutions that are

known as the IMF and the World Bank, and they have a deliberate focus on trying to encourage African or developing countries to concentrate on both the fiscal and monetary policies through structure adjustment programs. Challenges these economies face: 1. The challenge of aggregate demand and levels of economic activity (economies are predominantly too small). 2. Resource allocation within those particular sectors or government sectors. 3. Distribution of income. If we take a country such as Nigeria (7th largest oil producing country in the world), as they produce crude oil, they actually import and let in processed petroleum. This does not help with balance of payments within Nigeria. So as other countries in the world, oil producing countries, are thrilled about increases in price, of crude oil, Nigeria, as the 7th largest producer, is having challenges because as the benefit from exporting crude oil, they also have an element of higher taxation or higher cost of importing the processed oil that comes in through petroleum products. I’d like to move on from the Nigerian case study and look at another country called Ethiopia. Ethiopia has managed to have structure adjustment programs that have emphasized or developed the value chain 26

within their economy. A clear example could be through their agricultural sector within Ethiopia whereby the coffee we consume on a day to day basis within our famous Starbucks off the street here comes from Ethiopia. Ethiopia has managed to improve household income, establishing processing plants, ensuring that they get a higher return on the coffee they export though to the western market. I would like us to come back now to the developmental economics and areas that are right to suggest that concentration should be put, which is the structure adjustment programs. The structure adjustment programs will look at ensuring that most of these developing economies that rely on agriculture are able to exploit and benefit their, number one, household incomes,

number two, elements of economic growth. How can this be achieved? This can be achieved through establishing value chains that allow for the development and exportation of products that have been increased through the value chain. As I conclude I’d like to pose a question and this question is to allow for further debate this area. How many developing economies have deliberate policies and strategies that are linked to economic growth? Thank you. TRANSCRIBED BY ESPEN LANGAAS, Norway

Deborah Leipziger Author, Lecturer and Consultant to the United Nations on working for the UN.

Social • HTT Boston, Brazil !

Originally a Podcast

Reet: Hi Hult Students, it’s Reet again.

lout outside the classroom. A lot of top-

Today I’m joined by my professor in

ics like human rights and sustainability

Global and Business Society; she’s a lec-

– whether it is for pure brand value in a

turer at Hult International Business

corporation... These are topics I hear

School, a Corporate Social Responsibil-

discussed downstairs at our bar, and

ity Consultant for the United Nations,

that is why I would like to talk to you to-

and author of the books Creating Social

day. But before that I would like you to

Value and Corporate Social Responsibil-

introduce yourself. Summarize your life

ity Codebook. She advises Govern-

in one minute if you can. Start with the

ments and UN agencies on CSR issues.

words “I was born in” and end with

She was born in Brazil and has a Mas-

“that’s why I am here”.

ter’s degree in Public Administration from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and International Studies. So welcome professor Leipziger, wonderful to have you here.

A: Ok, so I was born in Brazil and my father is German father and my mother is Italian. So I grew up with a very international background and had moved back and forth between Brazil and the US. When I

A: Thanks, it’s nice to be here.

went back to Brazil at the age of 12 I was

Q: So obviously you have got a pretty im-

and why corporations weren’t addressing

pressive portfolio and teach a a very in-

poverty in Brazil when they were doing so

teresting subject as well. The reason I

many things in their home countries. So

wanted to contact you is that this is a

this was a question that stayed with me

subject I have noticed gets discussed a

and I began to really look at the issue of

really intrigued by the question of poverty

corporations and development. And I was

twelve years in Europe,

very fortunate to get a job looking into best

and have really en-

practices; what were good practices of

joyed this opportunity

what companies could do to promote de-

to write, teach, lecture

velopment in emerging economies. I re-

and think about all

member going into the library and there

these issues. So I’m

were no books on Corporate Social Re-

very happy to be here

sponsibility. There was a great book called

at Hult, I feel very at

“Storm over the Multinationals“ which I

home here, it’s a very

had read, but it certainly was not about cor-

global place.

porate responsibility, but more about the problems.

Q: Yeah that’s a very impressive portfolio Could you tell us a little more in de-

So I thought what an opportunity! Here I

tail about your experience? I would like

am, I’m a writer, I have all these amazing

you to start with UN, because it is a par-

case studies, and the European Commis-

ticular interest to many people. In my

sion founded the project I was doing. So I teamed up with a group of academics in the UK and we wrote the first book in the area of Corporate Citizenship exactly 16 years ago and now its kind of history. Even 16 years later it’s very outdated. But that’s what got me started, and I was very fortunate to be in London, in the hake working with companies all over the world on these issues; I was part of the group that developed the standards Social Accountability 8000 about human rights in the work place. Then I began consulting for companies, the UN, NGO’s, and I really loved it. Now I’ve been in the US for seven years after

mind, when I think of CSR I think of UN immediately. So share with us your transition from a graduate at Columbia University into the UN, and what is the UN looking for and what does it take to be successful as a consultant for the UN. A: That is a very good question. I actually have had the opportunity to be working have been working with the UN at three different junctions of my career. I was an intern for the UN when I was in undergraduate and then I have been a consultant so several diﬀerent UN agencies. I was a consultant to the UN Environmental Program, and on projects for the UN Global Compact which is based here in New York in 29

the United States. So these have been vari-

Q: That is an interesting point, because I

ous junctions where I consulted for the

think that most people, when you say

UN.

“working with the UN” think about work-

I would say that Hult students are really well positioned because you are used to an environment that is like the UN, it has all good characteristics of the UN. So I would encourage students to think about internships or jobs at UN agencies looking at business issues; especially the UN

ing for them as an employee. What you suggest is collaborate with them or work with them as a consultant or a partner. A: Exactly, as a consultant or as a business leader shaping policy.

global compact or the UN Environment Pro-

Q: One last question, I know we have a

gram. There are so many institutions that

lecture coming up. What is the most in-

need people like you, like Hult students,

teresting project you’ve worked on in

that have a global business perspective.

your career on and what has been the

I would also encourage you as future business leaders to work with the UN; I don’t think you need to be inside the UN to shape it. As business leaders you have the real potential to collaborate and that might even be a more exiting role. I think it is quite diﬃcult to get hired at the UN. But certainly, thinking of the time I have known the Global Compact since its inception, it has grown tremendously and there is also

most rewording time? A: That is diﬃcult because I have loved all the work I have done in so many diﬀerent places. I have been really fortunate to travel and work all over the world; in Nigeri, Brazil, all over Europe, China. But I would say the most exiting point of my career is right now, working on this lexicon project around the emerging vocabulary.

UN Prime looking at responsible manage-

Q: You’re not just saying this to be nice

ment education. So there are many, many

to us? (laugh)

ways that I think Hult could partner with the UN and work on expanding those possibilities.

A: No, no, I feel like this is like combinations of so much that Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve done and I see the evolution in the 20 years that Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve worked in the field. I think this is the most exiting time because most of the time weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve had to convince companies that this is really happening, that these issues are real. Now companies are willing and they are getting started, so I think this is the most exiting time. But for me personally, the most rewarding experiences have been the travelling. Seeing these issues in factories, in farms and meeting people who are change agents in this space. Q: Fantastic. Well thank you miss Leipziger for sharing your insights. INTERVIEWED BY REET SEN, Australia

Social and Environmental • HTT Boston, Canada

A Brazilian Adventure

“Brazil is extremely diverse. It so much more than Rio, Samba and beaches.”

Interview conducted in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Hello everyone, I’m Viviane and I am in

Post-MBA, I ended up working for agen-

Rio de Janeiro with Max, a Hult Alumn.

cies as a Digital Strategist. One morning of

He just had an amazing adventure

January, I spoke with a friend I met in

around Brazil and is here to tell us

Shanghai and he told me that he was look-

about his experience. Max, can you tell

ing for a B-role cameraman, videographer,

us a little bit about yourself? How did

and driver for the support vehicle to go all

you end up here in Rio?

around Brazil shooting a television show.

A: I am originally from Montreal, Canada. I

lived in Brazil in the past and asked me if I

ended up in Brazil this time following a

knew someone. My answer was that I

long, very weird string

didn’t necessarily know anyone in Brazil

that could do that, but hey, I could! As a

He asked me because he knew that I had

events.

Production Manager on this TV show, I

drive the supporting vehicle, I shot B-role camera and I piloted a camera drone. And the most amazing thing is: I had never done those things ever before. It was quite an experience and I am really glad I came back to Brazil to see it all this time. Q: Sounds like you had an amazing experience and that you will never forget it. A lot of people that think about coming to Brazil are concerned with safety. Did you have any problems? What is your opinion on this matter? helped with little things such as directions, A: That is a very good question. This is in-

but also bigger things: our car would break

deed a hot-topic and has been a hot-topic

down and people would go out of their

for years, decades probably. But let me tell

ways and schedules to try to help us fix it,

you this: I had such a diﬀerent experience

even though they didn’t know us or even

from the words that are thrown around

know any English. It was phenomenal. I

from the media or even inside the country!

can definitely see that there is a safety is-

I have had numerous people inside Brazil that I met along the way tell me “watch out over there”, “don’t do this over there” “watch out in the Northeast”, “don’t do

sue. Safety is definitely something that needs to be worked on in this country, but on my opinion, it is so much less than what everyone would expect.

this in Sao Paulo”, “don’t do this in Rio”,

Q: So you have traveled for 61 days and

“be careful about this”... I cannot even tell

drove for 13,000 kilometers. What was

the number of safety advices I received from people. I drove 13 thousand kilometers around this country for 2 months and

the coolest thing you have experienced?

all I can tell you is that we have been wel-

A: We went all around, leaving from Rio go-

comed and helped everywhere all around

ing North, taking the Trans-Amazonian

the way. We met phenomenal people that

Highway into the Amazon, then down to the other side and back to Rio. We did a 33

full navigation counter-clock wise if you will. And of course there were some amazing spots, amazing cities along the coast, amazing natural beauties such as the Iguazu Falls, for example. But I think the craziest thing we have done was leaving Manaus and going South by road. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t think anyone even knows in Brazil that there is a road in the middle of the jungle there. It is this very old road that was built by the Army in 1949-1950 and that was completely demolished by the rains season after season. About 20 years ago, a telecom company, Embratel, picked the road up again and started maintaining it,

workers, who helped us throughly along

because they needed it to connect

the way. They let us sleep in their mainte-

Manaus with a fiber optic cable. That is the

nance towers... It was quite an experience.

only reason why this road sort of still exists

I have prepared a little video that I will up-

today. Otherwise, the jungle would have re-

load to YouTube in the next couple of days

claimed it entirely.

to show you a little bit more of the pain that we went through and the beautiful

We drove 700 km in five days. The first hun-

sceneries that we have encountered.

dred was ok and the last hundred was ok, but it really took us five days to go through

Q: Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dig a little deeper. Tell us what

450 km of mud like you have never seen in

impacted you the most as a human be-

your life; potholes, and the dangers of the

ing. The people you saw or the environ-

jungle. It was a fantastic experience be-

ment that you noticed... What impacted

cause we were really out there, completely

you the most?

remote and on our own with almost no living soul along the way. The only people we encountered were some of those Embratel

A: Let me tell you this. This is my third time in Brazil. First time was eight or nine years ago. Every time I talk about Brazil to friends, to family, to anyone, they always have the first stereotypes that comes to 34

mind: Rio, the beach, the samba, the carni-

those massive farms that you would see in

val. Some people know about the Amazon,

the Midwest of the United States. You can

they have maybe heard about the Iguazu

spot the big machineries in the massive

Falls... If you meet these people, then you

field cutting all the soja and the corn. Bra-

are really lucky.

zil has the small and has the big.

Third time here and this time I went all

Also, to my surprise, I have seen the beauti-

around, and I tell you: there is SO, SO, SO

ful mountains of Sao Paulo state. I did not

much more about Brazil than the four or

think we would see such mountains. We

five things people know about (or think

hiked, walked and drone around these

they know).

beautiful landscapes. There is a big climb-

I rode through the mountains of Minas Gerais and I flew a drone above the mines of the third largest mining company in the

ing community around there, eco-friendly and organic villages that spur around these mountains.

world, which is based here. We went to the

Brazil is extremely diverse. It so much

Northeast and saw the endless beaches

more than Rio, Samba and beaches.

with tropical climate and fruit plantations... the economical activity there is phenome-

Q: I am really happy that you are saying

nal! From there we drove through the Ama-

this because people generally do think

zon, which is not just jungle or deforesta-

that we are just one thing. But Brazil is a

tion or cattle herd. It is so much more than

huge country - we are almost the size of

that. There is a biodiversity that is unequal,

the entire continent of Europe. Thank

there is a network of rivers that is crazy!

you very much for giving us your per-

There are two times as much water in the

spective. So one last question: If you

atmosphere above the Amazon basin than

could drive people to do something,

in the Amazon itself! It is so humid... life is

what would it be?

pouring from everywhere. Everything mixing up together and coming up with crazy

A: It's my third time in Rio and I have no-

flowers, plants, animals, trees... phenome-

ticed how the favelas are opening more

nal!

and more. There is a bad connotation about favelas - itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dangerous to go there

I have seen small farms, family- or

and this and that (favelas for the ones who

community-type farms and I have seen

donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know are the less fortunate neighbor35

hoods in Brazil). But I had such an amaz-

So my advice is: go there. Be careful of

ing time there! They are, truly, the new cul-

course, but don't shy away from an incredi-

tural hubs of the country.

ble experience. Find a restaurant in a fav-

Consequently, and this is part of my advice, I met many foreigners there (Europeans, North Americans) that were actually working for diﬀerent organizations inside the favelas. For example we went to Luta

ela (like we did), or better go work for a non-profit there for a few weeks. It will be enriching I promised and I will truly be Brazil like you (or any of your friends) have never seen before.

Pela Paz (Fight For Peace), a small non for

For more pictures from Brazil and his

profit organization that teaches martial arts

other adventures, you can follow Max

and help keep kids oﬀ the streets, and

on Instagram @maxmeilleur.

there we met half a dozen foreigners. Another organization invites foreigners to

BY MAXIMILIEN MEILLEUR, Canada and

help kids with after-school activities such

INTERVIEWED BY VIVIANE MENNA BAR-

as home works and playful activities.

RETO, Brazil

Dr. Mark Esposito Professor of Business and Economics at Harvard University Extension School, Grenoble Ecole de Management and Hult on CSR. Social and Economical• HTT Dubai, United States Originally a Podcast

Q: Hello everyone, here is Yehia! I am at

care. A company that uses CSR as a show-

Hult Dubai and with me is Dr. Mark Espo-

case for environmental consciousness that

sito - currently a Hult and Harvard Busi-

might not be true or actually walking the

ness School lecturer. So, Dr. Mark, I

talk, and so I find a bit of a dilemma in stat-

heard that you are not really a big fan of

ing that CSR is really the way forward, be-

Corporate Social Responsibility. Could

cause I think you just create a lot of confu-

you please give us your point of view?

sion and its hard to tell on a universal level

A: Well thanks for the question, I think the

definitions... So I find it that although the

Corporate Social Responsibility band-

intentions are good the outcome has not

wagon has been successful for many

certainly been as good as intentions.

years and I think it has inspired many people to think about a sense of social justice, but in the last few years when we look at

what is CSR. There are so many diﬀerent

Q: Okay. One of the definitions of CSR is basically to the corporate to govern so-

the impact of CSR and what its actually

cially and to give back to the society in

really closing the gap between business

return. We have seen that there have

and society we don’t find support and evi-

been a couple of successful cases, but I

dence that says that every successful pro-

think the issue that your touching on is

gram will lead to success. On the contrary,

the totality of it, if you look in an aggre-

as collateral, CSR has created a lot of

gate level it hasn’t been successful. But

green-washing. It is really hard today to dis-

for example I know about Microsoft,

tinguish a company who is really able to

where they allow people to go out on Mi-

do CSR according to the principles of citi-

crosoft’s time and volunteer for a non

zenship, good practices, environmental

profit. And the result is positive. So,

wouldn’t it be the case that if all corpora-

Q: Okay, so from what I can understand,

tions had such a mentality it would actu-

you believe that there is a diﬀerence be-

ally be successful? Not necessarily CSR

tween those who can aﬀord it and those

has failed to a large extent, but some

who cannot aﬀord it. So obviously, Mi-

companies have failed to fully adopt the

crosoft, they can aﬀord CSR. But on a

correct approach.

lower extent even if the company does

A: So let’s go with this hypothesis and I don’t really have a problem with that. The

not have all of their resources, they still can help.

problem that I have is that Microsoft has

A: So, again, I think that this proves that

done it successfully, because it has a lot of

there is something good about it and when

resources that they can dedicate to CSR

applied and done for real it is a really good

programs. However, there are many com-

catalyst for action, which I think organiza-

panies that might not be able to dedicate

tions may need to apply to reflect their im-

as many resources. The investment that

pact on society. However, I still believe that

you give to CSR is something that you

the case studies and best practices we

tend to see over time. The return back

find are limited in number. I think where we

from society doesn't give a company imme-

fail with CSR is that we didn’t make it uni-

diate results. You have merely invested

versal approach for a number of reasons. I

and planted a seed. While this makes a lot

think the concept of Social Responsibility

of sense, it makes it very hard to make it a

means so many diﬀerent things depending

vital conversation for all companies. The

on where you are, also depending on the

moment which you generate a financial

economic status of the country. In a rich

constraint between who can aﬀord to “buy

country, it is almost natural that after creat-

it” and who cannot aﬀord to “buy it”, some-

ing the sense of maturity you want to give

how you are creating the limitation of what

back to society, but in an emerging econ-

CSR can do. So I don’t think it’s a principal

omy where most of the job still has to be

limiting CSR per say, I think its more about

done, giving back to the society seems to

the fact that while its good in principal, it is

be either inconsistent with the state of de-

actually not really good in practice, be-

velopment or premature. Instead, we could

cause it is limited to the resourcefulness

think about a complimentary way to take

that a company has.

CSR to the next level.

Q: Okay, so what is the next level?

catch phrase: “if you really feel the need to give back, do you know when you took it

A: That’s great that we can talk about this.

and why?”

I think that we need to bring in CSR closer to the company strategy, namely the value

And although this is more of a provocation

chain, making sure that it doesn’t become

than anything else, I think its just about the

an additional program, add on, or special

fact that the concept of giving back might

set of rules that divide what we mentioned

not be sustained and sometimes all it

before. Then I think we are going have

takes is a change of management or lead-

more success in allowing smaller, medium

ership and the eﬀort might be uprising. So

or larger enterprises determine strategic

how about thinking about strategic outputs

outputs that are sometimes societal and

that take into account social and eco-

economically compatible.

nomic reasonings at the same time? Can we think about the simultaneous benefits

I don’t think that we have to think about so-

that an economic opportunity and a social

cial responsibility with the idea of the com-

opportunity experience at the same time? I

pany giving back, because that would al-

think this is what in the literature has been

ways imply that we took from it in the first

defined as the emergence of the share

place. So one thinks of that recurring

value.

Q: I know personally that one of the rea-

might cost more at first, it really doesn’t

sons perhaps is hard to make CSR part

take long for shareholders to see that over

of the core business is because some-

a relatively short period of time the befit be-

times, unnecessarily, it goes against

comes greater than the cost.

what the business is there to be, the interest of the business, investors, or even goes against what consumers care about. So what can be done in order to convince these companies that this is something that you should actually care about?

Q: Okay, so essentially in order for us to go forward, and for CSR to be successful on a universal level, it has to become similar to the business core values and what they are looking for in their credos. The way to do that is to educate both the businesses and the consumers

A: That’s a good question because I think

on why they should care about these val-

it moves us closer to the issue. As a share-

ues and whether it is environmental so-

holder you might not really see what could

cietal and so on, and presently one way

be the benefit of a CSR initiative, because

to do that might be through the emer-

short-term you might say it will take you

gence of social media and media in gen-

further away from the business. If I am con-

eral. Perhaps grass roots is the way for

cerned with shareholder value, I care

it to be more consolidated.

about what could be the economic impact created out of a social opportunity. So let me try to give you an example: twenty years ago, polluting was actually a way of a company to run cheaper, because if you were polluting it meant you were not spending money and time on processes that would improve the emission you had. While it was true in the first place, over time we learned that being environmentally friendly actually saved money. So if we

Thank you for being part of the podcast. A: Thank you! It was great to have this conversation and hopefully you will inspire many companies to explore the concept of share value as a way to take CSR to the next level. INTERVIEWED BY YEHIA HASSAAN, Egypt

think about energy efficiency, water efficiency, heating efficiency... while they

Social • HTT Boston, Russia

Russia - A Dangerous Enemy Or A Misunderstood Friend

“Miscommunication and lack of understanding keep being the key to many conflicts, ineﬃciencies and problems the world faces today”

Built on the legacy of a great Empire and

many Russians. Personal possessions and

carrying the richest culture through centu-

achievements, many other factors, of

ries, Russia remains a widely unknown and

course, matter, but this factor remains im-

misunderstood country. The situation

portant.

around it at present is a great example of how constant miscommunication and lack of mutual respect creates conflicts and destroys friendship ties. In this article I want to tell you about four important features of the Russian world view and then explain why the current policy towards Russia leads to an opposite result from the one ex-

Interestingly, wellbeing is not understood in the traditional way – wellbeing for Russia means maintaining a great world power, possessing a very strong military, having profound influence on world’s development, and being highly respected and appreciated by all the countries in the

pected.

world. Economic power is not perceived to

Russia is a Great World Power

Great Russia is Mother Russia that once

The key to understanding Russia lies in understanding the way Russians think. Rapidly changing and evolving, the way many Russians think still has a bias coming from the Soviet years and the times of the Russian Empire. Unlike many other nations,

be of high importance. In other words, the conquered half of Europe and that once was the center of political and economic life of the Old World. Ask a person in the street in Moscow – and they will tell you that Russia is now the greatest world power that can defeat any enemy.

the wellbeing of the country is still a hugely weighted variable in the ‘utility function’ of

Not logical, but true? Objective assessment of experts from all over the globe comes to a totally diďŹ&#x20AC;erent conclusion â&#x20AC;&#x201C; they say Russia still has a relatively strong, but outdated military, a weak oil-dependent economy, low international presence and very low soft power. So why does a person in the street, even being well educated and coming from the same informational base, gives a totally diďŹ&#x20AC;erent opinion? The main reason, in my view, is the fact that an average person in the street knows that Russians are too irrational to be judged on a common standard. The history that we study at school, stories

are the stories of the people who are capable of doing something absolutely groundbreaking and outstanding despite all the impossibilities. Many believe that in the inhuman conditions and with no funds, faced with poverty or diseases, faced with severe threats, Russians suddenly can do things that are rationally impossible - something they could never do in normal conditions. The bottom line is: under certain severe conditions Russians may find themselves 5 steps ahead of the rest of the world, despite being 5 steps behind only a while ago. We survived this, we can survive whatever.

we hear from our families and all around,

Retrieved from hungryshark.ru

Now, in the days of the 70th anniversary of

values is an important variable for a Rus-

the victory in the WW II, it is important to

sian as well as caring about the country.

realize its legacy still highly influences the

The examples for this can be good or bad:

country, culture and the way people think.

you can hardly imagine a Russian leaving a

We say in Russia that there is no family

friend in a hard moment or not helping

that did not suﬀer from that war. Each fam-

when somebody around is in trouble. It

ily has its stories, but all those diﬀerent sto-

can also be bad because keeping your

ries we hear from our grandparents have

friend as a partner for years despite totally

something in common.

unfavorable conditions of the partnership

These stories tell us about people who

leads to ineﬃciencies.

fought to death protecting their country,

Good or bad, ‘values matter’ principle is

their friends and family; whether it was

very solid. That simply means whatever

their feats or the inhuman suﬀerings that

the situation is, somebody who is a friend

people experienced. About the 852-day

of Russia’s will stay a friend. Consistency

blockade of Saint-Petersburg where

is very important for people and therefore

700,000 people died of hunger... You will

the situation when today’s friends are ene-

be surprised, but the story of this blockade

mies tomorrow for the sake of profit or

is the reason why many Russians never

power is almost impossible.

throw food away – hard to throw it that easily when you think of people who ate potato skin and plants from the street to survive. Whatever the story is, the message is likely to be – “We survived something really terrible, survived such a war, after that we will survive anything”. Values Matter A very strange title for the country with high corruption and lack of freedom in the judiciary system, but it is still a valid one – values really matter. To be short on this point I can just say that keeping to one’s

The world of today Miscommunication and lack of understanding lead to many conflicts, ineﬃciencies and problems faced by the world today. I believe Russia is just an example of the country that other actors hugely miscommunicate with. On the other hand, Russia also fails to deliver the message eﬃciently. Raised on stories of endless sacrifice of individuals for the motherland, for the family and friends, many people in Russia will not be afraid of any sanctions or threats – they believe in the strength of their country and 43

are willing to sacrifice to contribute to Rus-

point of view, whom have no clue how peo-

sia being “Great”. Therefore, in the view of

ple live there.’

Russians, by imposing sanctions many countries just showed how much of ‘friends’ they are under the pressure of the dominating world players. Sanctions are seen as a challenge rather than a stimulus to rethink the country’s foreign policy and

Mistreating each other and declining to go deeper in our understanding of other nations, be those allies or enemies, currently, we have created a soil in which conflicts can grow well. But being genuinely respect-

underlying political choice people make.

ful, consistent, value-based and acting

Used to consistency in everyday life, Rus-

given their specifics is the road towards

sians will also have a hard time understand-

seeing the world of eﬃcient interdependen-

ing why the NATO operation in Iraq, that

cies already in the nearest future. It is a

broke many international rules, is seen as

hard way that requires a lot of eﬀort and

democratic and right while it’s taking over

proactivity rather than pattern thinking and

Crimea (considered actually a Russian terri-

reactivity of today. This is where under-

tory by many people), where people actu-

standing the diﬀerences, respecting them

ally asked for help, is wrong. They will also

and managing diversity comes into play. I

not understand the EU’s strong opposition

hope with Hult we are all one big step

to Russian’s policy towards Ukraine be-

ahead on the way towards peaceful, open

cause EU many times supported the very

and eﬃcient world of countries that are

similar actions from other countries and be-

real friends.

cause in the view of many people of Russia ‘It is none of their business – Ukraini-

with others in the way that is appropriate

BY IVAN MARYASIN, Russia

ans are our brothers and we can solve it without some EU's, USA's and other's 44

Social • HTT Boston, Nigeria and Mali

Misconceptions About Africa

“Each country is unique in itself. Generalizations are not accurate”

In an interview with Zeinab Daou from Mali and Ololade Fagbohun from Nigeria, Viviane uncovered the truth behind some common misconceptions regarding Africa:

Africa is NOT a country. Ololade: No. Africa is a continent, not a country. We have 54 countries and each country is unique in itself. Generalizations are not accurate.

Africans are NOT poor. Zeinab: I think one of the biggest misconceptions I faced when I came to the U.S was that people asked me: “how do you live in Africa? Do you have a house? Do you have electricity?.” We have people who are poor and people who are rich. Stereotypes are not representative.

Lagos, Nigeria

Safari is NOT a daily activity. Zeinab: I have never been to a safari. That’s like going to Disneyland. You don’t see animals running everywhere in the street.

Ebola is an African disease. Ololade: A lot of people are quite chocked by the fact that Ebola isn’t in every single African country. Mostly in three, being Liberia, Sierra Leon and Guinea. We were talking about an Article from Washington Post. In it, there was a map of Africa. And then on it, in bold letters was “NO EBOLA” with the exceptions of the three countries on the Western corner.

Zeinab: In Mali we are scared, because the boarders are still open. The government doesn’t want to close the boarders because “everyone is everyone’s brother”. But at some point, they should be focused in protecting the population first. A month ago (October, 2014) we didn’t have any cases of Ebola in my country. Now we have had three and they all came from Guinea. The first one was a little girl, 2 years-old. Her parents died in Guinea and her grandmother brought her to Mali, where she passed away. The second case was the nurse who treated the little girl and the third one was an Imam who came from Guinea as well, to get treated. Ololade: I would like to add that although it is not in every African country, that does not mean that we are not as concerned, because I think it’s not just a problem for only these three countries. It’s a problem for the entire world to deal with.

Retrieved from washingtonpost.com Whenever we watch Ebola in the news, it always seems as if it is synonymous to the African continent. However, this is not true: the vast majority of the continent does not have Ebola.

Nigeria is the most populous African country, so the thought of spreading in Nigeria would aﬀect pretty much every country in the world because we are so numerous and because we go everywhere. We need to learn more about this disease and solve this problem with worldwide eﬀorts. INTERVIEWED BY VIVIANE MENNA BARRETO, Brazil

Professor Theocharis Papadopoulos Professor of Management at Hult on the risks of Finance Economics • HTT London, Greece

Originally a Video

As we leave a financial crisis behind and people in cities smile again, it is imperative to make sure that we learn a few lessons from this crisis. The increased awareness around business ethics was one of the few positive side eﬀects of this financial crisis that hit the western world. We have stricter regulatory frameworks put in place, we have business ethics becoming core course in most major business schools, we have codes of conduct adopted by most major companies. However, not a long time ago thousands of young brokers, traders, analysts, accountants and lawyers watched “The Wolf of Wall Street” in New York and in London in cinemas hired by companies.

Jordan Belfort, as depicted by Leonardo DiCaprio, actually lives a life many of them dream. The tens of millions of dollars, the beautiful women, the bigger than life parties... They hide the fact that the guy was a prodigious crook who ended up in jail. The pursuit of fast and easy profit that completes the absence of any moral constraints and their reckless risk-taking culture were among the causes of the financial crisis that hit the developed world. Some financial institutions seem to forget that and reward such behavior. And the gap to ride the wolf not knowing to get oﬀ without being eaten. They should keep in mind that there is always a risk that instead of a Great Gatsby’s life, the arrogant and careless behavior will lead to a titanic disaster. So beware of the wolf.

Retrieved from cinefilia.cl

Economy • HTT London, Syria

The Global Strategy of Currency

Introduction There has probably not been a more profound concept in the history of mankind than that of currency. An attempt to quantify value, itself an abstraction of the per-

“A coincidence of utility needs often times is the spark that sets oﬀ a global trade partnership, but it is never the character of multilateral globalization.”

is worth the same as a dollar made from telling someone their fortune or selling them a bar of chocolate. All dollars are created equal and hold the same value, regardless of their source.

ception of scarcity and the potential for ful-

The widely accepted nature of currencies

fillment, ever since the invention of money,

is the second factor: once an economic

has been a driver of globalization on a

system develops, units of money are pre-

state level, if not the practical root phe-

ferred for payment over cattle or grain, de-

nomenon that defines globalization

spite the superior taste and nutritional

through the ages.

value of any cooked grain to any cooked

While we like to think of globalization as a very modern phenomenon, it has been going on in one form or another for thousands of years, always appearing in conjunction with a dominant global currency. What drives this currency-globalization duality is the non-specific yet widely acceptable nature of currency in any slightly developed economy: A unit of currency is non-specific in that the economic activity that led to its generation is detached from its value. A dollar made from selling a tire

modern day currency. Our desires diversify, and the availability of an acceptable unit of payment that can be used to pay for anything in the economy regardless of what sort of product or service I provide becomes much more preferable t o re c e i v i n g any

products I will actually consume, thus my 48

preference for liquidity is higher than my

through the Drachma, Denarius, Dinar,

preference for utility. In other words, the

Ducat, Peso, Pound and modern day Dol-

pottery I make may not be of use to the

lar all being prominent examples of curren-

basket weaver, but the dollars I will pay

cies widely used outside of their home-

him for a basket will let him buy whatever

lands for third party transactions.

he desires, from anybody else dealing in dollars. Trade becomes multilateral and

The Development of Motive - Why an is-

value flows through diﬀerent value chains

sue?

creating a network of economic activity.

The earliest notable example is the first is-

The eﬀect these two aspects of currency

suance of a minted currency in Lydia, mod-

have in the spread of globalization be-

ern day Turkey, in the 7th century B.C.

comes readily apparent: a ‘coincidence of

These Staters were made of electrum, a

utility needs’ often times is the spark that

naturally occurring mix of gold and silver

sets oﬀ a global trade partnership, but it is

mined in west Anatolia. In one of the earli-

never the character of multi-lateral globali-

est feats of financial engineering, the kings

zation. The initial trading between the Ro-

of Lydia encouraged merchants to pay

man Empire and the Tamil kingdoms of

taxes using this currency, ensuring a wider

south India may have largely started as bar-

circulation of the metal mined from the

ter, but later on gave away to money-

royal mines and thus more wealth for the

based transactions as recorded in the enig-

king. It is unclear if the circulation of a stan-

matic text known as the ‘Periplus of the

dardized currency was a side eﬀect of

Erythraean Sea’, and by the hoards of Ro-

royal greed, or if it was the main motive be-

man Denarius coins found today in South

hind this issuance. What is clear is that the

East India. It further developed into multilat-

appearance of this early money was in-

eral trade based on the Denarius and re-

tended and motivated, and not an organic

issuances of it with Ethiopia, Yemen, Sri

progression in human social evolution.

Lanka and the Sindh region. Globalization appears with the appearance of multiple, geographically diverse trade partners accepting a limited number (if not a single) unit(s) of currency for payment. This phenomenon repeats through the ages,

The motives for issuance generally change as we move forward; once the use of coinage as a store of wealth rather than just as a means of value, transfer becomes clear, we see a push towards separate gold and

silver coins and a focus on the purity of the

(300A.D.) where the face value was around

material used. Coins are not just tokens for

three times the intrinsic value, a disparity

trading any more, but they are something

that led to, or was caused by inflation. One

that indicates status and wealth, and thus

of the more interesting aspects of Roman

individuals wish to accumulate them to ac-

currency was the system used for stan-

curately convey their economic power. The

dardized issuance of new currency. Initially

Athenians managed to establish the first

three politicians (the tresviri monetales)

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;internationalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; currency by trading through-

were responsible for choosing the symbols

out the Mediterranean using almost exclu-

represented on each coin, usually a mytho-

sively their Tetradrachm, entrenching a de-

logical image of a god or goddess. These

pendence on this specific currency for in-

coins had little indication of which individ-

ternational trade throughout the region in

ual issuer was responsible for minting it

what is an early example of currency domi-

other than a small imprint of the issuers ini-

nance. This strategy proved to be profit-

tials, but later on the coins would turn into

able to the Athenians, as once their cur-

artistic renditions of the issuers pride. Issu-

rency became the standard for trade

ers would compete to mint coinage with

throughout the ancient Mediterranean they

imagery pertaining to the heroics of their

would have an expanding international mar-

ancestors with little to no profit motive.

ket for the products of the state-owned sil-

The coins became so influential in their por-

ver mines, as any non-local trade in the

trayals that they eventually became politi-

Mediterranean basin would need to be fa-

cal marketing tools for various senators,

cilitated using the Tetradrachm. This profit

prompting the introduction of secret bal-

motive for the issuer develops in a strange

lots in senate voting. The motive for issu-

manner in Rome. The romans developed a

ance during this period was very clearly

distinct state apparatus for issuing cur-

vanity and one-upmanship, mixed later on

rency during the Roman republic, and

with electoral politics.

while the initial issuance of coinage in about 300B.C. was valued at slightly higher than the weight of the precious metal in each coin, the diďŹ&#x20AC;erence in intrinsic and face value would gradually increase to a point in the late empire

What seems to be certain is that no state issued a currency with the specific and immediate goal of controlling the international money market. This can be ascertained from two points:

There are no records of states demanding

tential to starve the Roman Empire of li-

tribute from foreigners or foreign states be

quidity. In the seventeenth century, Chi-

paid in the tributeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s currency. While tribute

nese demand on Spanish Silver Dollars

and tax from local businesses and vassal

was the root of a trade imbalance with the

states was usually paid in the currency of

west that lead to the Opium Wars and the

the state (as per the precedence set in Ly-

Unequal Treaties imposed upon Imperial

dia), we do not see states demanding trib-

China by western trading powers in the

ute from foreign countries until the emer-

19th century.

gence of currencies that are more fiat than intrinsic in value. In other words, currencies that hold a value because the issuing government states that value for them, rather than those currencies containing a specific amount of gold or silver bullion (or being implicitly backed by that amount of bullion, in the case of some paper curren-

The profitability of exporting currency and positioning it, as a medium for third party trade, was not lost on these governments. Ever since the ancient Greeks issued minted currency, coinage usually held a value that was slightly higher than its intrinsic value. No doubt people dealing in this

cies).

coinage knew of the disparity between the

The second point is the historic fear of the

used and the actual value they com-

outflow of issued currency from the bor-

manded, by the fifth century B.C. methods

ders of the issuing state. In â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Declama-

of discerning the purity of coins were wide-

tionsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, Seneca the Younger decries the im-

spread. But very rarely were coins melted

portation of Silk from China in the 1st cen-

down into bullion for resale, with people

tury A.D. as it was causing the export of

preferring to use them for trade despite

large amounts of Roman currency to India,

their inflated value. Indeed, many states ei-

as previously mentioned, and had the po-

ther reissued foreign currencies by modify-

value of the metal content in the coins they

Spanish Silver Dollars Retrieved from wealthcycles.com

ing the design of coins that

pace it preventing currency

were imported, as we see

devaluation. Although the in-

happening in Sri Lanka with

flation that earlier attempts

the Roman Denarius, or they

at debasement did not result

would attempt to produce

in catastrophe, this strategy

their own clones to capital-

suddenly backfired on the

ize on this extra value, as in

empire with the collapse of

the Levant and Genoa with

its trading network in the In-

regards to Venetian Gold

dian Ocean in the 5th cen-

Ducats in the 16th century.

tury A.D.

In fact, it appears that the revenue generation attempts via debasements of Roman currency by lowering the gold content in oﬃcially issued coinage was intended to take advantage of the increased value a Denarius coin held in comparison to the metal it contains. By diluting the potential inflation currency debasement would create through the global trade network, long-term economic activity would out-

The reason for this premium is unclear. Theories concerning the network eﬀect behind a widely accepted medium of exchange creating a liquidity eﬀect, or of the state monopoly on issuance carrying the costs from Seigniorage (the profits a government can make from

“Switch from countries begrudgingly accepting the export and foreign use of their issued currencies as a necessity of trade, towards a situation where governments actively push their currency into international third party usage.”

refining and issuing bullion into minted coins) into the wider economy provide partial explanations.

Venetian Gold Ducats Retrieved from forumancientcoins.com

What is interesting is the switch from coun-

tary policy: unshackled from base metals,

tries begrudgingly accepting the export

it now had the choice to issue and with-

and foreign use of their issued currencies

draw sterling pounds from circulation to

as a necessity of trade, towards a situation

stimulate economic growth, and fund gov-

where governments actively push their cur-

ernment activity.

rency into international third party usage.

The move of the Sterling away from the

At the onset of the First World War, most

'gold standard' was the impetus behind

currencies in the world were backed by the

the creation of the Sterling bloc, a group of

gold standard; a bank note issued by a

mostly commonwealth nations that would

government would promise the holder a

use the Sterling as their local currency, or

specific amount of gold if cashed in at that

peg their local currency to the sterling.

government’s central bank, and a coin

This bloc bolstered the British govern-

would contain a specific amount of gold.

ment’s ability to maintain a relatively stable

This eﬀectively set the price of gold as the

fiat currency through the rest of the depres-

minimum value of any gold-backed cur-

sion and later on in World War II. The wide-

rency. The tumulus events of WWI led to

spread use of the British pound meant that

the suspension of this standard by many

interest incurred on it would be favorable

countries. The resulting inflation in Europe

in comparison with other currencies such

makes the U.S. a net creditor for the first

as the French Franc. With a flexible mone-

time in its history, and causes a depletion

tary base this would allow the British gov-

of gold reserves in most countries. While in

ernment to buttress the negative side-

some instances this had adversarial ef-

eﬀects of its spending (to counter business

fects, such as the hyperinflation of the 20s

cycles in the U.K. or conduct war over-

in Germany, in the U.K. and the U.S. it was

seas) upon the wider-than-the-British-

the turning point and eﬀective birth date

economy currency zone, something that

for monetary economics. In 1931 and be-

became a main aspect of monetary policy

cause of the great depression, the U.K.’s

through WWII when Sterling bloc members

circulated gold reserves were depleted.

were encouraged to hold oversized re-

While earlier on the U.S. had issued gov-

serves of Sterling Pounds.

ernment bonds to prevent a similar issue from happening, the British government left the gold standard and pursued a mone53

Where are we now? The Bretton Woods conference enshrined the favorable status of the US Dollar in international commerce. After the war, it

titative easing become much more costly â&#x20AC;&#x201C; The cost of capital for Keynesian policies becomes higher. BY ADNAN AL-KHATIB, Syria

gradually displaced the fiat British Pound with the initially gold-standard Dollar, until 1971 when the Dollar itself was floated. The worldwide adaptation of the Dollar in commerce and national reserves meant that the American governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fiscal policies had immediate international repercussions. But, it also meant that the economic activity that the US government could base its Seigniorage income not just from economic activity demanding a unit of transaction in the U.S., but also from third party economic activity overseas valued in Dollars. While in pre-fiat currencies, Seigniorage came from the diďŹ&#x20AC;erence between the imposed value of the currency and the cost of the material, in fiat currencies it comes from bonds and inflation. The modern globalization of currency not only positions the issuer favorably in international commerce, but it decreases the cost of capital for government spending. While this may be good in the short term, its long-term implications means Keynesian tools for economic revival, such as expansionary monetary policies and quan-

Panel on Innovation and Entrepreneurship @HTTBoston

Hult Think Tank is an award-winning

and the other on Assisted Suicide. We also

student-led organization with 80 members

often play ice-breakers such as the Life-

in four continents. Our purpose

boat game, in which the players need to

is to raise intellectual discussions, to in-

convince the judge of why they should be

form people about pressing and current

the sole survivor of a sinking boat.

matters and to deliver insights and solutions. THINK.SOLVE.SHARE.

Student Competitions

We accomplish that through the following

Our Intellectual Olympians work in teams

platforms:

to come up with solutions for imposed

Opinion Pieces

ments. We have hosted a competition with

Our Op-Eds are varied. All we ask from our Intellectual Ambassadors is to find a topic they love, expose a problem, and strategically identify a way out. For this reason, we have pieces about Economics, such as “Impact Investing in Emerging Markets” by Mark Missirlian, about New Media, such as “Innovation in Digital Storytelling” by Giulia Ubertallo, or about the Third Sector, such as “Non Profit Evolution” by Ebuwa IghoOsagie.

challenges from companies or governa Brazilian club (Panorama Consultoria Internacional) on a Marketing Strategy for the iWatch in India, and one of our teams won. The members of this team received a certificate for outstanding performance signed by our Executive Director Tom Hall and our Dean Karen Phillips. The team was composed by Jamal Abisourour, Hengtao Zhang (in the picture below with Competition Manager Lies de Smit) and Aravindbabu Kumar.

Debates Our Intellectual Gladiators fiercely, but craftily combat each other to identify which team has the better gasp of a topic, or the better soft skills. We have hosted a debate on the topic “Is the World Flat?” and watched two debates by intelligence2, one on Genetically Modified Organisms

Podcasts Our Media Consultants reach out to incredi-

engaged audience and knew that HTT would be successful from that day.

ble people inside and outside our school ecosystem to gather insights on all sorts of topics. In this issue, for example, we have an interview with a Sr. Economist at the World Bank, a CSR Consultant to the UN and a Hult Professor. To this day, we have a total of 19 podcasts - most of which are attributed to Reet Sen (in the picture below with Brian Smith and Barry Donalson).

Our second event was with the French Entrepreneur Gilles Blanchard, who presented a lecture on “If You Are In Your 20s, HTT Thoughts This blog is our newest platform. Here, our

Why Work In Anything Other Than The Internet”.

members can share shorter opinions on

Our third event was with Ambassador Mar-

trendy topics. The first one was “Women

cos Pinta Gama (picture at the beginning

as Fearless Innovators” by Alexandra

of this article), who spoke about “Interna-

Fantacchiotti.

tional Organizations”.

Lectures

Our last one was on Innovation and Entre-

Our first event was a panel with Professors Alan Hertz, Daniel Rukare, Neil Fitzgerald and myself on the relationship between the US and Syria (2013). We had a wonderfully

preneruship and featured Professor Mike Grandinetti, ABC’s Shark Tank winner Nick Pirollo, Alumn MD Omar Shaker and Managing Director of BetaSpring, Owen Johnson,

HINT was born as a way to wrap all the amazing content that we have created in a cohesive and appealing manner. One that can reach more people and change more lives. Video Learning Where every Hult student and every ProfesWith the help of Leo Draxl, we filmed Pro-

sorÂ from any campus, graduate or under-

fessor Hertz talk about globalization (avail-

graduate, can participate and share a little

able in this journal). The video was such a

bit about what they know and love.

success that other Professors decided to participate. Today we have filmed Profes-

Where we can reach out to external guests

sors Rukare, Papadopoulos and Dean

to go to the source of the industry

Melissa Willby (also available in this issue),

changes. Where we can display to the mar-

and plan to start filming in our brand new

ket who we are and what we know. Where

studio in Boston.

we can expose our edge, of being innovative, entrepreneurial and international. Our hope is that future students will look at this and decide to keep our movement going; that future employers will be impressed by our work, or that companies will decide to partner with us. There are so many opportunities ahead... but it all started with an idea and an urge to do more. 58

I created Hult Think Tank in London in October of 2013 and as I look back, I must acknowledge and give thanks for the inspiring work of my peers and partners, as well as the instrumental help from the Hult staﬀ. Without them, this journal would never exist. Since 2013, so many incredible things have happened: We won an award for “Best Publicity” (London);

Hosted a writing workshop with Anna Handley-Fierce, Editorial Manager at Skyword (Boston);

Became accredited by the Royal Bank of Scotland and the 21st best NGO in the

Created a website, available at

world, Associacao Saude Crianca;

www.hultthinktank.com, that has over

Partnered with Fundacao Estudar/Na Pratica, BRASA, PAVLOK and KarmaCircles,

10,000 pageviews, having been accessed in six continents.

and secured sponsorship with the National

Personally donated 50 milk crates to chil-

Recruiting Group;

dren in need (Brazil);

Expanded - Dubai, Boston, Shanghai and San Francisco respectively in the pictures.

Had fun and gave back to our community (Beer Pong Tournament in Boston and Ice Cream Social in Dubai);

Alinejadchatli, Amruthavarshini Shankar, Laura Salovaara, Flavien Caminati, Sara Villacis, Eirik Thomassen, Anne Marte Ring, Andile Mkonto, and Tomi Blanchard to our current 80 members all over the world. Thank you to faculty and staﬀ, specially Raised intellectual discussions not only with other students, but also with our faculty and staﬀ through the Directors Cut Project, in which we meet to discuss books or Ted talks. This would never have happened without Executive Director Tom Hall’s influence;

Claire Eisenberg and Emily Burke, to our external contributors, friends and family. This journal is for all of you. For you, our reader, I would like to invite you to visit our website at www.hultthinktank.com. Every article presented in this journal is available there. The diﬀerence is that apart from text, we also have videos and audio. I would also like to welcome you to contribute. Join us in creating insights about the things you love. Welcome to a new perspective. Welcome to HINT.

But most importantly, we have learned and we have grown.

Viviane Boavista Menna Barreto

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to

Master of International Business (2015) Founder and CEO

everyone that has been involved in this project. From our founding members, Nadiya