Partnerships for the Goals

It is increasingly likely that the graduates of American schools and universities either will supervise or be supervised by someone of a different ethnic, national or racial background. It is also likely that the work of their employers and activities of their families will be influenced in profound ways by suppliers, customers, clients and others who are of a different cultural background. In addition, in many parts of the world it is likely that neighbours, or the schoolmates of their children, will be of a different heritage. Thus, we can expect that the lives of school and university graduates will be affected directly by an increasingly diverse society and interdependent world community.

When the atrocities committed by Nazi Germany became apparent after the Second World War, the consensus within the world community was that the United Nations Charter did not go far enough in defining the rights to which it referred, and that those rights should be defined and enshrined in a new body of international law. The United Nations was determined to ensure that the terrible crimes of the Second World War would never be repeated. It was in fulfilment of this commitment that, one day before the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on 9 December 1948, the General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. The adoption of the Convention was full of symbolism and reaffirmed the gravity of the crime it addressed. But it went beyond that. It demonstrated the commitment of the international community to ensure both the prevention of genocide and the punishment of its perpetrators when the crime could not be prevented. The Convention defined genocide as any particular offense committed with “intent to destroy, in whole or part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.”

We live in an interconnected world. It is an unquestionable fact. We cannot afford to deny the intricate ties that connect each and every one of our respective worlds. It is clear that despite our established borders, cultures and languages do not and cannot exist entirely independently. The effects and repercussions of decisions made in one part of the world ripple throughout the rest of the planet and affect us all in one way or another. With this in mind, we are made conscious of the immense responsibility held not just by our leaders but also by us as individual citizens. We ought to come to the realization that whatever duties and obligations we have towards our societies they inevitably carry considerable meaning and influence beyond our immediate surroundings.

In recent years, policy-makers have given paramount attention to “competitiveness”, working to ensure that domestic economies attract investment, jobs, and tax revenues. Toward this end, countries have steadily lowered corporate tax rates in an attempt to attract mobile international businesses. This paper discusses the desirability of this policy stance in light of data on the world’s biggest companies. Using Forbes lists of the top “Global 2000” companies over the period 2003–2017, the paper analyzes companies’ headquarters locations, focusing on economic, geographic, and policy determinants. The paper then relates these findings to larger policy questions.

The call for prevention of violence by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres is both timely and essential for harmonious societies leading to a harmonious world. The reality is that the world is moving headlong in exactly the opposite direction. Before venturing into remedial pathways for giving teeth to the urgent appeal, a survey of realities on the ground indicates not only the extent and depth of atrocities, despoliation and deprivation, but tends to confirm that these have crossed all humanitarian limits. This paper is focused on measures that allow for a glimpse of the light at the end of the tunnel.