Rebalancing Economic Systems in a World Driven by Tech: Quality-of-Life in Socio-Cultural Context

This course examines the need for, and approaches to, rebalancing models of innovation-driven economic growth in the broader context of society and sustainability. After an overview of the historical outcomes of previous industrial revolutions, we examine how trends toward increasing social inequality, tension between globalism and isolationism, and greater authoritarianism are exacerbated in the era of digital transformation, comparing different economic systems (e.g. China, India, Japan, and the U.S.) as realized in their socio-political and cultural contexts. We then discuss approaches toward rebalancing existing systems, including metrics for evaluating economic performance, in order to satisfy the imperatives of social, environmental, and economic sustainability.