International Confederation of Associations for Pluralism in Economics

International Confederation of Associations for Pluralism in Economics
Name	International Confederation of Associations for Pluralism in Economics
Formation	1990
Type	Non-governmental organization
Headquarters	Brussels
Region served	International

International Confederation of Associations for Pluralism in Economics is a global umbrella association coordinating national and regional societies that advocate for pluralist approaches to economics and related political economy. It seeks to bridge scholars associated with institutions such as University of Cambridge, Harvard University, University of Toronto, London School of Economics, and University of California, Berkeley and professional bodies including American Economic Association, European Economic Association, Royal Economic Society, Canadian Economics Association, and Australian Economists Network. The confederation emerged amid debates linked to events like World Bank policy discussions, International Monetary Fund restructuring debates, OECD reports, and curricular reforms at universities such as Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and Universidade de São Paulo.

History

The organization traces roots to meetings inspired by activists from New School for Social Research, University of Leeds, Universidad de Chile, University of Cape Town, and Tokyo University responding to curricular controversies involving Milton Friedman, John Maynard Keynes, Adam Smith, Karl Marx, and Joseph Schumpeter. Early conferences convened participants from associations such as Post-Keynesian Economics Society, Association for Evolutionary Economics, History of Economics Society, International Initiative for Promoting Political Economy, and European Association for Evolutionary Political Economy. Founding discussions referred to comparative episodes like reforms in Italy, debates in France, campaigns in United Kingdom, initiatives in Germany, and mobilizations in Brazil and India. The confederation formalized structures following assemblies influenced by models from International Labour Organization, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Council of Europe, and African Union meetings.

Organization and Membership

The confederation is composed of member associations representing constituencies at institutions including Yale University, Princeton University, University of Oxford, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Columbia University as well as regional bodies such as Latin American Association of Political Economy, Asian Development Studies Network, and national groups from Spain, Sweden, Netherlands, South Africa, and Nigeria. Governance combines a Council with delegates drawn from European Commission-linked networks, advisory inputs from scholars affiliated with Cambridge University Press, Routledge, and Palgrave Macmillan, and secretariat support hosted in proximity to European Parliament offices. Funding streams have come through grants from foundations like Ford Foundation, Open Society Foundations, Rockefeller Foundation, and occasional project support coordinated with United Nations Development Programme offices. Membership categories cover academic societies, student associations linked to Students for Economic Democracy, and research centers such as Centre for Economic Policy Research and Institute for New Economic Thinking.

Aims and Activities

The confederation promotes pluralism by encouraging curricula that include perspectives from Marxist economics, Austrian School, Post-Keynesianism, Institutional economics, and Feminist economics and by supporting pedagogy reforms discussed at forums involving UNESCO, UN Women, and European University Association. Activities include coordinating petitions, position papers, and workshops that parallel campaigns by groups like Campaign for Social Science, Occupy Wall Street, Global Development Network, and International Economic Association. It organizes training linked to methodological diversity advocated by scholars at London Business School, Bocconi University, National University of Singapore, and Seoul National University and sponsors collaborative projects with think tanks such as Brookings Institution and Chatham House on pluralism-related policy analysis.

Conferences and Events

The confederation convenes biennial congresses that assemble delegates drawn from networks associated with Association for Heterodox Economics, European Association for Evolutionary Political Economy, International Input-Output Association, Society for the Advancement of Socio‑Economics, and regional meetings hosted in cities like Brussels, Buenos Aires, Cape Town, Delhi, and Toronto. Conferences have featured keynote speakers with affiliations to Princeton, Oxford, Harvard, MIT, and Yale and panels addressing episodes such as the 2008 financial crisis, the European sovereign-debt crisis, Asian financial crisis, and post-crisis regulatory reforms advocated by Basel Committee on Banking Supervision. Workshops often cross-list with events organized by History of Economic Thought Society, International Confederation of Associations for Pluralism in Economics-aligned associations, and university departments at University of Amsterdam, Humboldt University of Berlin, and Universidad de Buenos Aires.

Publications and Resources

The confederation curates online resource repositories linking working papers from institutions such as National Bureau of Economic Research, Institute of Development Studies, and International Food Policy Research Institute and disseminates newsletters similar to publications from Economics Association of Australia, Review of Political Economy, Journal of Economic Issues, Cambridge Journal of Economics, and New Left Review. It maintains bibliographies that reference classic works by Adam Smith, David Ricardo, Karl Marx, John Stuart Mill, and contemporary analyses by scholars at London School of Economics, Yale, and Harvard. Collaborative publishing initiatives have produced edited volumes with publishers including Routledge, Palgrave Macmillan, and Cambridge University Press and occasional policy briefs circulated to bodies such as European Commission and United Nations.

Impact and Criticism

Supporters cite influence on curricular changes at universities such as University of Manchester, University of Sydney, Universidade de São Paulo, University of Cape Town, and University of Delhi and on policy dialogues involving International Monetary Fund staff, World Bank country teams, and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development committees. Critics from mainstream associations like American Economic Association and commentators in outlets tied to Financial Times and The Economist argue that pluralist campaigns risk fragmenting standards upheld at institutions such as Royal Economic Society and that alliances with activist networks echo tactics used in movements like Occupy Wall Street and Arab Spring. Debates continue in journals including Journal of Economic Perspectives, Economic Journal, Review of Political Economy, and Cambridge Journal of Economics about evidentiary practices, pedagogical aims, and the confederation's role in global academic governance.

Category:International learned societies