New book: "Globalizing Welfare"

How do different countries grapple with social, economic and gender inequalities and what can they learn from each other’s experiences? The book “Globalizing Welfare”, co-edited by Hertie School Professor Emeritus Stein Kuhnle and published by Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd, presents various approaches of Northern European and North-East Asian countries to issues facing welfare states, and offers learnings from their experiences.

The book also includes chapters by Hertie School Professor of Sociology and Past President Helmut K. Anheier, and Emeritus Professor of Political Sociology Claus Offe, looks at countries’ different responses to challenges such as inequality, demographic change and shifting relations between the state, market and non-profit organisations.

“Searching for the future of social welfare, there are advances as well as retreats”, Kuhnle notes in the introduction. “Hence, this book is about an evolving global dialogue, here exemplified by an emerging East Asian-Northern Europe dialogue that has followed in the steps of the establishment of this combination of welfare and state, whether in organised international cooperation, political decision-making, symbol politics or social research.”

Edited by Stein Kuhnle, Per Selle, Professor at the University of Bergen and University of Tromsø, Norway and Sven E.O. Hort, Professor Emeritus at the Linnaeus University, Sweden, the book also assesses how global issues are likely to impact the future of welfare states.

Kuhnle also co-authored the introduction, “Globalizing Welfare: An Evolving Asian-European Dialogue”, and the chapter “Changing Normative Principles of Social Justice in the Norwegian Pension System.” Anheier wrote “The Future Role of Civil Society in a Welfare State: Perspectives from Germany”, and Offe contributed the chapter “Framing Inequality and Related Policy Responses”.

Order a copy of the book here.