About Junne Gerd
Gerd Junne (1947) is professor in International Relations at the University of Amsterdam. He studied political science and law in Berlin and Geneva and holds a PhD in economics. He worked as a consultant for the UN and other international agencies. He was the chairman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs advisory group on biotechnology and development. He has extensively dealt with changes in the international division of labour, the impact of new technologies on international relations and the changing role of multinational corporations. He is a member of the board of the International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD) in The Hague. His recent research concentrates on problems of post-conflict development.
By Junne Gerd
Architecture has long served the powerful and prosperous. But it is in a unique position to help reconstruct post-conflict societies by building stability and uniting divided cities. read more >>
Expectations were high that authoritarian regimes would not survive the expansion of capitalism. However, in the Middle East there are strong currents that underpin authoritarianism. Trying to impose democracy from the outside will not help. Only changes in economic structures will show results in the long term. read more >>
Demographers do not see a ‘clash of civilizations’
February 02, 2009 Gerd Junne
A review of Le Rendez-vous des civilisations by Youssef Courbage and Emmanuel Todd Demographic data suggest that the world is not facing a ‘clash of civilizations’ between the Muslim and western world, according to Youssef Courbage and Emmanuel Todd. In their book, Courbage and Todd compare trends in Islamic nations with those of other countries. Parts of the Muslim world show a certain lag in the increase of literacy, a decline in the number of children born per couple, changing gender roles and shifting political ideologies. The overall pattern, however, is not much different from other parts of the world. The demographic development of Tunisia and Iran, for example, does no longer differ from that of France. read more >>
