Economic sociology in times of war

Marcin Serafin
Since it was launched, economic sociology. perspectives and conversations (or, as it used to be known, economic sociology_the european electronic newsletter) has combined a focus on global topics, such as financialization, inequality, and climate change, with attention to important topics related to specific regions, such as the future of the euro, capitalism in Latin America, or economic sociology in Asia. Over the years, the local topics discussed have covered much of the globe.

Fabio Parasecoli and Mihai Varga
The cost of food rose all over the world in 2022. The spike in the prices of bread was swift and shocking, partly because of its symbolic value in many countries and its importance as a staple, which turns its scarcity into a political issue. This phenomenon is particularly worrisome in low-income countries that import large amounts of wheat and where bread and flour constitute an important percentage of populations’ daily food expenses.

Karolina Mikolajewska-Zając
When Russia attacked Ukraine in late February 2022, I immediately saw an outpour of bottom-up organizing amongst my Polish friends and colleagues that was oriented at providing shelter, food, and clothing to the hundreds of thousands of incoming refugees. Their work relied on an array of generic collaborative platform tools, such as countless Google docs and spreadsheets that were circulated via social media.

Maciej Kassner
The Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which started in February 2022, forcefully brought war to the forefront of public and scholarly debates. In this essay, I propose to address the topic of war through the examination of Karl Polanyi’s political writings. At first sight, it may seem to be an odd choice. Admittedly, Polanyi’s writings concerning war are scattered and relatively obscure. There are, however, at least two reasons to engage in such inquiry.

Gábor Scheiring
The simultaneous rise of populism and the decay of liberal democracy in East-Central Europe is in striking contrast to the optimism prevalent in previous decades about the region’s future. Without exception, each country in East-Central Europe embraced a dependent export-led growth model in the 1990s.

Benjamin Braun, Kai Koddenbrock, eds. · 2023
Capital Claims: Power and Global Finance
London: Routledge
Reviewer: Jonas von Ciriacy-Wantrup

Jonathan Levy · 2021
Ages of American Capitalism: A History of the United States
New York: Random House
Reviewer: Andrew M. Johnston

Michel Callon · 2021
Markets in the Making: Rethinking Competition, Goods, and Innovation
Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press
Reviewer: Dieter Plehwe

Conversation with Daniel Agbiboa