Economics

New EU wage transparency and minimum pay directives will force European football clubs to overhaul their compensation practices, potentially disrupting a labor market long accustomed to extreme pay inequality and gender gaps. The rules, designed for traditional industries, now apply to sports as an economic activity—requiring clubs to justify vast disparities between players doing identical work.EN

A new analysis of Swedish energy policy reveals a fundamental gap: officials expect households to automatically adjust heating and power use to balance renewable energy, but policy documents ignore whether people will accept this loss of control. The oversight could derail the country's electrification strategy.EN

The European Union is adapting its climate negotiating tactics to compete in a more hostile geopolitical environment, according to new research. While Brussels remains committed to aggressive climate action, it's shifted how it narrates, coordinates, and deploys its diplomatic influence—a strategic recalibration that signals climate leadership now requires playing hardball.EN

Twenty leading researchers have outlined a fresh agenda for studying how entrepreneurship emerges within family firms, identifying gaps in how scholars currently measure agency, process, and context. The framework could help entrepreneurs and investors better understand how family dynamics shape business creation and growth.EN

A new paper examines the deep links between how industries organize their infrastructure and their environmental impact. The research suggests that sustainability transitions require rethinking industrial systems as a whole—not just adopting green technologies—a finding that reshapes how companies and policymakers should approach competitive advantage in a carbon-constrained world.EN

Swedish researchers found that traditional methods for defining healthcare market boundaries—drawing fixed circles around clinics—fail to capture how patients actually choose providers. The discovery matters because policymakers worldwide are betting that competition improves care quality and costs, but those gains depend on markets being defined correctly in the first place.EN

A new analysis reveals how financial systems—from bank lending to foreign investment—use racial categories to justify unequal resource distribution across countries and communities. The findings challenge conventional economics by showing that discriminatory capital flows aren't aberrations but built into how modern finance operates.EN

A new study of rural communities during COVID-19 reveals that government safety nets failed to reach remote areas, forcing charities and local organizations to fill the gaps. For policymakers and business leaders, the finding exposes a structural weakness: rural economies lack the institutional infrastructure to absorb future shocks.EN

A new study of 17th-century Scandinavian craft guilds reveals how skilled workers negotiated across borders, forcing masters to balance tight labor control with business realities. The findings expose timeless tensions between worker mobility and employer interests—and show that sustainable solutions required compromise, not coercion.EN

A 12-year study of Swedish schools reveals that struggling schools require different improvement strategies depending on local conditions—not a universal formula. The finding challenges education policymakers to stop seeking quick fixes and instead design interventions around each school's specific context and constraints.EN

A new analysis of 17 European countries reveals wildly inconsistent rules for reusing health data in research, forcing scientists to navigate separate legal frameworks instead of collaborating efficiently. The fragmentation is slowing innovation and complicating drug development—forcing policymakers to decide whether harmonization or flexibility should win.EN

A new study of rural communities in Chile and Sweden finds that public participation in environmental monitoring could strengthen sustainability efforts, yet both countries face significant legitimacy barriers. These findings matter for governments and businesses implementing climate commitments, suggesting that scaling citizen science requires deliberate institutional design—not just public enthusiasm.EN

A new paper reveals that interagency collaboration remains a persistent challenge despite its importance for effective policy implementation. For business leaders and regulators navigating complex regulatory environments, the findings underscore why siloed government operations delay decisions and create inefficiencies—and suggest where coordination improvements could reduce compliance burdens.EN

Global financial institutions are adapting their rules to accommodate government-owned enterprises and state intervention—but only on their own terms. Rather than abandoning neoliberalism, they're absorbing state capitalism into existing frameworks to neutralize it, signaling a defensive shift rather than genuine paradigm change for multinational corporations and investors.EN

Lobbyists now operate far ahead of the regulatory systems designed to monitor them, creating a governance blind spot that threatens policy integrity. Researchers propose a three-part fix: consolidating oversight agencies, connecting fragmented databases, and adopting open-source compliance tools to help governments catch up before influence campaigns grow even more sophisticated.EN

A new study reveals how Spain's decades-long push to make workers into homeowners expanded briefly after 2008, then contracted sharply—concentrating property among fewer hands. The findings challenge a cornerstone of capitalist legitimacy and suggest the model's limits could reignite political instability across Europe.EN

Governments' attempts to boost permanent jobs through incentives fail when temporary contracts lack protections, new data shows. Workers hired on looser terms see conversion rates drop 6.3 percentage points—and face 17% wage penalties two years later, suggesting policy design matters as much as its intent.EN

Grassroots tenant organizations in Spain have successfully shifted housing policy away from decades of market-driven governance by using civil disobedience, media strategy, and political alliances rather than conventional lobbying. The findings suggest activist movements can reshape policy frameworks on major economic issues—a model with implications for housing markets and regulatory debates across Europe.EN

Designers have cracked the code on helping people understand how to use payment rings and smart bracelets—by pairing physical objects with clear digital guidance. The research matters because wearable payments remain clunky to set up, and better onboarding could unlock a market currently stuck in early adoption.EN

A major review of consumption tax theory reveals that policymakers face hard choices between raising revenue, promoting fairness, and encouraging growth—with no single optimal approach. The findings suggest governments need clearer frameworks for deciding which goods to tax more heavily and how much total revenue to extract through consumption levies.EN

Swedish researchers developed improved tools to measure how multiple chronic diseases affect survival rates in aging populations. The findings could help healthcare systems better predict patient outcomes and allocate resources more efficiently for elderly populations facing multiple health challenges.EN

A new study of book and video rental history reveals a counterintuitive truth: sharing economy services don't displace traditional sales. Instead, they expand markets by lowering prices and creating new customer segments. The finding challenges assumptions underlying sustainability policy and suggests companies pursuing green alternatives may be missing opportunities for growth.EN

A new study reveals a major flaw in how governments and companies measure environmental value: survey respondents often misunderstand what they're agreeing to pay for, or change their minds once they realize their answers will drive real decisions. The finding threatens the legitimacy of cost-benefit analyses that billions in infrastructure and policy spending rely on.EN

A new handbook maps the dramatic expansion of lobbying since the 1970s—particularly in the last two decades—revealing how billions are spent annually to shape public policy across the US, EU, and beyond. The blurred lines between lobbyists and policymakers signal a fundamental shift in how companies and interest groups compete for influence in an increasingly complex, multi-layered political arena.EN

A comprehensive handbook maps how lobbying influences public policy through three distinct pathways—from systemic forces down to individual organization strategy. For policymakers and executives, understanding this multi-layered influence is critical: it reveals where advocacy efforts gain traction and how business and political interests interact to reshape regulatory landscapes.EN