Where would you rather live? According to the 2009 Index of Economic Freedom, Hong Kong has the highest economic freedom score on the planet. North Korea on the other hand ranks dead last.
So what is economic freedom?
This is how the Heritage Foundation explains it: "The highest form of economic freedom provides an absolute right of property ownership, fully realized freedoms of movement for labor, capital, and goods, and an absolute absence of coercion or constraint of economic liberty beyond the extent necessary for citizens to protect and maintain liberty itself. In other words, individuals are free to work, produce, consume, and invest in any way they please, and that freedom is both protected by the state and unconstrained by the state. "
If you would like to learn more about this topic you can visit this link. (also included in the "links" section) It's a great place for statistics, maps and economic information. Do your students know why the US is not ranked #1 or why Albania has a higher ranking than Italy? This site will help them understand the answers to these important questions.
Economic Freedom is just one of the many topics that will be discussed at the Economies in Transition- Africa workshop on January 30th. Click on "register" for information on the upcoming Economies in Transition- Latin America and Globalization workshops.
