A group of German-speaking Economists for Future released a call to reform the way economics is being taught today. In the petition, the canon of economic teaching – which has already been under critical scrutiny for years – is once again coming under criticism in light of the Coronavirus crisis: “The lockdown of the market economy has exposed its fundamental dependence on other ignored economies, such as state infrastructure, social solidarity and unpaid care work. The particular affliction of disadvantaged groups or regions who are suffering from the crisis reveals that wellbeing is still significantly influenced by origin, skin color and gender. The fact that environmental destruction makes societies more vulnerable to the emergence and spread of pandemics points to the inevitable interactions between the economy and ecology.”

The Economists for Future are calling on teachers, decision-makers and students to finally take social events seriously in the sense of a fundamental change in the teaching of economics at universities, and are formulating concrete proposals. The full length of the call can be found hier.

The petition has been signed by more than 30 institutions from academic and civil society, which in turn are committed to economic change, including the Cusanus Hochschule für Gesellschaftsgestaltung. With its innovative range of courses, the university has itself been committed to a fundamental change in economic education for years. As an institution dedicated to social, political and economic transformation, Cusanus Hochschule is fully committed to the explicitly transformative claim of the Economists for Future.

Lukas Bäuerle, co-initiator of the call and research associate at the Institute of Economics, explained: “The need for reform in economic teaching in higher education is obvious and has been well researched, especially in the German-speaking world. In addition, there is a wealth of alternative teaching materials available, even entire courses of study. Now it is up to the teachers and education policy decision-makers to finally launch a sustainable economic education for all.”