CRISIS, TRANSFORMATION AND NEW SOCIAL CONTRACT

For fifteen years the international economy has experienced several major crises. In an environment of radical uncertainty and growing social unrest, some trends of change have emerged in the economic and technological structures that bring with them important advantages but also notable contradictions and risks. Decarbonization, mass digitalization, and a shift in the global economy they are its main faces, painting a panorama of creative destruction on a large scale. This paper argues that in order to deal with these complex dynamics it is essential to move towards a renewal of the social contract, which has been increasingly eroded since 2008.

At its core is a new relationship between three major actors: States, markets and a third pillar, communities. A relationship that should promote a profoundly renewed productive model, an effective defense of competition and the correction of the causes of unrest, among which the inequality of income, wealth and opportunities stands out. The road to that new social contract is studded with difficulties, but the factors that can drive it are also important. Among them we explore the effects of the change in the sphere of ideas and the uncertainty vector as a window of opportunity.