The twenty-third day of May marked the sixtieth anniversary of the coming into effect of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany, the so-called Grundgesetz (“basic law”). The groundwork for the new constitution had been prepared about a year earlier by a group of experts meeting at a resplendent nineteenth-century castle on an island...

Over the past four decades, women have been playing catch up with men in terms of wages, education levels and wealth. It is hard to believe that just forty years ago, women in the public service were forced to resign when they got married; and when I was working in the public service, there were...

There is broad agreement that Australian plastic bag consumption should be reduced. To this end, recent South Australian legislation has banned certain types of plastic bags. But other states wishing to reduce their plastic bag consumption may find a tax rather than a ban the more appropriate policy instrument.

Forget media diversity in the fast broadband world. The new model for local media is top-down and centrally controlled.

Progress towards the achievement of the unfulfilled Millennium Development Goals appears to be losing momentum in a number of Pacific Island countries, and the impact of the global financial crisis will further slow this progress.