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This paper examines the impact of the twin forces of neoliberalism and globalization on culture in Latin America. It argues that the application of a neo-liberal economic strategy over the past 25 years and the increased integration of the region's economy into the global economy have led to changes in cultural values and lifestyles. There is much evidence to support the idea that the changes denote the diffusion of a USstyle market culture, which values individualism, competition, and consumerism. Chile was taken as a case study, as it has the longest and most successful experience with the neo-liberal model and globalization in the region. In Chile, and elsewhere, there are notable changes in political culture, including a less partisan and ideological electorate, increased political apathy, especially among the youth, and campaign formats that emphasize style over substance. At the same time, more complex cultural mixtures are also emerging, in which, for example, new campaign techniques are used to reinforce traditional values. There is also increasing resistance to the application of neo-liberal economic policies and to globalization in the region, although it is unclear to what extent this opposition can stem the international tide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The proliferation of debt crises around the world since the 1980' s has generated debt-repayment negotiations prioritizing austerity in debtor countries. This forty-year history of debt crises in the Global South and North now allows comparison of these negotiations and their impacts. We examine the distinct and historically specific trajectories in Latin American and Greece, highlighting the foundations of each experience of debt crisis. We focus on the institutions responsible for managing crisis and their reliance on similar austerity strategies to compel debtor countries into a neoliberal restructuring of their economies. This paper examines the similarities and differences in austerity policy through a comparative-historical analysis of Latin American and Greek experiences of debt crisis. The results of such policies and the political actors involved in implementing austerity are also examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Latin America's coffee market continues in economic crisis. Sustainable coffee production and certification is one option for economic recuperation and social and environmental sustainability for the region's coffee producers. This paper explores four viable certification processes (Organic, Fair Trade, Rainforest Alliance, and Utz Kapeh) by first defining their requirements. Then, an assessment of microeconomic impacts is given, where the production processes of sustainable and conventional coffee are evaluated and compared. Finally, the paper presents their future relevance and entrepreneurial potential by considering long-term market perspectives. Information about sustainable production in Latin America was gathered through primary sources in interviews and markets analyses conducted by the CIMS Foundation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A complete international political economy connects transnational media structures with programming content demonstrating themes and ideologies that promote transnational capitalist social relations, including consumerism, individualism, deference to authority, and a dampening of citizenship. Series melodramas, known internationally as telenovelas, does not appear as a cultural or media response by Latin American cultures resisting American imperialism, but as a hybrid genre articulating popular consent for transnational capitalist hegemony. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Over recent decades, Latin America has seen its position in the world order erode. Its share of total world exports has significantly declined. A broad opening to foreign investment has economically depressed many local initiatives, and the region's economic growth is now largely dependent upon foreign capital. Nevertheless, an incipient trend has become established that reflects a change in preference for foreign capital destinations, shaped by the degree to which a science-technology base is present. This draws attention to the fact that tax facilities, proximity to markets, and cheap labor are insufficient factors to guarantee the cycle of capital, since what stands out is the outgoing transfer of the innovation activity itself. Latin American governments have done little to build an attractive science-technology platform that could allow our countries to join these rapidly growing chains of commodity production. This ultimately suggests that greater exclusion is to be expected. In this article, the case of Mexico is highlighted as an example of these trends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This article investigates the way in which scientific labor in Latin America is affected by the neoliberal model. After the key elements of this model are summarized, the main features of the region's system for innovation in material production are reviewed. Finally, an evaluation is offered of the impact of related international policies. Special attention is given to the role of universities, the way that they operate within the context of underdevelopment, and the nature and scope of transformations that they are compelled to undertake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, Peruvian Tito Paredes argues that the integrity of mission in Latin America will be enhanced and fostered to the extent that the churches seriously engage with culture, indigenous religious traditions and prioritize mission to the poor. This last dimension has important social as well as personal goals in the light of a wholistic vision and mission of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]