Call for Papers
III Workshop of the Regional Integration Network (RIN)
Punta del Este, Uruguay, December 15-18, 2003

The third Workshop of the Regional Integration Network (RIN) will be held in Punta del Este, Uruguay, December 15-18, 2003. This Workshop is sponsored by LACEA and is organized by CERES (Center for the Study of Economic and Social Affairs).

The Workshop is a unique event that brings together top researchers and policymakers from the North and the South to discuss recent theoretical and empirical advances in the economics and politics of Regional Integration Agreements (RIAs). The goal of these meetings is to use the findings of research in order to gain a better understanding of the problems, opportunities and policy challenges faced by Latin American countries in the process of integration and also to encourage further research on the subject.

The program will start on the morning of December 15th with three full days of brainstorming sessions. Nine papers will be presented during the brainstorming sessions and each paper will be briefly commented by a discussant leaving ample time for general discussion.

The morning of December 18thth will be devoted to a debate on two broad subjects.  The first “Free-Traders vs. Globalization Skeptics: Who is Right in this Debate?” will deal with trade issues. The second, “A Historical Perspective on Financial Globalization and Financial Crises in EM´s: Is Free Flow a Capital a Good Idea?” will deal with financial issues. Each of the debates will be triggered by a lead speaker specialized in the topic before opening the floor for discussion.  We have invited professors Arvind Panagariya and Maurice Obstfeld to lead the first and second debate, respectively. At the end of each debate, a rapporteur will be in charge of summarizing the salient features. The Workshop will adjourn at mid-day.

A program committee formed by Guillermo Calvo, Robert Devlin, Antoni Estevadeordal, Marcelo Olarreaga, Ernesto Stein, and Pablo Sanguinetti will select nine papers and discussants for the brainstorming sessions. We welcome theoretical and empirical research relevant for understanding the economics and politics of RIAs (for convenience, a list of suggested topics is included in this Call for Papers which although not exhaustive will serve as a guide for Workshop participants). Both theoretical and policy oriented papers are welcomed. A special emphasis will be placed on attracting young scholars.

In order to participate in the Workshop it will be necessary to submit a paper or research project testifying to the author’s research commitment to this field. Those invited to participate, however, will not necessarily be asked to present a paper. Actually, we anticipate that there will be more participants than the nine papers and nine discussants that we will be able to accommodate during the Workshop. Thus, a basic requirement is your willingness to be an active participant during those three and half days.

For academic participants, we expect to be able to offer hotel accommodations and a round-trip economy class (most direct) airfare. We urge you to find other sources of funds to cover other transportation costs, as we are running this on a very limited budget.

Academics and researchers currently occupying policy-making positions are welcome to participate in the Workshop without presenting a paper. However, these participants will have to procure the financing to participate in the Workshop from their own institutions.

Please, send us an email indicating your willingness to participate in the Workshop to RIN2003@ceres-uy.org no later than August 31st , together with the paper title and an abstract. The submission deadline for papers and research projects is September 30th. Papers (preliminary drafts are acceptable) must be submitted in PDF format. For additional information please visit http://www.ceres-uy.org/rin2003.

Last years meeting of the Regional Integration Network attracted many very good papers and an extremely qualified attendance from around the world resulting in a very fruitful exchange of ideas. Past participants included Edward Leamer, Raymond Robertson, John Romalis, Anthony Venables and Jeffrey Williamson, among others.

This year we hope to replicate and improve upon last years success. As an additional incentive, please note that Punta del Este is one of the most beautiful seaside resorts in the world, only 140 km (about 90 miles) away from Montevideo and 25 minutes by plane from Buenos Aires’s downtown airport.

Sincerely,

Sebastian Edwards
LACEA’s President and
Henry Ford II Professor of International Economics
The Anderson Graduate School of Management UCLA
Sebastian.edwards@anderson.ucla.edu

Ernesto Talvi
Executive Director
CERES
Montevideo, Uruguay
etalvi@ceres-uy.org

Regional Integration Network: Suggested List of Topics

I. The Economics and Politics of Regional Integration Agreements (RIAs)
- Economic and Political Determinants of RIAs
- Political Economy dimensions of RIAs (e.g. should Mercosur or the Andean Community negotiate FTAA as a bloc or individually? Should RIAs be used as a trade liberalization strategy?)
- Dispute Settlement Mechanisms within RIAs

II. Trade Integration
- International Trade Rules, WTO, and Regional Trade Arrangements
- Effects of Trading Blocks on Global Liberalization

III. Monetary and Financial Integration
- Currency Unions
- Exchange Rate Harmonization
- Macroeconomic coordination

IV. Integration Beyond Trade
- Product Standards
- Labor Standards
- Environmental Standards
- Intellectual Property Rights
- Government Procurement
- Competition Policy
- Capital Markets Integration (insurance, banking, supervision)
- Tax Harmonization
- Investment Agreements

V. The Economic and Social Impact of Integration (as defined in II, III and IV)
- Trade Patterns
- Production Patterns
- Growth
- Technology Diffusion and Productivity
- Industrial Location and Spatial Agglomeration
- FDI
- Income Distribution
- Migration
- Employment