Chile in Transition ― Prospects and Challenges for Latin America??Forerunner of Development

The economic, political and social situation in Chile shows a country in transition. Some observers anticipate a broad “reboot” of the nation. While Chile is still seen by many as an example of progress in South America and of developmental potential in the global South, it faces a complex political constellation, particularly in the aftermath of the re-election of Michelle Bachelet. Many wonder how social and institutional innovations can be incepted without interrupting the country’s remarkable success over the past decades.

This book provides an interdisciplinary analysis of Chile’s situation and perspectives. In particular, it addresses the questions:

• What is Chile’s real socio-political situation behind the curtains, irrespective of simplifications?
• What are the nation’s main opportunities and problems?
• What future strategies will be concretely applicable to improve social balance and mitigate ideological divisions?

The result is a provocative examination of a nation in search of identity and its role on the global stage.

Roland Benedikter, Dr. Dr. Dr., is Research Scholar at the Orfalea Center for Global and International Studies, University of California, Santa Barbara, Senior Research Scholar of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs Washington D.C., Trustee of the Toynbee Prize Foundation Boston and Full Member of the Club of Rome.

Katja Siepmann, MA, is Senior Research Fellow of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs Washington D.C., Member of the German Council on Foreign Relations, and Lecturer at the Faculty of Interdisciplinary Cultural Sciences of the European University Frankfurt/Oder.

The volume features a Foreword by Ned Strong, Executive Director of the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies,Harvard University, and a Preface by Larry Birns, Director of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs, Washington D.C., and Former Senior Public Affairs Officer of the United Nations’ Economic Commission for Latin America (Santiago, Chile).

Roland Benedikter, Dott. Dr. Dr. Dr., is a European Public Intellectual, Political Scientist and Sociologist serving as Research Scholar of Political Analysis at the Orfalea Center for Global and International Studies of the University of California at Santa Barbara, Trustee of the Toynbee Prize Foundation Boston, Senior Research Fellow of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs Washington D.C. and Full member of the Club of Rome. Previously, he served as Research Affiliate 2009-13 at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University and as Full Academic Fellow 2008-12 of the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies Washington DC (where he remains on the editorial board of the Institute’s journal STEPS), and was active for 8 years (1995-2003) in European politics: the Autonomous Government of South Tyrol, a European model region on the border between Italy and Austria, the Federal Union of European Nationalities FUEN and the Assembly of European Regions AER. He was External Examiner and Adviser of two practice-oriented social science study programs of the University of Plymouth, UK, and of a study program on Preschool Peace Education of the University of Kosovo. He has written forForeign Affairs, Harvard International Review (where he is on the Advisory board), The National Interest, Global Policy, Global Social Policy, New Global Studies, Blatter fur deutsche und internationale Politik, European Foreign Affairs Reviewand Challenge: The Magazine of Economic Affairs, and is a frequent commentator for the Italian national broadcast companyRadiotelevisione Italiana (RAI), the German newspaper Die Welt Berlin and the international commentary magazineThe European. He is co-author of two Pentagon and U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff White Papers on the Ethics of Neurowarfare (Pentagon Press, February 2013 and April 2014) and of Ernst Ulrich von Weizsacker’s Report to the Club of Rome 2003: Limits to Privatization: How to avoid too much of a good thing (English 2005, Chinese 2006, German 2007). He is Full Member of various European associations of Political Science, won 4 science awards, and his publications include more than 200 articles and book chapters, 19 books (among them 2 multidisciplinary nation studies on China) and 19 encyclopedia articles. Contact: r.benedikter@orfaleacenter.ucsb.edu or rolandbenedikter@yahoo.de.

Katja Siepmann, MA, is a socio-political analyst who cooperates with the Social Research Institute “Opina” in Santiago de Chile. She is Senior Research Fellow of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs Washington D.C., Member of the German Council on Foreign Relations, Lecturer at the Faculty of Interdisciplinary Cultural Sciences of the European University Frankfurt/Oder and has written forForeign Affairs, Harvard International Review and Challenge: The Magazine of Economic Affairs. Contact: katja.siepmann@googlemail.com.