Introduction

The era of globalization has brought about unprecedented social, political, and environmental challenges for policy makers around the world due to the global impact of economic decisions. In view of these challenges, economics, as a discipline, needs to be taught with the goal of broadening the dialogue on social responsibility, and developing a new pluralist culture of decision making which is inclusive to different schools of economic thought. Pluralist Readings in Economics: Key-concepts and policy tools for the 21st century highlights the long-standing debates regarding economic systems, business models, criteria of justice, and economic policies by providing conceptual openings to economic theory in an engaging and accessible way. The author provides broad coverage of relevant topics through the selection of influential economic thinkers and introduces the reader to their ideas, context, and relevant interpretations. While dealing with complex problems, the author goes beyond commonly known concepts by presenting questions on the historical context of globalization. The study of economic concepts in this way leads to asking new questions concerning various issues relevant to economics. The goal of the text is to provide an interdisciplinary perspective to readers in order to equip them with information that is key to address global economic challenges. Thus, this pluralist approach calls for a reflection of the evolution of global social and economic conditions to demonstrate problem solving approaches that align with the goal of addressing these challenges. Pluralist Readings in Economics: Key-concepts and policy tools for the 21st century is suitable to a broad interdisciplinary readership as it will benefit all those who seek to better understand the complex stakes of the capitalist system, in the tensions between regulatory policies, free market equilibria, and participatory openings in governance. This introductory work also prepares the reader for debates and discussion in economic theory aimed at shaping policy transformations towards a more equitable, just and sustainable world.