WAPE is a Chinese-run academic economics organisation, aiming to link up with Marxist economists globally.  It aims to promote the success of the Chinese development model as these academics see it.  Even though that might seem like bias, the WAPE forums and journals still provide an important outlet to discuss all the developments in the world capitalist economy from a Marxist perspective. Marxist economists from all over the world are welcome to join WAPE and attend WAPE forums. WAPE aims to encourage cooperation among Marxist economists and to enlarge and strengthen the influence of Marxist economics in the world.

PUBLICATION POSSIBILITIES. All accepted full papers will be considered for publication in the World Review of Political Economy  http://www.plutojournals.com/wrpe/ and the International Critical Thought                https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rict20 after passing the peer refereeing process.

WRPE. The World Review of Political Economy is a peer-reviewed quarterly journal of Marxist Political Economy sponsored by WAPE and published by Pluto Journals. For more information including types of submissions that will be considered, please go to  http://www.plutojournals.com/wrpe/  and submit your articles to WRPE via WRPE ScholarOne Manuscripts site  https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/wrpe.

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The 17^th WAPE Forum will be held 2-4 August 2024 at Panteion University, Athens, Greece. To read more click here. 

It is co-organised by WAPE (World Association of Political Economy – http://www.wapeweb.org/) and GAPE (Greek Association of Political Economy – https://politicaleconomy.gr/main/en ) and hosted by the Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences (https://www.panteion.gr/en/).

To read more about the 17th WAPE Forum themes and Call for papers please click here. 

17^th WAPE Forum Call for Papers

Important dates

• Deadline for abstract (500 words) proposals: 29 April 2024 WAPE2024@panteion.gr
• Notice of acceptance: 20 May 2024
• Deadline for full paper submission: 1 July 2024

WAPE also encourages the proposal of a series of panels on subjects within the broad scope of the conference. Colleagues or groups that are interested in organizing such panels should contact the Organisation Committee directly (via WAPE2024@panteion.gr ).

Additionally, the 17^th WAPE Forum will include a Young Scholars’ Section. Ongoing PhD students can apply to present mature parts of their work within this section. The rate for students (50 euros) applies in the case of the Young Scholars’ Section.

Official Language: The official language of the Forum is English.

Publication Possibilities: All accepted and submitted papers will be published as an e-book with ISBN. Best papers will be considered for publication in the World Review of Political Economy (http://www.plutojournals.com/wrpe/) and the International Critical Thought (https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rict20) after passing the peer refereeing process.

HOW TO APPLY

Send a paper abstract (500 words) and your full curriculum vitae in English to WAPE2024@panteion.gr by 20 April 2024. Acceptance letters and instructions for registration will be sent out by 20 May 2024. The structure and the schedule of registration fees are detailed below. Full papers must be submitted by 1 July 2024.

You are also welcome to propose other topics on the theme.

There is also the option to apply to attend the forum without presenting a paper. In that case, you will be sent an invitation letter for visa purposes etc. upon registration and payment of registration fees.

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The 16^th Forum of the World Association for Political Economy (WAPE) was held from 25- 27th September at Fuzhou City, China.

The 16th annual conference of the World Association for Political Economy (WAPE) was hosted from 25- 27 September 2023 at Fuzho, China. The conference “Chinese Modernization and the prospects of world modernization” was attended in person by many delegates and also by other international participants.

World modernization has gone through three waves of development, and various modes of modernization emerged in these waves. Chinese modernization contains elements that are common to the modernization of other countries, but its most distinctive features shatter the myth that “modernization equals westernization,” while offering the humankind new paths to modernization. It inspires us to reflect on the problems of western capitalist modernization, helping developing countries find a suitable path for their own modernization, and remapping world modernization.

This forum’s aim was to generate both greater knowledge and new policy options for the better advance of Chinese modernization and world modernization. WAPE 2023 invited all contributions to enrich the perspective of modernization and expand the ground for further discussion. Here you can read the 16th WAPE Forum schedule.

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The 15^th Forum, “RETHINKING ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: PERSPECTIVE OF POLITICAL ECONOMY”, of the World Association for Political Economy (WAPE) 18-19 December, 2021. 

The 15th Forum program can be seen here. It was held physically at the Shanghai International Studies University, China; but was complemented by virtual panels with a large number of Marxist economists from outside China participating.  There were around 200 papers presented on a range of subjects: political economy, world capitalism, imperialism, China etc. You can read a statement of the annual forum here https://www.wapeweb.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/09_statement-of-the-15th-forum-of-wape_wzb_p.docx

The conference aimed to juxtapose Political Economy and Economics and contrast their positions on the various fields and areas of economic analysis. Within its broad theme, WAPE 2021 invites all contributions that enrich the perspective of Political Economy and expand the ground for further discussion.

WAPE is an increasingly important forum for discussion among Marxist economics academics. The 15th Forum delivered a myriad of papers and speeches and you see the full program here.  There were some interesting plenary sessions that took place physically in Shanghai on the state of Marxist economics in 21^st century, lessons from the Soviet Union and China and on comparisons with India.

The broad theme of the conference focused on the controversy between the two main alternative traditions in economic analysis, Political Economy and Economics. Economics (with their myopic understanding of the economy as simply market relations, neglect of social and political factors and class struggle and their almost overt support for capital against labour) has been historically proved incapable of grasping how economies work and forecast and confront competently economic crises. On the other hand, Political Economy (offering a social understanding of the economy, focusing on the sphere of production, linking economic analysis to social and political factors and to class struggle) has been more successful in comprehending the actual workings of the economy and in analyzing economic crises. However, despite their long-standing failures, Economics continue to dominate academia and policy-making centers, especially in the West. Even after the last global economic crisis and its blatant failure to foresee and to resolve it, its dominance remains unwavered as it is supported by strong vested class interests. Nevertheless, there is growing unrest within both the academia and the society with this failed dominance. Political Economy is the main approach towards which all those dissatisfied with Economics turn.

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Join as a WAPE member.   WAPE develop itself as a membership organization to facilitate the exchange of knowledge, new thought and research across the divide of languages and geography as well as offer its members access to certain benefits. Read more here https://wapeweb.org/benefits-joining-wape/

The WAPE Secretariat, June 2022

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World Association Political Economy Past Annual Forum

Past Annual Forum have covered various topic areas. Examples of these are from the 4th WAPE Forum Statement, in 2009, on the “Statement On Nations, Globalisation and Democratic Governance During the last thirty years, two evolutions happened in the world.”. Or the 6th WAPE Forum Statement, in 2011, on “A Statement On Responses to Capitalist Crisis: Neoliberalism and Beyond”. More recently during the 15th Annual Forum it was “World Association for Political Economy ‘Rethinking Economic Analysis: Political Economy vs Economics’” which was addressed.

Most recent World Association Political Economy Annual Forum

The 15th Annual WAPE Forum did not take place because of the COVID-19 lockdowns. This Forum was scheduled and held in 2020 on ‘Rethinking Economic Analysis: Political Economy vs Economics’ and was co-organised by WAPE and GAPE (Greek Association of Political Economy – https://poleconom.wordpress.com/) and hosted by the Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences (https://www.panteion.gr/en/) in Athens.