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AT their virtual meeting on Feb- ruary 19， leaders of the Group of Seven （G7） pledged in a joint statement to make 2021 a turning point for multilateralism. Amid global volatility， multilateral cooperation is facing a range of new challenges that need the guidance of innovation and inspiration of a practical trailblazing approach. Nonetheless， despite such uncertainty across the world， the pledge from the G7 sent a positive sign. The stance of supporting and encouraging international cooperation taken by the G7 since its founding in 1975 is reminiscent of the study of the world renowned economist Richard N. Cooper， widely recognized as the founder of study on international cooperation in economics. Cooper helped lay the theoretical ground for the founding of G7. The Maurits C. Boas Professor of International Economics at Harvard University died of cancer on December 23， 2020， at the age of 86.
A Trailblazer in Economics
In his book The Economics of Interdependence： Economic Policy in the Atlantic Community published in 1968， Cooper proposed the cooperative equilibrium theory， a great departure from established ideas represented by John Nash’s non-cooperative equilibrium theory. Cooper contended that countries could achieve better outcomes if they committed to joint settings of macroeconomic policies by working in a collaborative and coordinated way， particularly in the field of international trade， which would promote prosperity. After fierce academic debates and policy contention， Cooper’s theory on international cooperation has been widely accepted. It thus laid the theoretical ground for the founding and development of the G7， G8， and G20.
Cooper once worked as an important policy advisor to four U.S. presidents. His theory about international cooperation exerted a positive influence on the development of U.S.-China relations. While serving as UnderSecretary of State for Economic Affairs under President Jimmy Carter， Cooper contributed to and witnessed the for- mal establishment of China-U.S. diplomatic ties in 1979.
In his studies on international cooperation， Copper approached economics from the perspective of history and sociology. It is an example of true interdisciplinary integration rather than a patchwork or integration for integration’s sake. In his eyes， the real world is complicated， with each link interconnected. He attached value to， and took an objective view on theories and practices of emerging economies like China. A review of his studies on China leads to the discovery of three features — historical perspective， emphasis on investigation， and being future-oriented. History， Reality， and Future
Cooper believed that nobody can understand the present without a keen understanding of the past. In his class on the transformation of China’s economic policy since the commencement of the country’s reform and openingup， he emphasized that students should learn about Chinese history and culture to get a whole picture of the country， rather than focusing only on its recent development. Cooper spoke highly of the Chinese approach of “seeking truth from facts.” He didn’t endorse the excessive reliance on theories， models， and figures. In one of his reports， Cooper quoted a well-known saying from the German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe， “All theory， dear friend， is grey， but the golden tree of actual life springs ever green，” to encourage his Chinese students to associate theory with practice.
Cooper spent a lot of time in different countries for visits or cooperative studies. Later in his career， he shifted his focus to the developing world represented by China. He thought universities in the West had not paid adequate attention to developing countries， believing that a country can only be truly understood by visiting it. Cooper almost visited China every year and had many wonderful memories of the country. He applauded China’s efforts to deepen its relations with other countries.
Emphasizing the importance of investigation was the hallmark of Cooper’s studies on China. In various reports about China， apart from just using data， Cooper always tended to use vivid cases to display China’s development. For example， in his visit to China in the 1970s， Chinese people still showed some unpleasant habits like littering and smoking in public. More than four decades later， Chinese people now value learning， healthy lifestyles， and social service. In some cities like Beijing and Shanghai， waste sorting has become an integral part of people’s daily life. Because of his awareness about Chinese people’s dreams and pursuits， Cooper could always resonate with his Chinese audience.
International Cooperation Theory Embraced
Spanning over 60 years， Cooper’s academic career witnessed many great international changes， most notably the Cold War， rising globalization， and more recently the anti-globalization push during the Trump presidency. Despite social changes， he stuck to the perspective of cooperation and coordination. His international cooperation theory is still widely embraced in economics circles.
Jeffrey Frankel， a professor of capital formation and growth at the Harvard Kennedy School， once commented that Cooper’s theory about international cooperation is an original groundbreaking theory. With the rise of China’s economy， the feasibility of win-win cooperation has become an increasingly popular topic. As isolationism and racism have reared their ugly heads in recent years， the international community is now rife with misunderstanding and prejudice. Under these circumstances， it’s necessary for people to review Cooper’s forward-looking studies. Cooper’s future-oriented perspective is international instead of parochial. In his thesis Economic Interdependence and War， Cooper summarized three globalization trends in history： the first globalization trend in the 16th century， the second from 1870 to 1913 prior to World War I， and the third starting in the 1970s， often referred to as “the great period of globalization.”
Regarding what makes the third globalization a “great period，” former president of the London School of Economics and Political Science， Anthony Giddens， in the third edition of his book Sociology， echoing Cooper’s viewpoint， stated， “Globalization opens our eyes to the increasing ties between the local and global， and means [in the context of globalization]， our actions and behavior will have consequences for others， and the world’s problems will have consequences for us.”
In short， like other economists， Cooper was preoccupied with hot-button issues in his studies. He was， however， particularly interested in establishing a collaborative and coordinated system or mechanism — which could hold the world together. His main ideas are uplifting， inspiring， and empowering. His article “A Glimpse of 2020” confidently spoke of the four factors significant to the future. Increasing international mobility is stressed as always. Auguste Comte， a founder of sociology， gave the sacred formula of positivism as， “Love as a principle and order as the basis； progress as the goal.” In this sense， the most valuable asset of Cooper’s economic studies is humanity.
A Trailblazer in Economics
In his book The Economics of Interdependence： Economic Policy in the Atlantic Community published in 1968， Cooper proposed the cooperative equilibrium theory， a great departure from established ideas represented by John Nash’s non-cooperative equilibrium theory. Cooper contended that countries could achieve better outcomes if they committed to joint settings of macroeconomic policies by working in a collaborative and coordinated way， particularly in the field of international trade， which would promote prosperity. After fierce academic debates and policy contention， Cooper’s theory on international cooperation has been widely accepted. It thus laid the theoretical ground for the founding and development of the G7， G8， and G20.
Cooper once worked as an important policy advisor to four U.S. presidents. His theory about international cooperation exerted a positive influence on the development of U.S.-China relations. While serving as UnderSecretary of State for Economic Affairs under President Jimmy Carter， Cooper contributed to and witnessed the for- mal establishment of China-U.S. diplomatic ties in 1979.
In his studies on international cooperation， Copper approached economics from the perspective of history and sociology. It is an example of true interdisciplinary integration rather than a patchwork or integration for integration’s sake. In his eyes， the real world is complicated， with each link interconnected. He attached value to， and took an objective view on theories and practices of emerging economies like China. A review of his studies on China leads to the discovery of three features — historical perspective， emphasis on investigation， and being future-oriented. History， Reality， and Future
Cooper believed that nobody can understand the present without a keen understanding of the past. In his class on the transformation of China’s economic policy since the commencement of the country’s reform and openingup， he emphasized that students should learn about Chinese history and culture to get a whole picture of the country， rather than focusing only on its recent development. Cooper spoke highly of the Chinese approach of “seeking truth from facts.” He didn’t endorse the excessive reliance on theories， models， and figures. In one of his reports， Cooper quoted a well-known saying from the German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe， “All theory， dear friend， is grey， but the golden tree of actual life springs ever green，” to encourage his Chinese students to associate theory with practice.
Cooper spent a lot of time in different countries for visits or cooperative studies. Later in his career， he shifted his focus to the developing world represented by China. He thought universities in the West had not paid adequate attention to developing countries， believing that a country can only be truly understood by visiting it. Cooper almost visited China every year and had many wonderful memories of the country. He applauded China’s efforts to deepen its relations with other countries.
Emphasizing the importance of investigation was the hallmark of Cooper’s studies on China. In various reports about China， apart from just using data， Cooper always tended to use vivid cases to display China’s development. For example， in his visit to China in the 1970s， Chinese people still showed some unpleasant habits like littering and smoking in public. More than four decades later， Chinese people now value learning， healthy lifestyles， and social service. In some cities like Beijing and Shanghai， waste sorting has become an integral part of people’s daily life. Because of his awareness about Chinese people’s dreams and pursuits， Cooper could always resonate with his Chinese audience.
International Cooperation Theory Embraced
Spanning over 60 years， Cooper’s academic career witnessed many great international changes， most notably the Cold War， rising globalization， and more recently the anti-globalization push during the Trump presidency. Despite social changes， he stuck to the perspective of cooperation and coordination. His international cooperation theory is still widely embraced in economics circles.
Jeffrey Frankel， a professor of capital formation and growth at the Harvard Kennedy School， once commented that Cooper’s theory about international cooperation is an original groundbreaking theory. With the rise of China’s economy， the feasibility of win-win cooperation has become an increasingly popular topic. As isolationism and racism have reared their ugly heads in recent years， the international community is now rife with misunderstanding and prejudice. Under these circumstances， it’s necessary for people to review Cooper’s forward-looking studies. Cooper’s future-oriented perspective is international instead of parochial. In his thesis Economic Interdependence and War， Cooper summarized three globalization trends in history： the first globalization trend in the 16th century， the second from 1870 to 1913 prior to World War I， and the third starting in the 1970s， often referred to as “the great period of globalization.”
Regarding what makes the third globalization a “great period，” former president of the London School of Economics and Political Science， Anthony Giddens， in the third edition of his book Sociology， echoing Cooper’s viewpoint， stated， “Globalization opens our eyes to the increasing ties between the local and global， and means [in the context of globalization]， our actions and behavior will have consequences for others， and the world’s problems will have consequences for us.”
In short， like other economists， Cooper was preoccupied with hot-button issues in his studies. He was， however， particularly interested in establishing a collaborative and coordinated system or mechanism — which could hold the world together. His main ideas are uplifting， inspiring， and empowering. His article “A Glimpse of 2020” confidently spoke of the four factors significant to the future. Increasing international mobility is stressed as always. Auguste Comte， a founder of sociology， gave the sacred formula of positivism as， “Love as a principle and order as the basis； progress as the goal.” In this sense， the most valuable asset of Cooper’s economic studies is humanity.