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The digitalisation of the German economy is starting to gather speed. On average, German companies are currently reaching a digitalisation level of 54 points. This is the finding of the “Monitoring Report DIGITAL Economy 2017 – Compact” produced by the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) in Mannheim together with the market research institute Kantar TNS. Professor Irene Bertschek, head of the ZEW Research Department “Information and Communication Technologies” presented the report together with Dr. Sabine Graumann at Kantar TNS at this year’s Digital Summit held by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy in Ludwigshafen.

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How can politics and economics keep up with the rapid pace of digitalisation? In what ways is Lothar Späth's pioneering approach to digitalisation still applicable today? The opportunities and challenges this rapid change poses for companies, institutions and society as a whole served as the focus of a podium discussion held in memory of Professor Lothar Späth, former Minister President of Baden-Württemberg and a key figure in the founding of the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW), on 21 March 2017.

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As a result of globalisation and the associated phenomena of migration, climate change, and digitalisation, Europe now stands on the brink of enormous economic and social changes. Professor Lothar Späth, former Minister-President of Baden-Württemberg and one of the early initiators of the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW), was ahead of his time in anticipating these challenges. At a memorial event jointly organised by the Baden-Württemberg state government and ZEW in Mannheim on 21 March 2017, ZEW President Professor Achim Wambach, PhD, Minister-President Winfried Kretschmann MdL, and EU Commissioner Günther H. Oettinger discussed Lothar Späth’s intellectual, economic, and political legacy, while noting the lessons it holds for Europe today.

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What is sustainable consumption? How can Europe meet the challenges associated with the rise of the right-wing parties? Is there such a thing as fair taxation? These are some of the current issues that 22 teams consisting of school students in the grades 10–12 from six different federal states will discuss over the course of the YES! – Young Economic Summit, one of the biggest school competitions aimed at young people which deals with economic and social issues. On 17 February 2017, eleven teams of around 135 students from Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and Saarland took part in the kick-off event for the Southwest region at the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) in Mannheim. On 24 February 2017, there will be another kick-off event in Kiel for the eleven teams from Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg.

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The Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW), the University of International Business and Economics (UIBE) and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation jointly organised this year's Beijing Humboldt Forum in the Chinese capital on September 17–18, 2016. As part of the forum, ZEW organised a session on "The Digitization of the Economy." During the session, ZEW researchers Professor Irene Bertschek and Dr. Fabienne Rasel engaged in a discussion with international guests regarding developments, implications and changes resulting from Industry 4.0 and the digitization of the economy.

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On September 1 and 2, 2016, the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) organised the fifth edition of the workshop on empirical tax research. Around 40 participants attended the event, which boasted a varied programme including various presentations of current empirical research findings regarding the influence of corporate taxation on corporate decision-making. The workshop was organised within the framework of the Leibniz ScienceCampus MannheimTaxation (MaTax), a joint initiative of the University of Mannheim and ZEW.

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The Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB), the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) and the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) jointly organised the fourth international TASKS Conference from September 7-9, 2016, in Mannheim. Around 70 national and international researchers attended the event and discussed labour market adjustments to digitalisation and the future of work. Among the highlights of the event were the keynote speeches held by leading international researchers. In addition, the participants had the opportunity to visit a factory of Pepperl+Fuchs, a company specialised in sensor manufacturing and process automation.

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Having contributed a total of 18 presentations, the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) played an important role at the Annual Conference of the Verein für Socialpolitik (VfS), held at the University of Augsburg, where the Mannheim institute also hosted an information stand. From September 4 to 7, 2016, about 800 researchers exchanged ideas on the core topic "Demographic Change" at the economic association's international conference.

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Numerous scientists from the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) presented their research results at the 31th Annual Congress of the European Economic Association (EEA) in Geneva, which was held from August 22-26, 2016. In addition to the presentations, ZEW also participated as EEA-ESEM 2016 exhibitor, hosting an own information stand at the congress. The 69th Annual European Meeting of the Econometric Society (ESEM) ran in parallel with the Annual Congress of the EEA.

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From June 13 to 15, 2016, the Trans-Atlantic Public Economics Seminar (TAPES) was hosted in Mannheim by the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW). The conference, initiated by one of the most important associations of American economists, the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), is one of the largest events held in the field of public finance in the world. Over three days, around 30 participants discussed findings from current research on social insurance programmes.

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