As waste accumulation keeps expanding, it increasingly poses a serious threat to human health and the environment. Waste can be the source of many diseases, it emits large amounts of methane (a potent greenhouse gas), and exacerbates global warming. According to World Bank estimates, without urgent intervention, the current levels of global waste will increase by 70% by 2050.

We were thrilled to see Salome Gelashvili, head of the ISET-PI Agricultural Policy Research Center (APRC), actively participate in a UNDP Georgia online discussion. During the virtual roundtable (entitled Local Economic Development and Business Friendly Environment for Municipalities), a variety of notable international speakers, particularly utilizing Czech expertise, came together to consider business development, combatting the rural-urban divide, and the effect of COVID-19 on the informal sector.

We are honored and delighted to announce that the BA and MA in economics programs of the International School of Economics at Tbilisi State University (ISET) are now officially accredited by the international quality assurance agency, FIBAA. As a result of this achievement, ISET’s degree programs are presently the only internationally accredited programs in Georgia within the field of economics.

In April 2021, Georgian power plants generated 825 mln. kWh of electricity. This represents a 13% decrease in total generation, compared to the previous year (April 2020, the total generation was 944 mln. kWh). The decrease in generation on a yearly basis comes from the decrease of 4% in hydropower generation, as well as, from decrease in the generation of thermal and wind power by 56% and 18%, respectively.

In a recent ISET Economist blog post, Luc Leruth explores the notion of a spatial fracture in Georgia. He wonders whether people will become accustomed to working remotely, with the COVID crisis having given them this fresh opportunity. If so, this could help decrease the strain on Tbilisi infrastructure by slowing down migration to the capital. Will COVID, unexpectedly, convince people to continue working remotely and settle outside Tbilisi in the countryside?