As eurozone leaders continue to grapple with the debt crisis, the "austerity vs growth" debate remains in the spotlight. Is Europe a lost continent? Markus Karlsson puts the question to Sir Howard Davies, who made that very claim two years ago. He's a former Deputy Governor of the Bank of England and a former director of the London School of Economics. Now he is a visiting professor at the political science university Sciences Po here in Paris.
Scotland's devolved government intends to ask voters in 2014 whether they want to break away from the rest of the UK. It's a referendum which raises many economic questions: who would control Britain's oil reserves in the North Sea, and what currency would an independent Scotland use? Those are some of the questions Markus Karlsson puts to Lena Wilson, Chief Executive of Scottish Enterprise.
In the United States, the Obama administration wants to limit carbon emissions from US power plants. That proposal is seen as putting a lid on the construction of new coal-powered plants. Markus Karlsson talks to the woman behind that policy, Lisa Jackson. She is the Head of the US Environmental Protection Agency.
Will the firepower of the eurozone's permanent bailout fund be enough to stop contagion? Markus Karlsson puts the question to Jorgen Esmelkov, Deputy Chief Economist at the OECD.
They overthrew their dictators. Now they have to fight against corruption and unemployment. How are the North African countries doing since the Arab Spring? Are investors coming back? Markus Karlsson speaks to Lars Thunell. He is the CEO of the International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank.