As stock markets gyrate, Europe lurches from crisis to crisis, and recovery in the United States slows, the future of the North American economy is more uncertain than ever. Can individual entrepreneurship, corporate innovation, and governments create a new era of sustained economic growth? Or, will the ongoing financial crisis, political dysfunction in the United States, and the rise of emerging nations erode living standards in North America for the long term?

In this edition of the Munk Debates -- Canada's premier international debate series -- Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman and former Chief Economist at the Bank of America-Merrill Lynch David Rosenberg square off against former director of President Obama’s National Economic Council Lawrence Summers and bestselling author Ian Bremmer to tackle the resolution: Be it resolved North America faces a Japan-style era of high unemployment and slow growth.

This riveting debate features four of the world's most renowned economists discussing the single most important issue facing all North Americans in a lively, engaging forum. The economy is a concern that demands our immediate attention and this enlightening and hugely important debate is a must-read for all of us.

Paul Krugman is an American economist and renowned columnist for the New York Times. He won the 2008 Nobel Prize in Economics for his groundbreaking work on international trade and economic geography. In addition to the Nobel Prize, Krugman’s work in economics has earned him broad acclaim from the economic press and several prestigious awards, including the John Bates Clark medal for his work on international trade and the 2011 Gerald Loeb Award for commentary. Foreign Policy named Krugman one of its 2012 Foreign Policy Top 100 Global Thinkers. He has published over 200 scholarly articles and 20 books, including the most recent call to action End This Depression Now! Professor Krugman also teaches economics and international affairs at Princeton, and is Centenary Professor at the London School of Economics.

Paul Krugman's profile page

David Rosenberg is the Chief Economist and Strategist at Gluskin Sheff + Associates Inc. and the former Chief North American Economist at Bank of America-Merrill Lynch. His economic analysis is frequently featured in Barron’s, the Globe and Mail, the Wall Street Journal, and on CNBC. Rosenberg has been ranked first by economists in the Brendan Wood International Survey for Canada for the past seven years and has been on the U.S. Institutional Investor American All Star Team for the last four years. He ranked second overall in the 2008. He lives in Toronto.

David Rosenberg's profile page

Lawrence Summers has served as Chief Economist of the World Bank, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, President of Harvard, and most recently as President Obama’s director of the White House National Economic Council. He served as a key policymaker in the Treasury Department throughout the administration of President Bill Clinton, and he was Secretary of the Treasury from 1999 to 2001. He is one of the youngest tenured professors in the modern history of Harvard University, and he is the only social scientist to receive the National Science Foundation’s $500,000 Alan T. Waterman Award for Scientific Achievement. He is also the recipient of the John Bates Clark Medal for his work in several fields of economics. Summers is the Charles W. Eliot University Professor at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government.

Lawrence Summers' profile page

Ian Bremmer is the founder and president of Eurasia Group, a leading global political risk analysis and consulting firm. He is the author of several books, including the national bestseller, The End of the Free Market and The J Curve: A New Way to Understand Why Nations Rise and Fall, which was selected by The Economist as one of the best books of 2006. Bremmer is a contributor for the Wall Street Journal and ForeignPolicy.com; and he has published articles in the Washington Post, the New York Times, Newsweek, Harvard Business Review, and Foreign Affairs. He is a panelist for CNN International’s “Connect the World.” Bremmer lives in New York and Washington, DC.

Ian Bremmer's profile page