Rebalancing the Reserve: De-Dollarization and the Future of Global Trade
September 5th, 2025 12:00PM -1:00PM
The U.S. dollar has long served as the bedrock of global finance. In recent years, however, assertive economic policies and the growing use of financial leverage as a geopolitical tool have led other nations to question their dependence on the dollar—and on the U.S. as a financial safe haven. Could this trend accelerate the dollar’s decline as the world’s dominant reserve currency? And what would that shift mean for global power and economic stability? Join us as we examine the future of the dollar in a rapidly evolving global landscape.
About Our Speakers
Dr. Radhika Desai is Professor at the Department of Political Studies, and Director, Geopolitical Economy Research Group, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada. She is the author of Geopolitical Economy: After US Hegemony, Globalization and Empire (2013), Slouching Towards Ayodhya: From Congress to Hindutva in Indian Politics (2nd rev ed, 2004) and Intellectuals and Socialism: ‘Social Democrats’ and the Labour Party (1994), a New Statesman and Society Book of the Month, and editor or co-editor of Russia, Ukraine and Contemporary Imperialism, a special issue of International Critical Thought (2016), Theoretical Engagements in Geopolitical Economy (2015), Analytical Gains from Geopolitical Economy (2015), Revitalizing Marxist Theory for Today’s Capitalism (2010) and Developmental and Cultural Nationalisms (2009).
She is also the author of numerous articles in Economic and Political Weekly, International Critical Thought, New Left Review, Third World Quarterly, World Review of Political Economy and other journals and in edited collections on parties, political economy, culture and nationalism.
With Alan Freeman, she co-edits the Geopolitical Economy book series with Manchester University Press and the Future of Capitalism book series with Pluto Press.
She serves on the Editorial Boards of many journals including Canadian Political Science Review, Critique of Political Economy, E-Social Sciences, Pacific Affairs, Global Faultlines, Research in Political Economy, Revista de Economía Crítica, World Review of Political Economy and International Critical Thought.
Dr. Carla Norrlöf is Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto. She serves on the editorial board of International Studies Review, International Studies Quarterly and International Theory. Her research is on theories of international cooperation with a special focus on great powers, particularly US hegemony in the areas of money, trade and security. She has testified twice before the U.S. Congress and is a TEDx MidAtlantic speaker.
Norrlöf’s work has been published with Cambridge University Press, MIT Press and Oxford University Press as well as the Canadian Journal of Political Science, Conflict Management and Peace Science, Cambridge Review of International Affairs, Cooperation and Conflict, International Affairs, International Political Science Review, International Security, Review of International Political Economy and Security Studies.
Norrlöf is a regular columnist with Project Syndicate and a Senior Advisor to Helsinki Geoeconomics Society.
About Our Moderator
Dr. Spencer Cohen is principal and founder of High Peak Strategy LLC, an economics and research consulting firm based in Seattle, Washington specializing in port operations, regional economic analysis, international trade research, and U.S.-China relations. High Peak Strategy LLC works with a diverse range of clients, including ports, economic development organizations, industrial development authorities, engineering firms, industry and trade associations, and local governments. Dr. Cohen is a leading expert in port and trade economics, economic impact modeling, labor market analysis, and regional economic development. He has worked with clients across the U.S. and abroad, including in the U.S. West Coast, U.S. East Coast, Canada, and the Asian Development Bank.
Dr. Cohen has a PhD in geography (focus in economic geography) from the University of Washington, where his research examined land markets and local government finance in China. He has lived, studied, and conducted research in China. He was a 2021-2023 National Committee on U.S.-China Relations Public Intellectuals Program Fellow, 2023 American Mandarin Society fellow, and 2020-2021 World Affairs Council fellow. Spencer serves on the board of the Seattle Economics Council and is an affiliate faculty with the University of Washington Department of Geography. He holds a BA in mathematics and history (double major) from the University of Connecticut and an MA in China Studies from the University of Washington.
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