ISET

ISET Economist Blog

A blog about economics in the South Caucasus.
Jan
17

Save Gudiashvili Square

One thing few visitors to Tbilisi fail to notice is the rich and layered architectural heritage of the city. There are medieval churches in Old Tbilisi. There are art noveau buildings in Sololaki. There is Stalinist architecture in Vake. And there are modernist experiments such as the Wedding Palace or the former Transportation Ministry Building. But at the same time this rich architectural heritage is threatened – either left to decay or destroyed or overwhelmed by new building developments. One worrying development is the proposed reconstruction of Gud...
Rate this blog entry:
Continue reading
2531
1 Comment
Write a Comment
Dec
24

The Georgian Christmas tree

What would Christmas be without a Christmas tree? In Georgia, in Europe or anywhere else in the world. But little known to most Europeans, most trees sold in Europe can trace their origin to Georgia. It is the seeds of the Nordmann fir which are exported from Georgia to Christmas tree farms in Denmark, Germany and other countries. Why? The Nordmann firs from the mountain regions of Georgia are some of the finest in the world – what Bordeaux is for the wine world, Ambrolauri in Racha is for Christmas tree producers. Already in the 1960s Danish and Ge...
Rate this blog entry:
Continue reading
3139
5 Comments
Write a Comment
Dec
21

Who needs a safety net?

One of the definitions of a safety net that one can find on the internet is the following: “a net placed to catch an acrobat or similar performer in case of a fall”. This brings to my mind images of thrilling performances I saw at the circus when I was a child. I have to admit in most cases a safety net was used. It was only removed on some rare occasions, and the increased tension became palpable. We knew that only the best acrobats could dare perform in those conditions because even a slight mistake or distraction could lead to disastrous conseque...
Rate this blog entry:
Continue reading
2340
9 Comments
Write a Comment
Dec
19

Small Country, Big Ambitions

From the new issue of Investor, on Georgian film productions:  "It is not easy to cover the expenses of the film with the small number of screens that are in Georgia. The market is limited and the number of screens is also limited," he said. "If you want to make a Georgian film commercially successful, you have to expand this market, you have to go outside...either to Russia or international." There was certainly no shortage of talented Georgians who made it in the Soviet Union, or later in Russia. While we can safely assume that today there are sti...
Rate this blog entry:
Continue reading
2394
2 Comments
Write a Comment

Our Partners