BBC.com launches a new special on world economies

Running across the BBC on television, online, radio and mobile, Hard Times asks whether austerity is good for people and how societies with established economic and social structures are tackling mounting public debt. It also explores the impact of the current economic climate on pension provisions across Europe, state aid to emerging nations, and the effect on economies outside the Eurozone.

Executive Editor, BBC Global News, Steve Titherington, says, "Economists from across the world are now examining, with keen interest, the Europe books, and we see Hard Times as an ongoing editorial initiative 'auditing the auditors' and seeing just what the impact is of the decisions world leaders are now making. Our journalists are exploring 'life swaps' between Germany and Greece, looking at the impact of the current economic climate on state aid to emerging nations and developing world. We are also keen to

With strikes and demonstrations planned across much of Europe, the BBC website, BBC.com/news has brought together all the issues facing the Eurozone countries. Comparing and contrasting the different austerity measures being taken, the BBC asks just how successful they might be and brings together stories of people behind the statistics. BBC.com/news also offers the audiences the opportunity to engage with leading academics who discuss whether austerity is good for communities as well as the economy.