Skip to main content
Download:
Events •

Social Security Symposium: A Global Perspective — Lessons from the German and Swedish Pension Systems

As we approach the 90th anniversary of the US Social Security program in 2025, and as the program’s trust fund is projected to be depleted by 2033, we find ourselves at a critical juncture. Social Security reform is essential to preserving the program’s ability to provide critical economic security to vulnerable seniors by averting indiscriminate benefit cuts, which are scheduled to occur by law when the trust fund goes to zero. Sensible reforms will ensure the program can meet this pivotal role without imposing undue debt burdens or excessive taxes on younger generations. There are further opportunities to modernize Social Security to enhance individual liberty and reduce disincentives to work and saving that undermine US economic growth.

This symposium will foster insightful discussions on the various dimensions of Social Security reform. By bringing together a diverse group of US and international experts, we will explore shared challenges and identify global lessons to inform US reform options. The insights and lessons from our conversations will equip US legislators with informed perspectives, innovative solutions, and evidence‐​based strategies to reforming Social Security over the next decade. Breakfast and lunch will be served.

Featuring
Kristoffer Lundberg
Kristoffer Lundberg

Deputy Director, Policy Analysis Unit, Swedish Ministry of Health and Social Affairs

Martin Werdling
Martin Werding

Chair, Social Policy and Public Finance, Ruhr University Bochum