2008 global economic crisis

The global economic crisis of 2008 was triggered initially by problems in the US credit and housing markets, but from there has spread to the rest of the world's economies. This initiative will try to explain how this happened, what measures have been taken to reduce the bad effects, and so forth.

Describing Global Economic Crisis
It is interesting to understand the how an economic or financial crisis emanates before going into the details of its effects, consequences and remedies. The modern world has witnessed several financial crisis during the last 100 years. These crisis have largely been associated with classical booms and busts in credit markets that results in a boom and bust in banking and securities markets. A typical starting point of crisis is a shock in macro economic environment resulting in a changed profit outlook and enhanced bank lendings to fuel the economic wheel. The optimistic sentiments about future outlook lead to an abnormal hike in prices of specific assets and herding henceforth. Then suddenly this buble implodes and cut to size the investors expectation in such an unmanageable way that the widening gap between profits and speculative prices becomes hard to fil. This further moves up the interest rates and results in liquidity dry ups in market. Businesses start to contract in the wake of increasing real values of debt under disinflationary pressures. This all process put that banks in a situation of distress which lead to an ultimate failure if become persistent. The government intervention becomes imminent either in form of bailout, liquidation or forced closure etc.

Methods

 * Survey wikimedia participants on how it has affected them?
 * Survey wikimedia participants on their understanding?
 * Come up with timelines and connections showing how the problem spread from one sector to another, and from one national economy to another.
 * Discursive materials for floating ideas and solutions, discussion preferably including both economists and non-economists.