Harvard Center for International Development

Roughly one in every five births occurs in India.  Data reveal that despite improvements in the last decade, Indian children are still among the most unhealthy in the world.  In the state of Uttar Pradesh, which is home to 200 million people, 45 out of every 1000 babies die in the first month of life.  That is a higher rate of neonatal death than any country in the world except Pakistan.  Why does child health remain an enduring challenge for the Indian population?  Despite recent government programs to encourage hospital birth and build toilets, discrimination against women and people from the lower castes continues to harm child health. Today on CID's Speaker Series Podcast, Rohan Sandhu, CID student Ambassador, interviews Diane Coffey, a demographer who studies social influences on health in India. Diane co-directs r.i.c.e., a research institute for compassionate economics, which does research and policy advocacy for child health in India. www.hks.harvard.edu/centers/cid Interview recorded on October 4th, 2019. About Diane: Diane Coffey is a demographer who studies social influences on health in India. One area of her research focuses on the intergenerational transmission of poor population health resulting from India's exceptionally poor maternal nutrition. Another area of her research investigates the causes and consequences of open defecation in rural India. Diane has an MPA and a PhD Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School, and is currently an assistant professor of Sociology and Population Research at the University of Texas at Austin. She co-directs r.i.c.e., a research institute for compassionate economics, which does research and policy advocacy for child health in India. View the transcript for this episode here: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/centers/cid/files/Transcripts/Transcript-%20Progress%20and%20Enduring%20Challenges%20for%20the%20Health%20of%20Children%20in%20India.pdf

Urban violence is one of the most divisive and allegedly intractable issues of our time. But as CID Senior Research Fellow Thomas Abt writes in his new book Bleeding Out, we actually possess all the tools necessary to stem violence in our cities. Coupling the latest social science with firsthand experiences in policymaking, Abt proposes a relentless focus on violence itself—not drugs, gangs, or guns. Because violence is clustering among small groups of people and places, it can be predicted and prevented using a series of evidence-informed, data-driven strategies, both in the United States and in Latin America, where 41 of the 50 most violent cities are located. In this CID Speaker Series podcast produced by Growth Lab, Rushabh Sanghvi, Research Assistant at the Growth Lab interviews Thomas Abt on his latest book and its practical solutions to the global emergency of urban violence. // https://amzn.to/2YwjsLN // Interview recorded on September 27th, 2019. About Thomas Abt: Thomas Abt is a Senior Research Fellow with the Center for International Development, where he leads CID’s Security and Development Seminar Series. He is also a member of the Campbell Collaboration Criminal Justice Steering Committee, member of the Advisory Board of the Police Executive Programme at the University of Cambridge, and a Senior Fellow with the Igarapé Institute in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Both in the United States and globally, Abt writes, teaches, and studies the use of evidence-informed approaches to reduce urban violence, among other criminal justice topics. His new book, Bleeding Out: The Devastating Consequences of Urban Violence - and a Bold New Plan for Peace in the Streets, was published by Basic Books in June 2019. Abt’s work is frequently featured in major media outlets such as the Atlantic, Economist, Foreign Affairs, New Yorker, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, MSNBC, and National Public Radio. Before joining Harvard, Abt served as Deputy Secretary for Public Safety to Governor Andrew Cuomo in New York, where he oversaw all criminal justice and homeland security agencies, including the Divisions of Corrections and Community Supervision, Criminal Justice Services, Homeland Security and Emergency Services, and the State Police. During his tenure, Abt led the development of New York’s GIVE (Gun-Involved Violence Elimination) Initiative, which employs evidence-informed, data-driven approaches to reduce gun violence. Before his work in New York, Abt served as Chief of Staff to the Office of Justice Programs at the U.S. Department of Justice, where he worked with the nation’s principal criminal justice grant-making and research agencies to integrate evidence, policy, and practice. He played a lead role in establishing the National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention, a network of federal agencies and local communities working together to reduce youth and gang violence. Abt was also founding member of the Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative, a place-based development effort that was recognized by the Kennedy School as one of the Top 25 Innovations in Government for 2013. Abt received a bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Michigan and a law degree with honors from the Georgetown University Law Center. View the transcript for this episode here: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/centers/cid/files/Transcripts/Transcript-%20bleeding%20out.pdf

The logical extension of today’s ferment in America about white privilege and male entitlement is, at the global level, about the responsibility of the United States and its citizens to the world’s poor, of all races and cultures, and especially to the world’s disempowered women in poor countries. What are the responsibilities to them of us, with privilege and power? Today on the return CID's weekly Speaker Series podcast, Growth Lab Research Assistant Ana Grisanti speaks with Nancy Birdsall about key themes in her upcoming work memoir. Nancy draws on her own life experience being born into membership of the benighted cosmopolitan elite and stumbling into work as a development economist, as a metaphor for growing awareness of the depth and costs of inequality in the world; the centrality to development of the women’s movement and women’s agency in a world of persistent patriarchy; and the challenge of global governance in a system of sovereign nations facing new risks in an interdependent, “shrinking” world. About the Speaker: Nancy Birdsall is president emeritus and a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development, a policy-oriented research institution that opened its doors in Washington, DC in October 2001. Prior to launching the center, Birdsall served for three years as senior associate and director of the Economic Reform Project at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Her work at Carnegie focused on issues of globalization and inequality, as well as on the reform of the international financial institutions. From 1993 to 1998, Birdsall was executive vice-president of the Inter-American Development Bank, the largest of the regional development banks, where she oversaw a $30 billion public and private loan portfolio. Before joining the Inter-American Development Bank, she spent 14 years in research, policy, and management positions at the World Bank, most recently as director of the Policy Research Department. Birdsall has been researching and writing on economic development issues for more than 25 years. Her most recent work focuses on the relationship between income distribution and economic growth and the role of regional public goods in development. Birdsall holds a PhD in economics from Yale University and an MA in international relations from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. You can learn more about Nancy's work at https://www.cgdev.org/expert/nancy-birdsall. Nancy welcomes comments directly at nbirdsall@cgdev.org. View the transcript for this episode here: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/centers/cid/files/Transcripts/Transcript-%20From%20the%20U.S..pdf

The creators of the Atlas of Economic Complexity - Harvard Growth Lab’s free online tool that translates economic growth research into policy actions to expand global prosperity - are proud to introduce: Country Profiles, a first-of-its-kind platform that revolutionizes how to think about economic strategy, policy, and investment opportunities for over 130 countries. Country Profiles invite users to take an interactive, step-by-step journey to analyze a country’s economic dynamics and future growth prospects, including identifying what new industries are poised to take-off. In this podcast, Annie White, Senior Product Manager for the Atlas of Economic Complexity and interviews Professor Ricardo Hausmann, Director of Harvard’s Growth Lab, about their new Country Profiles. www.atlas.cid.harvard.edu Recorded on Sept. 5th, 2019 View the transcript for this episode here: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/centers/cid/files/Transcripts/Transcript-Introducing%20the%20Atlas%20of%20Economic.pdf

In this podcast, Annie White and Tim Cheston discuss newly released Growth Lab research - 2027 Global Growth Projections. The projections of annualized growth rates to 2027 are based on the latest 2017 trade data and our newly updated measure of economic complexity, which captures the diversity and sophistication of productive capabilities embedded in a country’s exports. Uganda, Egypt, Myanmar, China, and Vietnam top the list of the fastest-growing economies to 2027, all expected to grow by at least six percent annually. Growth Lab researchers predict that countries who have diversified their production into more complex sectors, like Vietnam and China, are those that will experience the fastest growth in the coming decade. Annie White, Product Manager of the Atlas of Economic Complexity interviews Tim Cheston, Senior Manager, Applied Research at CID’s Growth Lab and a member of the team leading the Atlas of Economic Complexity. The Atlas is our online tool that can visualize a country’s total trade, track changes over time and explore growth opportunities for more than a hundred countries worldwide. Access the 2027 Growth Projections and updated Economic Complexity Rankings: www.atlas.cid.harvard.edu (See transcript here: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/centers/cid/files/Transcripts/2027%20Global%20Growth%20Projections%20_mp3.plain_text.pdf)

Argentina is currently facing yet another economic crisis. Eduardo Levy Yeyati, Dean of the School of Government at Universidad Torcuato Di Tella in Buenos Aires, believes there are deep roots in Argentina that make the economic crisis Aristotelian in nature. There are both economic and political factors that have contributed to the current fiscal situation, which make it difficult to rectify when considering the impact of shorter election cycles on economic policy strategy. For Argentina to find its way out of this crisis, Eduardo places importance on finding consensus among stakeholders to improve existing policies. In this podcast, Growth Lab research fellow Carolina Pan and Eduardo as they discuss the contributing factors to this economic situation in Argentina and the means by which the country can prevent future crises. https://growthlab.cid.harvard.edu/ Interview recorded on May 8, 2019. About Eduardo Levy Yeyati: Eduardo Levy Yeyati, is the Dean of School of Government of Universidad Torcuato Di Tella in Buenos Aires, and the founder and Academic Director of its Center for Evidence-based Policy (CEPE-Di Tella). He is also principal researcher at Argentina´s National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), and founding partner of Elypsis, an economic research firm, and a regular consultant for multilateral financial organizations, and public and private institutions. Prior to that, he was an advisor to the Office of the Chief of Cabinet in Argentina (where he led the program Argentina 2030), honorary president of the National Council of Production (which he helped launch in 2016), Director at the Bank of Investment and Trade Credit (BICE), President of the Center for Public Policy (CIPPEC, an Argentine think tank), Head of Latin American Research and Emerging Markets Strategy at Barclays Capital, Financial Sector Advisor for Latin America and the Caribbean at the World Bank, and Chief Economist of the Central Bank of Argentina. A regular consultant for multilateral financial organizations and public and private institutions in developing economies, and a former Senior Fellow at Brookings (2009-2014) and recipient of Harvard´s Robert F. Kennedy Visiting Professorship in Latin American Studies (2006), his academic work on development and emerging market banking and finance is ranked #1 among Argentina´s economists by RePEc´s research database. He is a regular contributor to local and international media. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania and a BA in Engineering from Universidad de Buenos Aires. View the transcript for this episode here: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/centers/cid/files/Transcripts/Transcript-ArgentinaCrisis.pdf

Since 2013, the Center for International Development has been collaborating with the Government of Albania to identify binding constraints to economic growth and create policy solutions to solve them. CID’s Growth Lab and Building State Capability programs have used the tools of growth diagnostics and problem driven iterative adaptation (PDIA) to help drive economic growth in the country. CID Researchers Ermal Frasheri and Tim McNaught have seen firsthand how theory informs public policy and how insights from public policymaking, in turn, enrich our theoretical frameworks. Today on CID’s Speaker Series podcast, Jason Keene, student at the Harvard Kennedy School, interviews Ermal and Tim, who give an overarching perspective on the project, addressing questions such as: where did we start, where are we now, and what is our approach to country projects? Learn more about the project: https://albania.growthlab.cid.harvard.edu/ Interview recorded on May 3, 2019. About Ermal Frasheri: Ermal Frasheri joined the Center for International Development's Growth Lab as a Research Fellow in 2014. Ermal finished his doctoral studies, S.J.D, at Harvard Law School, where he worked in the areas of law and economic development, international law, European integration, and social and political theories. He has written papers on legal reform and comparative law, European Union, financial services, international law, and his dissertation examined the relationship between regional integration in the context of European integration and development strategies. Ermal has taught at Harvard in various roles since 2006 in the fields of political and social theories, European integration and EU law, democracy, international institutions, and sociology. He was awarded a teaching excellence award by Harvard, and was appointed a Byse Fellow at Harvard Law School (fall 207) where he taught a series of workshops on Law and Development. He has also taught International Law at Babson College, and European Union law at New England Law – Boston. Currently, Ermal teaches courses on Law and Corruption, and International Law and Migration at the Sturm College of Law, University of Denver. About Tim McNaught: Tim McNaught joined CID's Building State Capability program as a Fellow in 2016, focusing primarily on engagements with the governments of Sri Lanka and Albania. He currently is working on the Building PFM Capabilities in Africa program. Prior to joining CID, he worked as an economist for the Ministry of Finance in Timor-Leste, specializing in fiscal policy. He developed his strong interest in economic development while serving as a United States Peace Corps Volunteer in Azerbaijan. Tim holds a Master in Public Administration in International Development (MPA/ID) from the Harvard Kennedy School and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Miami. View the transcript for this episode here: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/centers/cid/files/Transcripts/Transcript-Public%20Policy%20in%20Action.pdf

The Other Slavery examines the system of bondage that targeted Native Americans, a system that was every bit as terrible, degrading, and vast as African slavery. Anywhere between 2.5 and 5 million Native Americans may have been enslaved throughout the hemisphere in the centuries between the arrival of Columbus and the beginning of the 20th century. And, interestingly, in contrast to African slavery which targeted mostly adult males, the majority of these Indian slaves were women and children. Today on CID’s Speaker Series podcast, Anna Mysliewic, student at the Harvard Kennedy School, interviews Andres Resendez, author of The Other Slavery and Professor of History at UCDavis. Purchase the book: https://amzn.to/2WBpzNr Interview recorded on April 26, 2019. About Andrés Reséndez: Andrés Reséndez is a professor of history and author. His specialties are early European exploration and colonization of the Americas, the U.S-Mexico border region, and the early history of the Pacific Ocean. His latest book, The Other Slavery: The Uncovered Story of Indian Enslavement in America (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016), was a finalist for the 2016 National Book Award and winner of the 2017 California Book Awards in nonfiction and the 2017 Bancroft Prize from Columbia University. He teaches courses on food and history, Latin America, and Mexico. He is currently working on a new book provisionally titled Conquering the Pacific: The Story of How a Mulatto Pilot and a Friar-Mariner Learned to Navigate the Largest Ocean and Launched our Global World. View the transcript for this episode here: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/centers/cid/files/Transcripts/Transcript-The%20Other%20Slavery.pdf

Environmental degradation reduces the environmental capacity to meet social and ecological needs of societies, which is exacerbated by natural hazards and extreme climate events, and often intensify existing vulnerabilities. Marginalized groups in cities, particularly women and poor, are disproportionately at risk to face negative consequences of such environmental stressors. To better understand relationship between women empowerment and environmental degradation in cities, researchers Ammar Malik and Amit Patel surveyed 1,199 households in 12 informal settlements of New Delhi (India), Dhaka (Bangladesh), and Islamabad and Lahore (Pakistan). Today on CID’s Speaker Series podcast, Ghazi Mirza, student at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, interviews Ammar Malik and Amit Patel, who tested several linkages between empowerment and measures of environmental degradation and found many significant associations. Read the policy brief: https://bit.ly/2vY8Qos Interview recorded on April 19, 2019. About Ammar Malik: Ammar A. Malik is the Director of EPoD Research. He leads research-policy engagements that derive actionable policy insights from rigorous research. He oversees EPoD’s labor market and education research portfolios in the Middle East, identifying and supporting opportunities for data and economic analysis to inform local policies that empower underrepresented groups and support social and economic development. About Amit Patel: Amit Patel, PhD: Amit Patel is Assistant Professor at University of Massachusetts Boston’s McCormack Graduate School for Policy and Global Studies. Amit’s research focuses on bottom-up approaches to improve socio-economic outcomes for urban poor. His main research projects funded by the National Science Foundation, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Urban Institute, and the World Bank focus on housing and health disparities concerning urban poor living in slums in the Global South. He regularly teaches courses on public policy theories, urban politics and policies, and advanced quantitative methods. Amit has a PhD in public policy from George Mason University and prior training in management, urban and regional planning, and architecture. When he is not in the field or in front of the computer, you will find him behind the camera. View the transcript for this episode here: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/centers/cid/files/Transcripts/Transcript-Empowering%20Women%20in%20South%20Asia.pdf

The majority of the world’s 450 million smallholder farmers and the 2 billion people who depend on them live in rural villages in developing countries, growing crops at close to subsistence levels to feed their families. Small changes in agricultural practices can substantially improve productivity and profitability, but farmers continue to lack the advice they need to close the yield gap and maximize their incomes. However, mobile phone ownership and access to mobile phones are increasing in developing countries, presenting a huge opportunity to provide digital agricultural advisory services. Today on CID’s Speaker Series podcast, Jason Keene, student at the Harvard Kennedy School, interviews Jonathan Lehe, Director of New Programs at Precision Agriculture for Development, who discusses how PAD is working to improve the lives of farmers in developing countries. www.hks.harvard.edu/centers/cid Interview recorded on April 5, 2019. About Jonathan Lehe: Jonathan Lehe is PAD's Global Research Manager. Mr. Lehe holds a Masters in Public Administration in International Development (MPA/ID) from the Harvard Kennedy School. He has more than 10 years of experience in the global health and education sectors, managing research projects and implementation of programs to scale up access to critical public services in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. He has previously worked at the Clinton Health Access Initiative, and consulted for the World Bank, Bridge International Academies, and MIT's Jameel Poverty Action Lab. View the transcript for this episode here: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/centers/cid/files/Transcripts/Transcript-Improving%20Smallholder%20Farmers.pdf