ROCKING OUR PRIORS

Poverty is falling. It's falling due to global economic integration, and growth - or so claims the international development consensus. But is this correct? And is this the best approach to meaningful poverty reduction? What's the alternative? Could labour-led development accelerate poverty reduction? Join us to discuss Professor Selwyn's new book, "The Struggle for Development". https://www.wiley.com/en-gb/The+Struggle+for+Development-p-9781509512782

What might reduce son preference in India? Could equal inheritance rights help? Actually no. Despite legislative change, parents continue to favour sons, and protect their inheritance rights by killing or neglecting second-born daughters. Given low levels of female employment, parents still see sons as providers, and still see them as continuing the family lineage. Dr. Sanchari Roy argues that to overcome inequalities we need much wider coordination: tackling opportunity costs; increasing exposure to women in employment; and enforcing gender quotas. Or perhaps change will come from the patriarchy itself - as husbands fight for their wives' inheritance rights? Curious? Read the full paper: http://ftp.iza.org/dp11239.pdf And visit Sanchari's webpage: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/sspp/departments/did/People/Academic-staff/Sanchari-Roy/Bio.aspx

Join us to discuss Professor Risman's fascinating new book: - Are millennials more liberal? - How are they challenging gender inequalities? - Why do we need to organise collectively? - What would enable more shared care work? - Should we aspire for equality, or the destruction of gender categories? Curious? Here's the book: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/where-the-millennials-will-take-us-9780199324385?cc=gb&lang=en

How has Bangladesh rapidly reduced poverty? Is it due to microfinance, NGOs, growth, or an elite consensus? The brilliant Dr. Hossain explains the history and politics behind Bangladesh's unexpected success. Read more here: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-aid-lab-9780198785507?cc=gb&lang=en

Why do governments prioritise & invest in health care? Is social activism key? Not in the BRICS. These governments primarily improved health care to buttress their *international reputations* - argues Dr. Ed Gomez, Senior Lecturer at King's College London. Curious? Check out Ed's fascinating new book: https://jhupbooks.press.jhu.edu/content/geopolitics-health

From the USA to Uganda, strong ethnic identities can fuel hostilities; deter contributions to public goods; thwart class-based solidarity; curb economic growth; fuel secessionist movements; and ferment civil war. So, how do people come to identify with the nation, rather than their ethnicity? Can power-sharing at national level change people's identities? If so, what might lead to more inclusive politics? Why might elites come to share power with different ethnicities? Dr. Elliott Green (Associate Professor at the LSE) discusses these questions. He draws on quantitative and qualitative analysis, from his British Journal of Political Science paper: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/84315/1/Ethnicity%2C%20national%20identity%20and%20the%20state_Final.pdf (ungated)

Why did people vote for Brexit? Why didn't attitudes towards the EU change much over the campaign? How can academics engage more effectively? How can we rebuild a fairer, more inclusive Britain? Professor Anand Menon discusses findings from his fascinating new book, co-authored with Geoffrey Evans. You can buy the book here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Brexit-British-Politics-Geoffrey-Evans-ebook/dp/B077CLZD88/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1512504173&sr=8-3&keywords=brexit+and+british+politics Read the latest analysis from UK in a Changing Europe: http://ukandeu.ac.uk/

Does microfinance work? How can we investigate its impact? What about pooling Randomised Control Trials? Dr. Rachael Meager (Assistant Professor at the LSE) presents an innovative research methodology: "Aggregating Distributional Treatment Effects: A Bayesian Hierarchical Analysis of the Microcredit Literature". You can read the full paper here: https://economics.mit.edu/files/12292

How to improve state capability - such that low- and middle-income country governments can effectively tackle local problems? Instead of 'best practice' recommendations or cocooned donor projects, Dr. Matt Andrews emphasises 'Problem Driven Iterative Adaptation' (PDIA). Governments explore challenges, identify their causes, incrementally address obstacles, and build their capabilities through doing. But can such incremental adaptations enable inclusive growth? And how can researchers/ donors support this process? Listen to our discussion! You can register for their free online course here: www.buildingstatecapability.com/ Read the open access book: bsc.cid.harvard.edu/building-state-…analysis-action

How did China escape the poverty trap? And what can other emerging economies learn from China's success of 'directed improvisation'? Dr. Ang discusses findings from her fascinating new book: http://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/?GCOI=80140100715940