Volha Charnysh, an MIT Associate Professor and author of 'Uprooted', delves into the intriguing consequences of post-WWII population transfers. Exploring how integrating displaced populations can bolster state building and local economies, she discusses the dual effects of increased cultural diversity and initial social disruption. The talk highlights how diverse migrant inflows can spur gains in entrepreneurship and education over time. Additionally, Charnysh contrasts the historical and modern handling of forced migration and its implications for citizenship and societal integration.

Interview with Josephine Quinn, author of 'How the World Made the West: A 4000 Year History' In How the World Made the West, Josephine Quinn poses perhaps the most significant challenge ever to the “civilizational thinking” regarding the origins of Western culture—that is, the idea that civilizations arose separately and distinctly from one another. Rather, she locates the roots of the modern West in everything from the law codes of Babylon, Assyrian irrigation, and the Phoenician art of sail to Indian literature, Arabic scholarship, and the metalworking riders of the Steppe, to name just a few examples.According to Quinn, reducing the backstory of the modern West to a narrative that focuses on Greece and Rome impoverishes our view of the past. This understanding of history would have made no sense to the ancient Greeks and Romans themselves, who understood and discussed their own connections to and borrowings from others. They consistently presented their own culture as the result of contact and exchange. Quinn builds on the writings they left behind with rich analyses of other ancient literary sources like the epic of Gilgamesh, holy texts, and newly discovered records revealing details of everyday life. A work of breathtaking scholarship, How the World Made the West also draws on the material culture of the times in art and artifacts as well as findings from the latest scientific advances in carbon dating and human genetics to thoroughly debunk the myth of the modern West as a self-made miracle. ------- Javier Mejia is an economist at Stanford University who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine. Twitter (X): ⁠https://twitter.com/JavierMejiaC⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/javier_mejia_c/⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/javier-mejia-cubillos/⁠ Youtube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@javiermejia5309?si=LEy5CuqD83qVB8jd

Interview with Agustina Paglayan, author of 'Raised to Obey: The Rise and Spread of Mass Education' Nearly every country today has universal primary education. But why did governments in the West decide to provide education to all children in the first place? In Raised to Obey, Agustina Paglayan offers an unsettling answer. The introduction of broadly accessible primary education was not mainly a response to industrialization, or fueled by democratic ideals, or even aimed at eradicating illiteracy or improving skills. It was motivated instead by elites’ fear of the masses—and the desire to turn the “savage,” “unruly,” and “morally flawed” children of the lower classes into well-behaved future citizens who would obey the state and its laws. ------- Javier Mejia is an economist at Stanford University who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine.

Interview with Eva Payne, author of 'Empire of Purity: The History of Americans' Global War on Prostitution' Between the 1870s and 1930s, American social reformers, working closely with the US government, transformed sexual vice into an international political and humanitarian concern. As these activists worked to eradicate prostitution and trafficking, they promoted sexual self-control for both men and women as a cornerstone of civilization and a basis of American exceptionalism. Empire of Purity traces the history of these efforts, showing how the policing and penalization of sexuality was used to justify American interventions around the world.Eva Payne describes how American reformers successfully pushed for international anti-trafficking agreements that mirrored US laws, calling for states to criminalize prostitution and restrict migration, and harming the very women they claimed to protect.  ---- Javier Mejia is an economist at Stanford University who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine.

Interview with Daniel Waldenström, author of 'Richer and More Equal: A New History of Wealth in the West'. Using cutting-edge research and new, sometimes surprising, data, Waldenström shows that what stands out since the late 1800s is a massive rise in the size of the middle class and its share of society’s total wealth. Unfettered capitalism, it seems, doesn’t have to lead to boundless inequality. The key to progress was political and institutional change that enabled citizens to become educated, better paid, and to amass wealth through housing and pension savings. Waldenström asks how we can consolidate these gains while encouraging the creation of new capital. The answer, he argues, is to pursue tax and social policies that raise the wealth of people in the bottom and middle rather than cutting wealth of entrepreneurs at the top. ---- Javier Mejia is an economist at Stanford University who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine.

Interview with Dale C. Copeland, author of 'A World Safe for Commerce: American Foreign Policy from the Revolution to the Rise of China' When the Cold War ended, many believed that expanding trade would usher in an era of peace. Yet today the United States finds itself confronting not just Russia in Europe but China in the Indo-Pacific, Africa, and Latin America. Shedding new light on how trade both reduces and increases the risks of international crisis, A World Safe for Commerce traces how, since the nation’s founding, the United States has consistently moved from peace to conflict when the commerce needed for national security is under threat. ---- Javier Mejia is an economist at Stanford University who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine. Twitter (X): ⁠⁠https://twitter.com/JavierMejiaC⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/javier_mejia_c/⁠⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/javier-mejia-cubillos/⁠⁠ Youtube: ⁠⁠https://youtube.com/@javiermejia5309?si=LEy5CuqD83qVB8jd⁠

Interview with Stefanos Geroulanos, author of 'The Invention of Prehistory: Empire, Violence, and Our Obsession with Human Origins' Books about humanity's origins captivate readers, while news outlets eagerly cover archaeological discoveries, reflecting a long-standing fascination with prehistory. In "The Invention of Prehistory," historian Stefanos Geroulanos explores how Enlightenment-era thinkers began to consider a human past beyond recorded history, moving away from religious explanations to empirical ones. Geroulanos details how various ideas—from the “state of nature” to theories about Neanderthals—shaped Western intellectual thought and justified imperialist and repressive regimes. These notions, ranging from seeing other cultures as "savages" to justifying war through evolutionary theories, underpinned colonial violence and modern imperialism. Geroulanos contends that prehistory narratives reveal more about the times they were conceived than about ancient realities, suggesting that to improve our future, we should move beyond the quest for origins. His work reexamines the impact of our historical interpretations on contemporary society. ---- Javier Mejia is an economist at Stanford University who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine. Twitter (X): ⁠https://twitter.com/JavierMejiaC⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/javier_mejia_c/⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/javier-mejia-cubillos/⁠ Youtube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@javiermejia5309?si=LEy5CuqD83qVB8jd⁠

I'm thrilled to share with you an episode from a new show called The Civic Agora. This venture is part of the Stanford Civics Initiative, where we explore the essence of citizenship and unravel the threads of thought that construct a flourishing society. In this episode of the Civic Agora, we chat with Brandice Canes-Wrone. She is a professor in the political science department and a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford. She is also the director of the Center for Revitalizing American Institutions. Her current research focuses on representation and accountability, including projects on elections, campaign finance, and representation. Follow The Civic Agora on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCK4HRxXhgWCeELg8XV6keFQ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4DFAAkrAb9ySguVq7X4IQS Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy9lOGUzOGU0MC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/d0476371-ace7-4616-a111-cfd3c2241a82/the-civic-agora Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-civic-agora/id1708437088 ---- Javier Mejia is an economist at Stanford University who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine.

Interview with Christopher M. Meissner, author of 'One From the Many: The Global Economy Since 1850' This book provides a brief introduction to the economic history of globalization since 1850. Key indicators, such as trade-to-production ratios, global foreign assets relative to world production, and the share of foreign-born in the population, are tracked over time. All globalization indicators rose between 1850 and 1914, during the first wave of globalization. From 1918 to 1939, the global economy stagnated, experiencing a significant collapse during the Great Depression. Post-World War II, the global economy re-emerged, and integration deepened, generating economic benefits and raising welfare over the long run. While globalization has its costs, and certain groups may lose economically, historical data show a preference for more globalization. Looking ahead, the global economy is likely to persist, with integration continuing to expand. However, sustained globalization depends on recognizing common interests and mitigating adverse effects. ---- Javier Mejia is an economist at Stanford University who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine. Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/JavierMejiaC Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/javier_mejia_c/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/javier-mejia-cubillos/ Youtube: https://youtube.com/@javiermejia5309?si=LEy5CuqD83qVB8jd

Interview with Faisal Ahmed, author of 'Conquests and Rents: A Political Economy of Dictatorship and Violence in Muslim Societies' Tragically, dictatorship and civil strife are prevalent in many contemporary Muslim-majority (hereon, Muslim) societies; characteristics that are detrimental to socio-economic development. In Conquest and Rents: A Political Economy of Dictatorship and Violence in Muslim Societies, I offer an original explanation for why. The book is grounded in a positive political economy approach that advances a formal theory that is “tested” in a historical and contemporary setting. ---- Javier Mejia is an economist at Stanford University who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine. Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/JavierMejiaC Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/javier_mejia_c/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/javier-mejia-cubillos-64504562/