Robust environmental and social risk management (ESRM) frameworks are posited as tools that can, if effectively implemented, contribute to more sustainable and inclusive development. Yet beyond the ESRM challenges that have emerged from previous booms, the ongoing critical mineral boom is associated with distinct geographies, rapid speed of expansion and, in some cases, newly-commercialized extraction […]
Mortality rates decreased more slowly in the US than in other high-income countries (HICs) between 1980 and 2019, resulting in growing numbers of excess US deaths compared with other HICs. A new journal article published in JAMA Health Forum by Jacob Bor and coauthors assesses trends in excess US deaths before (1980-2019), during (2020-2022) and after (2023) the […]
By Tim Hirschel-Burns and Rachel Thrasher It is a fraught moment for North American trade policy. Over the last few months, United States President Trump has announced and then paused various tariffs on Canada and Mexico. Both countries have threatened retaliation on the US while simultaneously attempting to maintain an open channel of communication to […]
Troubled sovereign international debt is a global governance challenge, requiring solutions balancing the interests of the global economy, creditors, and debtor nations and their citizens. Unspoken ethical and/or logical assumptions exert subtle influences on sovereign debt debates and negotiations. A new working paper by Leslie Elliott Armijo and Prateek Sood explores the origins of the […]
By Leslie Elliott Armijo and Prateek Sood Ideas matter for choices about economic policy. Unexamined assumptions may bound the scope of the analysis of the sources of problems, as well as their possible solutions. After each round of international financial crises and their associated sovereign defaults, possible solutions are proposed to amend the global governance […]
To achieve the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and avoid the catastrophic consequences of climate inaction, emerging market and developing countries (excluding China) need to mobilize a massive volume of investments, with estimates ranging between $3-4 trillion annually by 2030. However, not only is developing countries’ fiscal space constrained by the features of […]
Most of the world’s countries have renewed their interest in leveraging industrial policies to address concerns about global competitiveness, economic security and much needed investment in low-carbon technologies. Indeed, to combat climate change, the world needs rapid, diverse and experimental action by all nations, regardless of development or income level. To enable such action, the […]
In many low- and middle-income countries, it is commonly believed that weak state and regulatory capacities limit the ability to reduce pollution and mitigate climate impact. In Bangladesh and across South Asia, most brick manufacturing takes place in informal, traditional coal-fired kilns. These kilns are among the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions and air […]
In many ways the African continent has been poised for take-off. The continent is home to many of the key ingredients for a successful 21st century economy with 60 percent of the world’s solar resources, 30 percent of proven transition mineral reserves and enough wind potential to provide the entire continent enough electricity to meet […]
By Samantha Igo Rachel Nolan, a Core Faculty Member of the Human Capital Initiative at the Boston University Global Development Policy Center and an Assistant Professor of International History at the BU Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies, has been awarded a New Directions Fellowship from the Mellon Foundation to expand her study of […]