As Group of 20 (G20) members have committed to transition to low-carbon economies, they need to adopt a carefully coordinated approach to ensure an orderly transition that considers the potential cross-border spillover risks of domestic transitions. A new Think20 (T20) policy brief by Rishikesh Ram Bhandary, Régis Gourdel, Xiaobei He, Lara Merling and Irene Monasterolo […]
Many low- and middle-income countries are struggling with deteriorating debt sustainability and external shocks, including the economic repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s war in Ukraine and the tightening of monetary policy in advanced economies. Amid these developments, it is crucial to explore whether the world – and its most vulnerable countries – is well […]
By Yan Wang and Yinyin Xu Three years since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, multiple extreme weather disasters have pushed millions of people to the brink of hunger and poverty. Progress in achieving the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has been rolled back in many countries due to overlapping crises, or ‘polycrises’ […]
Three years since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, multiple extreme weather disasters have pushed millions of people to the brink of hunger and poverty. Progress in achieving the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has been rolled back in many countries due to multiple overlapping crises, or poly-crises: the health crisis, the global […]
By Alex Clark and Cecilia Springer Chinese development finance institutions (DFIs) are not alone in providing financing for coal-fired power plants – but they have played an outsized role in funding publicly-financed plants built outside China in the last ten years. Under pressure from host countries’ climate commitments and competition from renewable power sources, early […]
By Leslie Elliott Armijo and Prateek Sood Global concern over the recent acrimonious debate surrounding raising the United States’ debt ceiling – and the tenuous relief following a long awaited agreement – illustrates the US dollar’s centrality in the national and world economies. While there would be an enormous cost to the reputation and leadership […]
By Rachel Thrasher The European Union (EU) Commission recently proposed that all EU member countries withdraw as a bloc from the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), an investment treaty with the specific goal of facilitating investment and protecting investors in the energy industry. The ECT has attracted increasing criticism for its misalignment with Europe’s energy and […]
By Mridhu Khanna On Wednesday June 7, the Boston University Global Development Policy (GDP) Center hosted a webinar on “Kindleberger and the 21st Century” featuring Perry Mehrling, author of “Money and Empire: Charles P. Kindleberger and the Dollar System” and Robert N. McCauley, co-author of eighth edition of “Manias, Panics and Crashes: A History of […]
The world needs more ambitious collective policy actions to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) proposes internationally coordinated carbon price floors – adjusted to levels of development – as ideal climate mitigation instruments. In reality, the implementation of explicit carbon pricing systems at required levels and scale have been limited. A new […]
Multiple global environmental agreements cover different steps in the life cycle of hazardous substances from their production to final disposal. Yet, chemicals, including many pesticides, continue to cause much harm to human health and the environment. One of the global chemicals treaties — the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous […]