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Benjamin A. Olken

Benjamin A. Olken

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Benjamin A. Olken, Professor of Economics at MIT, is Director of MIT’s Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab.

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  1. Spend Fossil-Fuel Subsidies on Pandemic Relief and the Poor
    basri1_Qamar SibtainIndia Today GroupGetty Images_indiagasstationfuel Qamar Sibtain/India Today Group/Getty Images
    Free to read

    Spend Fossil-Fuel Subsidies on Pandemic Relief and the Poor

    May 19, 2020 M. Chatib Basri, et al. argue that rock-bottom oil prices give many countries a unique opportunity to abandon an obsolete policy.

  2. Cushioning the Poor from the COVID-19 Shock
    hanna2_INDRANIL MUKHERJEEAFP via Getty Images_coronavirussignindiacooperation Indranil Mukherjee/AFP via Getty Images

    Cushioning the Poor from the COVID-19 Shock

    Apr 15, 2020 Rema N. Hanna & Benjamin A. Olken suggest how developing economies can combat the pandemic and mitigate the impact on the most vulnerable.

  1. COP29 Financial Inclusion is Climate Action Event Thumbnail
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    PS Events: COP29 Live From Baku Session 2

    PS editors present our second session from COP29, Financial Inclusion is Climate Action.
  2. pisaniferry149_ThierryMonasseGettyImages_vonderleyen_green_industry Thierry Monasse/Getty Images
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    The EU Needs a Strong Clean Industrial Deal

    Jean Pisani-Ferry, et al. tout a strategy that combines decarbonization with measures to boost competitiveness and social cohesion.
  3. ggray1_DanielBeloumouOlomoGettyImages_neonatal_ward_cameroon Daniel Beloumou Olomo/Getty Images
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    The World’s Babies Need Antibiotics, Not Just Vaccines

    Glenda Gray urges the international community to help African countries prevent infant deaths from treatable infections.
  4. bp how trump won Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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    How Trump Did It

    Not only did Donald Trump win last week’s US presidential election decisively – winning some three million more votes than his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris – but the Republican Party he now controls gained majorities in both houses on Congress. Given the far-reaching implications of this result – for both US democracy and global stability – understanding how it came about is essential.

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    The Big Picture

    PS editors
  6. pistor38_Beata ZawrzelNurPhoto via Getty Images_capitalismprotest Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images
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    Capitalism Is Driving Democracy’s Death Spiral

    Katharina Pistor argues that the financialization of the global economy has come at the expense self-governance.
  7. anheier26_Markus Lenhardtpicture alliance via Getty Images_reichstag Markus Lenhardt/picture alliance via Getty Images
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    What Germany’s Next Government Must Do

    Helmut K. Anheier argues that whoever wins the upcoming snap election must make progress in four key areas.
  8. op_yhuang2_BRENDAN SMIALOWSKIAFP via Getty Images_trumpmaga Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images
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    To Win Back Voters, Democrats Should Let Trump Be Trump

    Yasheng Huang

    By voting for Republican candidates, working-class voters effectively get to have their cake and eat it, expressing conservative moral preferences while relying on Democrats to fight for their basic economic security. The best strategy for Democrats now will be to permit voters to face the consequences of their choice.

     urges the party to adopt a long-term strategy aimed at discrediting the MAGA ideology once and for all.
  9. basu107_JimWatsonGettyImages_steelworkers_trump1 Jim Watson/Getty Images
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    What If Trump Keeps His Promises?

    Kaushik Basu warns that the president-elect’s proposed trade policies will erode America’s competitiveness.

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