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Lawrence H. Summers

Lawrence H. Summers

15 commentaries
1 videos & podcasts

Lawrence H. Summers was US Secretary of the Treasury (1999-2001), Chief Economist of the World Bank (1991-93), Director of the US National Economic Council (2009-10), and President of Harvard University (2001-06), where he is currently University Professor.

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  1. The World Is Still on Fire
    summers14_TONY KARUMBAAFP via Getty Images_sudanfamine Tony Karumba/AFP via Getty Images

    The World Is Still on Fire

    Apr 15, 2024 Lawrence H. Summers & N.K. Singh think policymakers need to get four things right to shore up the credibility of the international system.

  2. The Multilateral Development Banks the World Needs
    summers13_Natali_MisGetty Images_worldconnections Natali_Mis/Getty Images

    The Multilateral Development Banks the World Needs

    Jul 24, 2023 Lawrence H. Summers & N.K. Singh offer a plan to ensure that these key institutions prove equal to challenges of the twenty-first century.

  3. A New Chance for the World Bank
    summers12_ STEFANI REYNOLDSAFP via Getty Images)_world bank ERIC BARADAT/AFP via Getty Images

    A New Chance for the World Bank

    Oct 10, 2022 Lawrence H. Summers calls for reforms focused on crisis response, post-conflict reconstruction, and the green transition.

  4. Debt Relief Is the Most Effective Pandemic Aid
    brown64_NICHOLAS KAMMAFP via Getty Images_georgievamalpassworldbankIMF Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images

    Debt Relief Is the Most Effective Pandemic Aid

    Apr 15, 2020 Gordon Brown & Lawrence H. Summers call for a two-year moratorium on payments for every emerging and developing economy that needs help.

  5. Can a Political-Economy Vicious Circle Be Avoided?
    summers10 Getty Images

    Can a Political-Economy Vicious Circle Be Avoided?

    Dec 26, 2019 Lawrence H. Summers sees the US presidential election in November as the year's most important decision worldwide.

  1. velasco150_PAUL ELLISAFP via Getty Images_voting PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images

    In Praise of First-Past-the-Post

    Andrés Velasco explains why Britain’s electoral system is better than all the plausible alternatives.
  2. slaughter105_JACK GUEZAFP via Getty Images_womenwagepeace Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images

    Peacebuilding in the Middle East Requires Women

    Anne-Marie Slaughter & Xanthe Scharff argue that negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians must no longer be the province of men.
  3. varoufakis117_JULIEN DE ROSAAFP via Getty Images_macron JULIEN DE ROSA/AFP via Getty Images

    Macron and Europe’s Centrists Are Out of Good Options

    Yanis Varoufakis shows that an intractable economic conundrum lies behind the current impasse in French politics.
  4. quesada3_ Lokman Vural ElibolAnadolu via Getty Images_immigration Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images

    Immigration Does Not Start at the US Border

    Carlos Alvarado-Quesada laments the failure of Republicans and Democrats alike to address the root causes of migration.
  5. landau4_Getty Images_AI money Getty Images/Anton Petrus

    Will AI Kill Off Money?

    Jean-Pierre Landau considers some of the underappreciated implications of an economy run entirely by machines.
  6. op_krauze1_Fine Art ImagesHeritage ImagesGetty Images_spinoza Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images

    A Philosopher for Our Times

    Enrique Krauze shows that, given rising illiberalism, the seventeenth-century thinker Baruch Spinoza is as relevant as ever.
  7. snower8_Getty Images Getty Images

    A New Worldview for Troubled Times

    Dennis J. Snower proposes four principles to guide policymaking and global negotiations in the age of climate change.
  8. moyo29_Carl CourtGetty Images_FTSE Carl Court/Getty Images

    Navigating Today’s Frothy Financial Markets

    Dambisa Moyo offers a basic framework for assessing the risk of new bubbles and their potential spillover effects.
  9. asadullah16_ MUNIR UZ ZAMANAFP via Getty Images_bangladesh MUNIR UZ ZAMAN/AFP via Getty Images

    An Arab Spring for Bangladesh?

    M. Niaz Asadullah argues that young protestors could help the country chart a democratic course and achieve sustainable growth.

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