Handbook of Development Economics Conference
This conference will bring together contributors to the upcoming edition of the Handbook of Development Economics and other experts to discuss current insights on critical issues in development economics.
Event description
The Handbook of Development Economics serves as a seminal reference text, bringing together in-depth analyses from leading scholars and covering a wide range of development challenges faced by low- and middle-income countries. Economists Rohini Pande, Penny Goldberg, and Pascaline Dupas are co-editing the upcoming (sixth) edition of the Handbook of Development Economics, which will include 15 chapters on a range of pressing topics, from technology and international trade to state capacity and climate change, by pioneering researchers who have advanced the frontiers of knowledge in these domains.
On September 4-5, 2025, the Yale Economic Growth Center and Yale Inclusion Economics, in collaboration with the MacMillan Center’s South Asian Studies Council, are organizing a Handbook Conference hosted at Yale University. Each session will spotlight a chapter from the forthcoming Handbook, featuring a presentation by one of the chapter’s authors on their in-progress work, highlighting key learnings and takeaways, and reflecting on the broader literature. Presentations will be followed by discussant remarks and open discussion.
Given the evolving nature of the international development landscape, this convening will provide an opportunity to take stock of the lessons we have learnt, highlight the progress we have made in different domains and regions - from sub-Saharan Africa to South Asia - alongside identifying key policy-relevant challenges and questions for future research.
Event details
- Handbook of Development Economics Conference
- Date: September 4-5, 2025
- Organizers: Yale Economic Growth Center, Yale Inclusion Economics, MacMillan Center South Asian Studies Council
- Location: On campus, Yale University
Conference Program
Day 1: Thursday September 4, 2025
Registration & Coffee (10:30 am - 11:00 am)
Opening Remarks (11:00 am - 11:15 am)
Session 1: A Geographical Perspective (11:15 am - 12:00 pm)
- Author: Pascaline Dupas (Princeton University)
- Discussant: Adam Storeygard (Tufts University)
Session 2: Appropriate Development (12:00 pm - 12:45 pm)
- Authors: Jacob Moscona (MIT), Nathan Nunn (University of British Columbia), Jim Robinson (University of Chicago)
- Discussant: Andy Foster (Brown University)
Session 3: Technology and Economic Development (12:45 pm - 1:30 pm)
- Authors: Daron Acemoglu (MIT), Ufuk Akcigit (University of Chicago), Simon Johnson (MIT)
- Discussant: Paul Romer (Boston College)
Lunch Break (1:30 pm - 2:30 pm)
Session 4: The Changing Nature of Globalization and its Implications for Development (2:30 pm - 3:15 pm)
- Authors: Penny Goldberg (Yale University), Michele Ruta (IMF)
- Discussant: Dave Donaldson (MIT)
Session 5: Development and the Environment (3:15 pm - 4:00 pm)
- Authors: Kelsey Jack (UC Berkeley), Nick Ryan (Yale University)
- Discussant: Esther Duflo (MIT)
Session 6: Politics and Policy When State Capacity is Low (4:00 pm - 4:45 pm)
- Author: Kate Casey (Stanford University)
- Discussant: Jonathan Weigel (UC Berkeley)
Coffee Break (4:45 pm - 5:15 pm)
Session 7: Poverty Traps (5:15 pm - 6:00 pm)
- Authors: Oriana Bandiera (LSE), Robin Burgess (LSE), Anton Heil (LSE), Munshi Sulaiman (BRAC Institute of Governance and Development)
- Discussant: Christopher Udry (Northwestern University)
Session 8: Conflict (6:00 pm - 6:45 pm)
- Author: Dominic Rohner (Geneva Graduate Institute)
- Discussant: Maria Micaela Sviatschi (Princeton University)
Day 2: Friday, September 5, 2025
Registration & Coffee (8:30 am - 9:00 am)
Session 9: The Industrial Organization of Growth in Developing Countries (Market Structure and Market Imperfections) (9:00 am - 9:45 am)
- Authors: Lauren Falcao Bergquist (Yale University), Danial Lashkari (Federal Reserve Bank of New York), Eric Verhoogen (Columbia University)
- Discussant: Rocco Macchiavello (LSE)
Session 10: Social Markets: The Economics of Education and Health Markets in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (9:45 am - 10:30 am)
- Authors: Jishnu Das (Georgetown University), Cauê Dobbin (Georgetown University)
- Discussant: Abhijit Banerjee (MIT)
Coffee Break (10:30 am - 10:50 am)
Session 11: Human Capital and Development (10:50 am - 11:35 am)
- Authors: Philippe Aghion (Collège de France), Ingvild Almås (Stockholm University), Costas Meghir (Yale University)
- Discussant: Martin Rotemberg (New York University)
Session 12: Gender Norms and Development (11:35 am - 12:20 pm)
- Authors: Erica Field (Duke University), Maddie McKelway (Dartmouth College), Alessandra Voena (Stanford University)
- Discussant: Jessica Goldberg (University of Maryland)
Lunch Break (12:20 pm - 1:20 pm)
Session 13: Psychology and Development (1:20 pm - 2:05 pm)
- Authors: Emily Breza (Harvard University), Supreet Kaur (UC Berkeley)
- Discussant: Frank Schilbach (MIT)
Session 14: Social Protection (2:05 pm - 2:50 pm)
- Authors: Rema Hanna (Harvard University), Ben Olken (MIT), Alexa Weiss (Harvard University)
- Discussant: Paul Niehaus (UC San Diego)
Coffee Break (2:50 pm - 3:15 pm)
Session 15: The Changing Nature of Growth: Implications for Structural Transformation and Inequality (3:15 pm - 4:00 pm)
- Authors: Michael Peters (Yale University), Youdan Zhang (Yale University), Fabrizio Zilibotti (Yale University)
- Discussant: Douglas Gollin (Tufts University)