EGC launches “Development Dialogues,” a collaborative podcast with VoxDevTalks
This series, facilitating direct conversations between researchers and policy actors on pressing development issues, is a joint production by the Yale Economic Growth Center and VoxDev, a leading development economics blog based at the International Growth Center (IGC) and Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR).
How can policymakers and researchers engage in direct conversations on global development's key issues? Development Dialogues, a new podcast series developed by Yale’s Economic Growth Center in collaboration with VoxDev, offers a unique platform for discussion and debate on critical questions in the field.
In the first Development Dialogue, now available, EGC Director Rohini Pande and MIT's Namrata Kala and Catherine Wolfram (who also served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Climate and Energy Economics at the U.S. Treasury), join host Catherine Cheney to discuss how climate adaptation finance can reach those in lower-income countries who need it most. This episode was released in advance of the 2024 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29), held in Baku, Azerbaijan, from November 11-22.
“This first episode focuses on a question that will be central to the COP29 climate talks – how to direct climate finance to the countries bearing the brunt of climate impacts,” Cheney said. “Our guests bring unique perspectives from development economics and policy to debate the potential of voluntary versus compliance markets in financing climate adaptation.”
Development Dialogues grew out of an ongoing EGC podcast, Voices in Development, which explores sustainable development and economic justice in low- and middle-income countries. “We started this project as interdisciplinary webinars, where researchers and policymakers examined development from multiple perspectives,” Pande said.
Since 2019, VoxDev’s weekly podcast, VoxDevTalks, has invited academics to discuss their research. A collaboration between the two was a natural fit. Michael Callen, Associate Professor, London School of Economics; Co-Editor VoxDev; and Scientific Director for Nepal, Inclusion Economics, explained the series' genesis.
“I found the EGC roundtable discussions among development economists, interdisciplinary researchers, and policymakers particularly engaging, while VoxDevTalks discusses a wide range of topics with insights rooted directly in primary research. Both podcasts provide valuable information for anyone interested in these issues, so I genuinely believe that expanding our audience is important. Rohini and I felt a collaboration could naturally leverage the strengths of both platforms, hopefully attracting a broader range of listeners.”
“By collaborating with VoxDev, we’re expanding access to the latest economic research on global development,” Pande added.
Future episodes of Development Dialogues will explore topics such as agricultural technology and the future of farming; sustainable electricity infrastructure; barriers to trade and employment in low- and middle-income countries; the links between crime and economic growth; and the role of multinational enterprises in development. These conversations aim to make academic findings more accessible and actionable, ensuring that evidence-based insights shape strategies addressing the urgent needs of vulnerable communities – tackling poverty, inequality, and climate challenges.