The global financial crisis of 2008-09 did not just change the global economic order. It also changed the way we think about that order. Principles and practices that were once accepted wisdom are now in doubt or discredited. New, fundamental questions opened. And the search for answers has...

Development economists are paid to look into the future. They ask not only how things work today, but also how a new policy, program, or project will make them work tomorrow. They view the world and history as a learning process, past and present are just inputs into thinking about what's...

In the past two decades, there has been a growing engagement between development and human rights practitioners and thinkers. But are participants in this dialogue still mainly talking past each other? Or has there been valuable cross-fertilization and learning-the Millennium Development Goals...

As the global stock of ideas expands and diffuses across and within countries, technological learning is poised to become an even more important determinant of growth through its impact on innovation. This note reviews global trends that make a policy focus on technological learning and...

In this note the authors briefly review four questions: how dependent are developing countries on primary commodity exports? What is the outlook for primary commodity prices? Is there a natural resource "curse" (or blessing)? What policies can help poor countries best manage commodity resources...

Recent events have rekindled interest in the role of primary commodities in development. Was the boom in commodity prices from around 2003 through 2008 just a cyclical event, or does it suggests that prices have entered on a period of secular strength, driven by factors such as demand in big,...