Economics & Beyond with Rob Johnson

Prolific author and philosopher Ervin Laszlo discusses his most recent books, in which he outlines how the latest discoveries in science converge with spiritual insights and point to the ways in which society might evolve in ways that will help overcome contemporary crises.

Andre Perry, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and author of the book, Know Your Price: Valuing Black Lives and Properties in America's Black Cities, discusses the on-going problem of how real estate dynamics continue to maintain racial injustice in cities across United States, and how we need a "reparative culture" to address the problem

Economic historian and INET board member Richard Vague, talks about his latest book, The Illustrated Business History of the United States, which reveals a number of misconceptions and myths about the development of the US economy

Jeff Sachs talks with Rob Johnson about US-China relations, the tragedy of modern geopolitics, and how our current race to the bottom could be reversed.

Isabella Weber, assistant professor of economics at UMass Amherst, discusses her new book on how China managed its transition from central planning to markets

World Ocean Observatory founder Peter Neill talks about the dire emergency in which the world’s oceans currently find themselves in and what must be done to save them.

MIT economic historian Peter Temin discusses parts of his forthcoming book, focusing on the history of mass incarceration of uneducated Blacks and how it has created a permanent class of poor Black Americans

Umass Lowell Economics professor William Lazonick, outlines the history of how government policy and economic conditions contributed to the rise and fall of a Black blue-collar middle class. Part 2 takes a closer look at the role of finance and stock buybacks and what can be done to reverse the trend towards growing inequality.

Umass Lowell Economics professor William Lazonick, outlines the history of how government and economic conditions favored the rise of a Black blue-collar middle class from the 1960''s to the 1970's, and how shifts in policy and in the economy caused its unmaking from the 1980's onwards.

Jim Nadler, CEO of the Kroll Bond Rating Agency, discusses the profound influence that bond ratings have on shaping social and economic outcomes, how they can contribute to environmental and social responsibility, and why a new approach to bond ratings is urgently necessary.

Kenneth Cukier, senior editor at The Economist and co-author of the book Framers, talks about how mental models, or frames, enable humanity to find the best way through a forest of looming problems.

INET at the Trento Economics Festival 3: A dialogue between Michael Spence and Robert Johnson The governance of technology is a new challenge. The Recovery Plans is encouraging the digital transformation of our economies. An acceleration of technological change is bound to deeply affect labor markets and income distribution. While labor-market adaptation is likely to stave off permanent high unemp...

INET at the Trento Economics Festival 2: A dialogue between Jayati Ghosh, Rohinton Medhora, Joseph E. Stiglitz, coordinated by Robert Johnson The world won’t emerge from the pandemic until the pandemic is controlled everywhere, and this is a special concern because of the new mutations that are likely to arise where the disease is running its course. So too, the world won’t have a robust economic...

Fanta Traore, the CEO of the Sadie Collective, in an ode to Alexander’s legacy, is leading the next generation of Black women economists in the pursuit of social change

INET at the Trento Economics Festival 1: A dialogue between Mark Carney and William Janeway, coordinated by Robert Johnson Our world is full of fault lines—growing inequality in income and opportunity; systemic racism; health and economic crises from a global pandemic; mistrust of experts; the existential threat of climate change; deep threats to employment in a digital economy with robotics on th...

Matt Stoller, Director of Research at the American Economic Liberties Project and author of Goliath: The 100-Year War Between Monopoly Power and Democracy, talks about the many ways in which the US economic system has become rigged to favor the richest.

FT columnist and associate editor Rana Foroohar discusses how the disruptions and excessive complexity of digital markets are benefitting the powerful and why we need clear new values and ground rules for these markets as we enter the post-pandemic landscape.

Luke Burgis, the author of the just-released book "Wanting," talks about his book, how we come to desire what we desire, and how we can transform desire so as to make the world a better place.

Rob Johnson talks with Tim Jackson about his new book, "Post Growth: Life after Capitalism," and how we might break free of the cycle of restrictive thinking which has plagued economics, and the world.

Arjun Jayadev, economics professor at Azim Premji University in Bangalore, India, and Achal Prabhala, coordinator of the AccessIBSA project, discusses the urgency of waiving intellectual property protections for vaccines, particularly in light of the on-going COVID-19 pandemic in India and other developing countries.

Tito Boeri, professor of economics at Bocconi University, Milan, and Scientific Director of the Trento Economics Festival (June 3-6), talks about the meaning behind this year's festival topic, The Return of the State. INET is organizing several panels at the festival this year featuring Mark Carney, Joe Stiglitz, Mike Spence, and Jayati Ghosh.  INET at the Trento Economics Festival   Subscribe and...

Destin Jenkins, Assistant Professor of History at the University of Chicago, discusses his book on municipal debt and its role in fostering racial capitalism in American cities.

Financial Times columnist and US editorial board chair Gillian Tett talks about her new book, Anthro-Vision, which makes the case for how anthropological intelligence can help us make better sense of the contemporary world.

Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize-winning writer for The New Yorker, discusses her latest book, Under a White Sky, which explores how technological solutions don't always lead where we think they will, especially in the face of the climate crisis. Subscribe and Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | YouTube

Can big data strengthen global inclusivity and trust? Information exchange has historically been the most powerful tool at humanity's disposal, so what makes data different? Dr. Long Chen (Luohan Academy) discusses his latest report "Understanding Big Data: Data Calculus In The Digital Era" which is available for download at https://www.luohanacademy.com/researc...