Economies that work - for all

Leilani Farha—former UN special rapporteur on the right to adequate housing and global director of THE SHIFT—joins us in this episode for a timely and thought-provoking conversation on housing as a human right. Farha describes housing as a “springboard” to nearly every other human right, emphasizing that without a safe and secure home, it is nearly impossible to live a full and dignified life. She...

We welcome Dr. Ahilan Kadirgamar—a leading Sri Lankan economist and Senior Lecturer at the University of Jaffna, examines Sri Lanka’s so-called “lost decade,” marked by a shrinking economy, rising debt burdens, widespread food shortages, and skyrocketing inflation. He traces how misguided economic and development policies compounded over time to erode what was once a relatively prosperous economy....

For the third episode of the Economies that work - for all, we welcome Dorah Modise, Executive Director of the Presidential Climate Commission of South Africa. The episode explores South Africa’s efforts on just transition, examining plans to move toward a low-carbon economy and the government’s strategy for developing the country’s significant critical minerals sector, all within a framework that...

In the second episode of Economies that work-for all, we are pleased to welcome Poliana Garcia Ferreira, General Coordinator of International Tax Cooperation in Brazil, for an in-depth conversation on poverty and extreme economic inequality in developing countries. Using Brazil as a case study, the episode explores how governments can leverage fiscal policy, progressive taxation, and targeted soci...

In this episode, we welcome Pablo Bustinduy, Spain’s Minister of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs, and the 2030 Agenda, for a conversation on the responsibility of democratic governments to advance social policy through both legislation and economic strategy. Drawing on recent reforms in Spain, Minister Bustinduy discusses how embedding human rights principles and the UN 2030 Agenda into fiscal and...

This week, we speak to Mariana Mazzucato, Professor in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value, about creating ’mission-oriented economies’ that place human rights and the common good at their centre. Rather than simply fixing market failures, Professor Mazzucato argues that governments must shape markets around bold societal missions – from achieving net zero to ensuring health for all. This...

We welcome economist and ‘Doughnut Economics’ founder, Kate Raworth, to discuss how we can create economies that satisfy everyone’s fundamental needs while respecting Earth’s limits. Using the ‘Doughnut Economics’ framework, which places human dignity, social justice, and environmental sustainability at the core of economic policy-making, Raworth presents another alternative vision for redefining...

Dr. Grieve Chelwa (Associate Professor of Political Economy at The Africa Institute) questions the prevailing belief that countries in the Global South are at fault for the current global debt crisis. He points to the current and historical inequities in the current global financial system, which traps nations in debt cycles that undermine human rights, economic sovereignty, and progress on the Su...

Economist Dr. Jayati Ghosh unpacks how our dominant economic model perpetuates inequality, disregards environmental constraints, and continues to marginalize the unpaid care sector. She questions the conventional fixation on GDP as a benchmark for a country’s progress and contends that the existing global financial system perpetuates global power disparities that result in the neglect of the needs...

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk opens the series by exploring why aligning economies with human rights is essential for improving our economic systems and achieving the 2030 Agenda. He challenges current understandings that see human rights and economic systems as separate entities. He introduces the idea of a ‘ human rights economy ’ as key to rebuilding ties that bind societies...

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is the global promise for an equitable and just society. With a rise in extreme economic inequality, a climate emergency and over half the world’s poorest countries spending more on debt than development, our economic system is failing both people and the planet. It is high time to make our economies work for human rights. In this podcast series, we will...

What does economic justice for African and Afro-descendant communities look like in the 21st century? We talk to economist and former Vice President of Costa Rica, Dr. Epsy Campbell Barr, and explore how colonialism, slavery, and systemic racism have solidified structural inequalities. From her vital work with the UN Permanent Forum for People of African Descent, she argues for the importance of r...