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Lawrence H. Summers

Lawrence H. Summers

15 commentaries
1 videos & podcasts

Lawrence H. Summers was US Secretary of the Treasury (1999-2001), Chief Economist of the World Bank (1991-93), Director of the US National Economic Council (2009-10), and President of Harvard University (2001-06), where he is currently University Professor.

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  1. The World Is Still on Fire
    summers14_TONY KARUMBAAFP via Getty Images_sudanfamine Tony Karumba/AFP via Getty Images

    The World Is Still on Fire

    Apr 15, 2024 Lawrence H. Summers & N.K. Singh think policymakers need to get four things right to shore up the credibility of the international system.

  2. The Multilateral Development Banks the World Needs
    summers13_Natali_MisGetty Images_worldconnections Natali_Mis/Getty Images

    The Multilateral Development Banks the World Needs

    Jul 24, 2023 Lawrence H. Summers & N.K. Singh offer a plan to ensure that these key institutions prove equal to challenges of the twenty-first century.

  3. A New Chance for the World Bank
    summers12_ STEFANI REYNOLDSAFP via Getty Images)_world bank ERIC BARADAT/AFP via Getty Images

    A New Chance for the World Bank

    Oct 10, 2022 Lawrence H. Summers calls for reforms focused on crisis response, post-conflict reconstruction, and the green transition.

  4. Debt Relief Is the Most Effective Pandemic Aid
    brown64_NICHOLAS KAMMAFP via Getty Images_georgievamalpassworldbankIMF Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images

    Debt Relief Is the Most Effective Pandemic Aid

    Apr 15, 2020 Gordon Brown & Lawrence H. Summers call for a two-year moratorium on payments for every emerging and developing economy that needs help.

  5. Can a Political-Economy Vicious Circle Be Avoided?
    summers10 Getty Images

    Can a Political-Economy Vicious Circle Be Avoided?

    Dec 26, 2019 Lawrence H. Summers sees the US presidential election in November as the year's most important decision worldwide.

  1. ahzhang19_Jaap ArriensNurPhoto via Getty Images_tiktok Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images
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    The TikTok Boomerang

    Angela Huyue Zhang

    By banning TikTok, US authorities have sent American users of the app flocking to Chinese platforms with even fewer safeguards on data security or algorithmic manipulation. Though these, too, might be banned, others will replace them, leading America to construct, one prohibition at a time, its own "Great Firewall."

     thinks the US government's ban on the app has left it in an untenable position.
  2. delaney1_Jose JimenezGettyImages_bahamas_dorian Jose Jimenez/Getty Images
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    Turning the Financial Tide for Small Island States

    Maya Delaney & Aminath Shauna tout the potential of green and blue bonds to protect critical ecosystems and build economic resilience.
  3. brown116_Timur MatahariGettyImages_indonesia_free_school_meals Timur Matahari/Getty Images
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    School Meals Provide Food for Thought – and Fuel for Development

    Gordon Brown & Kevin Watkins tout universal nutrition programs in lower-income countries to mitigate a lost decade for poor children.
  4. karl3_Apu GomesGetty Images_LAfires Apu Gomes/Getty Images
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    A House Gutted by Fire

    Terry Lynn Karl blames the inferno now consuming Los Angeles County squarely on greenhouse-gas emissions.
  5. op_janeway17_Natalya KosarevichGetty Images_moneyhandslightbulb Natalya Kosarevich/Getty Images
    1

    False Economies

    William H. Janeway highlights the high cost of the single-minded focus on efficiency that has come to dominate the discipline.
  6. bq trump institutions Photo by Brendan McDermid-Pool/Getty Images
    2

    Can US Institutions Withstand Trump 2.0?

    While some observers doubt that US President-elect Donald Trump poses a grave threat to US democracy, others are bracing themselves for the destruction of the country’s constitutional order. With Trump’s inauguration just around the corner, we asked PS commentators how vulnerable US institutions really are.

  7. wagner31_Westend61Getty Images_climatependulum Westend61/Getty Images
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    The Climate Policy Pendulum

    Gernot Wagner notes that green technologies retain their many advantages, regardless of national political developments.
  8. strain35_Christina HouseGettyImages_commencement_ceremony Christina House/Getty Images
    1

    Could High-Skill Immigration Increase Under Trump?

    Michael R. Strain argues that the recent kerfuffle over foreign workers underscores the president-elect’s pragmatic instincts.
  9. posner38_Viktor SidorovGettyImages_un_flag Viktor Sidorov/Getty Images
    2

    What Happened to International Law?

    Eric Posner sees the web of treaties, conventions, and institutions as another victim of the anti-globalization backlash.

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