Hunger, Pandemic, and Politics
Posted inEconomics Politics Social

Hunger, Pandemic, and Politics

Hunger is not a new challenge for many Brazilians. But the problem has been heightened during the COVID pandemic. In Heliópolis, São Paulo’s largest favela, pre-pandemic food lines might have attracted three hundred people; now, that number has more than tripled. Brazil has re-entered the World Food Programme’s Hunger Map this year...
November 9, 2021Posted inEconomics, Politics, Social
Labor regulations and globalization
Posted inEconomics Social

Labor regulations and globalization

How do market-oriented reforms matter to workers outside the formal economy? This is an important question for developing economies, where formal labor markets often coexist with large pools of informal labor, in which workers are offered fewer protections, little training, and few if any benefits.  But it is also a...
June 4, 2021Posted inEconomics, Social
“The Organization”: Corruption and Business
Posted inEconomics Judiciary Politics

“The Organization”: Corruption and Business

This weekend I finished Malu Gaspar’s definitive history of the Odebrecht case (A Organização: A Odebrecht e o esquema de corrupção que chocou o mundo; Companhia das Letras 2020). While not an academic book, it offers an insightful and page-turning perspective on the evolution of business-state relations in Brazil over...
March 16, 2021Posted inEconomics, Judiciary, Politics
Elite quality and development
Posted inEconomics Politics Social

Elite quality and development

The Elite Quality Report 2020 claims to be the “first ever international measurement of elite quality,” aiming to distinguish between elites who are high-quality value creators and elites who are low-quality value extractors.   For readers of this blog, the report will be of interest because it finds the BRIS countries clustered in...
February 6, 2021Posted inEconomics, Politics, Social
Climate Change and Internal Migration in Brazil
Posted inEconomics Social

Climate Change and Internal Migration in Brazil

With apologies for the delay, here are the slides from Professor Claire Brunel's October 19 presentation on climate change and internal migration. EnvMigBrazil_AU_Oct20Download Key takeaway: A 10% increase in air temperature is associated with an 8.8% increase in migrant flows, controlling for road infrastructure and a variety of other factors....
October 29, 2020Posted inEconomics, Social
Labor Policy and Informality
Posted inEconomics

Labor Policy and Informality

For those who missed it, School of International Service Professor Jennifer Poole last week presented her work with Rita Almeida and Lourenço Paz on the relationship between informality, trade, technology, and labor policies in Brazil. Video below:
October 14, 2020Posted inEconomics
A mixed view on the economy
Posted inEconomics

A mixed view on the economy

A mixed read on the Brazilian economy from the IMF, raising expectations about growth this year, even as they point to a long list of potential risks, such as rising public debt, and limited fiscal space for any additional stimulus or expansion in social spending. Mincing fewer words, former finance minister Pedro...
October 9, 2020Posted inEconomics
(Non-)Reciprocity as Economic Policy
Posted inEconomics Politics

(Non-)Reciprocity as Economic Policy

Natalia Ferreira de Carvalho Rodrigues, of the Fundação Getulio Vargas, offers a nuanced evaluation of one of Brazil’s most egregious fiscal policies, the Refis program for tax debt forgiveness, which the federal government has repeatedly used since the turn of the century to try to prop up employment.  Bottom line conclusion: although...
October 9, 2020Posted inEconomics, Politics
The end of the Third Republic?
Posted inEconomics Politics

The end of the Third Republic?

Forthwith, a link to my review of eight thought-provoking new books that helped me make sense of the crazy politics of the 2010s, and especially the traumatic period between Dilma Rousseff’s impeachment and the election of Bolsonaro. It was a turbulent time, and each of the books captures different elements of the...
October 1, 2020Posted inEconomics, Politics