Podcasts: Global Action for Policy (GAP) Initiative
Introducing the GAP Initiative podcast series featuring engaging conversations, expert interviews, and in-depth discussions on topics that explore impactful solutions to economic challenges and innovative insights.
Gautam Nair, Assistant Professor of Public Policy at Harvard University, presents his paper Caste Reparations: Economic Advance, Social Concord, and Policy Backlash in conversation with Shantanu Khanna, Assistant Professor of Economics and Public Policy, and Mary Steffel, Associate Professor of Marketing at Northeastern University. Nair examines the impact of a one-time wealth transfer program providing ₹1 million ($12,000) to Dalit households in Telangana, India. Using a natural experiment and survey data, his research finds that the program significantly improved Dalit asset ownership and confidence while reducing caste conflict. However, it also triggered a policy backlash, with dominant castes opposing affirmative action and credit subsidies, highlighting the complex social and political consequences of reparations.
Jeevant Rampal, Associate Professor of Economics at IIM Ahmedabad, joins the GAP Podcast to discuss Lottery-Based Auctions (LBAs) in conversation with Shantanu Khanna, Assistant Professor of Economics and Public Policy at Northeastern University. Rampal examines how LBAs, commonly used in India for allocating government-regulated liquor licenses, function as Tullock contests where bidders purchase non-refundable lottery tickets to increase their chances of winning. Using computational models and lab experiments, his research challenges theoretical predictions by showing that bidders overbid significantly in LBAs, resulting in higher revenue than traditional auction formats. These findings provide key insights into the economic rationale behind the use of lottery-based auctions in policy design.
Xi Song, Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania, presents her paper The Present and Future Dementia Caregiving Demand in China in a discussion with Shantanu Khanna, Assistant Professor of Economics and Public Policy, and Mary Steffel, Associate Professor of Marketing at Northeastern University. The paper quantifies the growing demand for dementia caregiving in China, where an aging population and declining family caregivers create an unprecedented crisis. Using demographic models of kinship, Song estimates caregiving burdens from 1990 to 2050 and compares trends across 194 countries. Her findings highlight the urgent need for policy interventions to address China’s shrinking family support networks and inform global aging care strategies.
Alex Eble is Associate Professor of Economics and Education at Columbia University’s graduate school of education, Teachers College, in a conversation with Mary Steffel, Associate Professor of Marketing at the D’Amore-McKim School of Business, and Shantanu Khanna, Assistant Professor of Economics and Public Policy at Northeastern University. They discuss child education in impoverished settings, specifically a study from rural Gambia. Despite caregivers’ high aspirations, progress in literacy and numeracy was minimal over three years. However, a targeted teacher intervention led to a notable 25 percent improvement among these children, highlighting the crucial interaction between educational demand and supply.
Kelsey Jack, Associate Professor of Economics at UC Santa Barbara, in a conversation with Mary Steffel, Associate Professor of Marketing at the D’Amore-McKim School of Business at Northeastern University. Discussing the potential for climate shocks to destabilize the revenue models of public utilities, using the case study of an extreme drought in Cape Town, South Africa.
Join Simone Schaner, Associate Professor (Research) of Economics at the University of Southern California, in a conversation with Mary Steffel, Associate Professor of Marketing at the D’Amore-McKim School of Business, and Shantanu Khanna, Assistant Professor of Economics and Public Policy at Northeastern University. They discuss the substantial information frictions faced by job seekers, especially in international labor markets where intermediaries match prospective migrants with overseas employers.