Economics Commons^™

China-Canada Resource Diplomacy: New Era Of Land Grabbing, Valdrin Dragusha

Bridges: An Undergraduate Journal of Contemporary Connections

This paper examines the evolving economic relationship between China and Canada, particularly in the context of China's transition from a strictly social economy to an authoritarian socialist market economy. It highlights the implications of China's Going Out Policy initiated in 2000, aimed at securing vital natural resources amidst growing domestic demands driven by rapid economic expansion. The paper analyzes China's significant demand for resources, its sustainable development policies, and the changing dynamics of land acquisitions, particularly in relation to Canada, which is perceived as a strategic investment destination due to its abundant natural resources and technological advancements in clean energy. …

Money And State Politics: State Legislature Partisan Dynamics And Ideology Outcomes Following Citizens United V. Fec, Jillian E. Pastore

Bates College Journal of Political Studies

What effect has Citizens United v. FEC had on state-level partisanship and the policy outcomes that follow from it? Scholarship on the influence of corporate and union spending in political campaigns has largely centered on federal elections. In this paper, I extend the analysis to the state level, leveraging the fact that Citizens United created a natural experiment across the states. Prior to the Supreme Court ruling, roughly half of the states prohibited corporate and union independent expenditures in state elections (including for governor, state senate, state house, and state supreme court races). The Citizens United decision effectively nullified these …

People Who Moved In The Mountain West, 2024, Anthony Arroyo, Sydney Mitchell, Maisoon Faris, Olivia K. Cheche, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Cities & Metros

This fact sheet presents 2024 data on state and city-level mobility rates across the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. Point2Homes’ “Mobility Rates Reach Record Low: In 2024, Americans Moved Less Than Ever” report provides data on mobility rates within states, as well as the rate of new residents moving into states and cities across the U.S. This fact sheet highlights mobility rates within Mountain West states, the rate of new residents moving into Mountain West states, and the rate of new residents moving into 63 Mountain West cities. This fact sheet also includes national …

A National Security Strategy For The Middle East, Vanessa Rice, Rudy Torres, Addy Horgan, Joy Omosa, Mark Westfall

School of Public Policy Capstones

This National Security Strategy addresses the persistent national security challenges the United States faces in the Middle East, a region vital for global energy supply, economic connectivity, and a source of anti-American extremism. Recognizing the failures of past "haphazard experimentation," the strategy proposes a thoughtful, pragmatic plan prioritizing five distinct and congruent interest areas: Maintaining Regional Access, Supporting Regional Stability, Ensuring Energy Security, Defending American Citizens and Personnel, and Preserving and Protecting Western Ideals. The strategy outlines actions such as: countering Chinese and Russian influence through intelligence sharing and defense incentives; containing Iran via a new, permanent nuclear deal and …

Protection Vs. Progression: A Macroeconomic Approach To Military Expenditure Direct Effects On Social Outcomes Using Ihdi Measures, Connor Graham

Global Tides

This study examines whether military expenditure reduces inequality-adjusted human development and how national governance quality moderates these effects. Using panel data covering 121 countries from 2010-2023, two-way fixed effects models are employed to estimate the relationship between military spending and the Inequality-Adjusted Human Development Index (IHDI). Three key findings emerge from the analysis based on the resulting data. First, a one percentage point increase in military spending reduces IHDI by 0.0012-0.0015 points. Second, the effects prove seven times larger in developed countries than in developing ones, which runs contrary to expectations and prior literature. Lastly, political stability emerged as a …

U.S. Foreign Aid’S Effects On Un Voting Patterns From Years 2017-2023, Brody Young

Undergraduate Theses

This is a study of the relationship between U.S. Foreign Aid and its effects on a receiving nation’s voting coincidence, with voting coincidence measuring how often a nation votes the same as the U.S. in the UN General Assembly. In this study the dependent variable is voting coincidence in the UN General Assembly. The primary independent variable is the average amount of foreign aid UN nations have received from the U.S. in 2017-2023. With several other more minor independent variables including average GDP of nations from 2017-2023, the average population of a nation from 2017-2023, whether a nation is a …

Identifying Common Trend Determinants In Panel Data, Yoonseok Lee, Peter C. Phillips, Suyong Song, Donggyu Sul

Center for Policy Research

This paper develops a novel method for identifying observable determinants of latent common trends in nonstationary panel data, which are typically removed or controlled in two-way fixed effects regressions. By examining cross sectional dispersion processes, we assess whether panel series exhibit distributional convergence toward specific observed time series, revealing them as long run determinants of the underlying latent trend. The approach also offers a new perspective on cointegration between time series and panel data, focusing on the relative variation of the panel data with respect to the cointegration error. Applying this method to U.S. state-level crime rates demonstrates that the …

Combating Iuu Fishing In The South American Pacific: An Opportunity To Counter Chinese Influence Closer To Home, Alexander E. Goodno

Joint Force Quarterly

A relatively small enterprise that began three decades ago in response to dwindling Chinese squid fisheries, China’s South American distant water fishing fleet has grown exponentially to now number nearly 500 vessels and creates a growing problem for the Pacific coastal nations of South America. By establishing itself at the forefront in combatting illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing (IUUF) activities off the Pacific coast of South America, the United States can strengthen its role as a leader in the Western Hemisphere and counter growing Chinese influence in South America. This paper will demonstrate how America can achieve this end by …

Influential Factors In Agricultural Technology Adoption By Maize Farmers In Tanzania: Insights From The 2020–21 National Panel Survey, Rebecca Yauleni, Wiggins Kyatikila, Cornel Joseph

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

Abstract

In many developing countries, agriculture remains a vital source of food, employment, and income. The adoption of agricultural technologies can boost farm revenue and productivity, reduce food insecurity, and lessen poverty. This study investigates the main factors influencing farmers’ decisions to adopt fertilizers, improved seeds, soil conservation practices, and pesticides in Tanzania. The analysis uses cross-sectional data from the fifth wave of the Tanzania National Panel Survey (TNPS), and employs an ordered probit model. The findings revealed that access to extension services, higher household years of schooling, poor soil quality, livestock ownership, and use of hired labour significantly increase …

Opportunities, Challenges, And Conspicuous Absences: An Integrative Review Of The Social Work Literature On Artificial Intelligence, Michael J. Massey, Ian G. Williams, Grace C. Polistina, Eathan A. Breaux

Publications and Research

INTRODUCTION: Social work discourse regarding artificial intelligence (AI) in practice, research, and education has proliferated over the last 5 years, reflecting both excitement over its potential and ambivalence about its ethical challenges. However, the extent to which social work is fully engaging with the structure of AI and its enormous impacts on the environment, labour, and distribution of power remains unclear.

METHODS: An integrative review of social work literature from 2020–2024 was conducted to address two research questions: 1) What is the nature of the social work discourse related to AI? 2) To what extent is the discourse …

Immigration Enforcement And Origin Country Labor Markets, Thomas Pearson

Center for Policy Research

This paper studies how increased immigration enforcement in the destination country impacts labor markets in the origin country. Using variation in Mexican migrant networks and Secure Communities (SC), a policy which expanded local immigration enforcement, I show that the deportation of Mexican migrants from the U.S. increases return migration to Mexico and decreases monthly earnings for workers in Mexico. The negative earnings effects are largest for workers most similar to return migrants in terms of their demographics, occupations, and employment types, and are consistent with increased labor market competition.

The Price Of Democracy: The Revolutionary Power Of Taxation In American History, Vanessa Williamson

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

As part of the Brookings Scholar Lecture Series, Brookings Mountain West presented a lecture titled, "The Price of Democracy: The Revolutionary Power of Taxation in American History" by Brookings senior fellow in governance studies, Vanessa Williamson.

From tariffs to “no tax on tips”, taxation has often been a hot topic in American elections. What is not commonly recognized, however, is that—from the framing of the Constitution to the decades-long backlash to the civil rights movement—taxes have been at the heart of battles over the breadth of our democracy. Brookings senior fellow Vanessa Williamson discusses her new book, The Price of …

The History Of Philanthropic Wealth In Maine, Jillian Foley Mppm, Timothy Atkinson Mppm, Emma Schwartz

Justice Policy

This report (March 2026) was developed in collaboration with the Maine Philanthropy Center to invite readers to engage in an honest exploration of how wealth was accumulated in Maine and how our history continues to shape our communities today. Grounded in research and interviews with historians and philanthropic leaders, the report examines the connections between extractive histories and modern-day philanthropic structures. The authors aim to guide readers to explore the historical context, reflect on their own histories, and consider more equitable, restorative approaches to community-centered giving. While this report was designed with funders and nonprofit leaders in mind, the authors …

Hold Harmless For Whom? The Impact Of Covid Era Policies On School Funding, Teachers, And Students, Michah W. Rothbart, Samantha Cervantes, Amy Ellen Schwartz

Center for Policy Research

This study evaluates the fiscal and academic consequences of New York City’s hold harmless policy during COVID-19, which aimed to stabilize school expenditures amid unexpected enrollment declines by restoring schools’ funding up to initial levels. We examine how school racial composition predicts whether or when schools receive hold harmless “treatment” and assess the impact of hold harmless on financial resources, staffing, and student outcomes, exploring heterogeneity by timing of policy announcement. Although schools with higher White student shares were no more likely than those with higher Hispanic or Black shares to receive hold harmless funds, schools with higher Black shares …

Digital Public Service Delivery As An Institutional Outcome: Data Governance And Interoperability In The Egyptian Public Sector, Waad Hegazy

Theses and Dissertations

Moving beyond technology-centered theories of digital transformation, this thesis examines the institutional and governance factors shaping digital public service delivery in Egypt. It analyzes how governance structures, data governance arrangements, and interoperability frameworks influence the extent to which digital transformation initiatives result in integrated, scalable, and citizen-facing public services. Using a qualitative research design, the study draws on an analysis of relevant policy and program documents and semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders involved in digital transformation initiatives in Egypt. The findings indicate that persistent challenges in digital public service delivery are driven less by technological constraints than by fragmented governance …

Encouraging Naturalization: The Broader Effects Of Daca On U.S. Immigration, Emily Battaglia, Thomas Pearson

Center for Policy Research

This paper examines how protection from deportation and work authorization affect immigration outcomes, focusing on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). Using a difference-in-differences design exploiting geographic variation in exposure to DACA-eligible immigrants, we find that DACA significantly increased the number of naturalized citizens without increasing the number of noncitizens. This increase is driven by higher naturalization among prior noncitizens, most of whom are likely not DACA beneficiaries. We provide evidence consistent with DACA increasing incentives for, and reducing barriers to, naturalization by protecting undocumented DACA-eligible contacts, suggesting temporary protections can encourage longer-term commitments and permanent residence among existing immigrants.

The Rise Of The Global Middle Class, Homi Kharas

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

As part of the Brookings Scholar Lecture Series, Brookings Mountain West presented a lecture titled, "The Rise of the Global Middle Class" by Brookings senior fellow in global economy and development, Homi Kharas.

For the last two hundred years, ever since the start of the Industrial Revolution, the most successful economies in the world have developed large, stable middle classes. With globalization, the expansion of the middle class has accelerated to a historically unprecedented speed. But global consumerism is scaling faster than the adaptation of institutions, ecosystems, and social norms. Brookings senior fellow Homi Kharas discusses his most recent book, …

On The Legal-Theoretical Foundations Of Property Taxation Under State Ownership Of Land, Tianke Ban, Yilin Hou, Ping Zhang

Center for Policy Research

The general public and even some scholars challenge the legitimacy of levying the property tax under conditions where land is state-owned and multi-year land-use fees have already been collected at the time of house sales. This challenge points to the legal- theoretical foundations of property taxation: the core issue is whether the rights and economic utility of China's construction land-use-rights (CLUR) are sufficient to be treated as the object of property tax levy. China's Civil Law stipulates that CLUR holders have the rights to possess, use, and profit from the land during their use period, as well as the right …

The Uncomfortable Truths About Inclusive Growth In Singapore, Kong Weng Ho

Research Collection School Of Economics

In a commentary, SMU Associate Professor of Economics (Education) Ho Kong Weng said that the Ministry of Finance’s Occasional Paper provides food for thought on the way forward on social mobility, growth and redistribution. Assoc Prof Ho stated that these macro statistics suggest Singapore’s socioeconomic compact has performed well, and suggests that sustaining inclusive growth is a multifaceted effort that cannot be boiled down to one single metric, whether income, wealth, inequality or mobility. He noted that pursuing ever-lower Gini coefficients through heavy regulation risks deadweight losses without guaranteeing better mobility outcomes. He added that Singapore’s approach of tempering market-driven …

Student Disruptions And Teacher Turnover, Kyuhan Choi, Ying Shi, Maria Zhu

Center for Policy Research

This paper examines how exposure to disruptive students affects teacher retention using linked teacher–student administrative records from North Carolina. To address non-random classroom assignment, we instrument for classroom exposure using the school-by-grade share of disruptive students based on prior-year disciplinary infractions. A 10 percentage point increase in the share of disruptive students raises the probability of an early-career teacher leaving the school in the following year by 1.0 percentage points. Notably, working in a school environment with supportive leadership and greater teacher autonomy, particularly around student conduct policies, mitigates the impact of student disruptions.

Urban Sprawl And Residential Carbon Emissions: Evidence From Indonesia And The Philippines, Yi Jiang, Taylor Lathrop, Alexander D. Rothenberg, Yao Wang

Center for Policy Research

This paper studies how neighborhood density affects residential carbon emissions, using detailed data from Indonesia and the Philippines. To address simultaneity, we instrument density with soil characteristics, and to address sorting, we control for community averages of observed characteristics. Unlike cities in developed countries, we find that density is positively correlated with residential energy use. After controlling for sorting, we find a precise null relationship between density and residential carbon emissions. Our results suggest that policies to control urban sprawl may not be successful in reducing residential carbon emissions in developing country cities.

The Effect Of The Affordable Care Act Medicaid Expansion On The Risk Of Hospital Closure And Adolescent Hpv Immunization In Rural Counties, Juliette Des Rosiers

Scripps Senior Theses

From 2005 to 2025, over 200 rural hospitals shut their doors, often citing increased operational costs, staffing shortages, low patient volume, regulatory barriers, financial challenges exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and uncompensated care as common contributors to the closures. Rural patients are often referred by their primary care physician to a hospital for regular immunizations, since smaller clinics have less capacity to provide immunizations due to a shortage of pediatricians and limited vaccine stock. A crucial vaccine that is not required by schools and underutilized in rural areas is that against human papillomavirus (HPV), a virus that infects cutaneous and …

Good Food In The Neighborhood: Localizing Nutritious Food Access, Joseph Pool

Honors Program Theses

Given contemporary changes to federal budget priorities and recent challenges to federal food access funding, this research explores the potential benefits of entrusting state-level and municipal-level policymakers with food access policy. More specifically, this research suggests that “localizing” food access has the unique benefit of not just addressing the affordability of food, but the physical accessibility of it. As observed in the previous literature and expounded upon here, food provisioning requires consideration of nutrition, physical accessibility, and financial affordability. Programs that only address one of these priorities fail to adequately help people receive the food they need. Through policy analysis …

Improving Maternal Health: Investigating The Early Impacts Of Medicaid Coverage Of Doulas In Oregon, Miriam Akhmetshin

Scripps Senior Theses

While the U.S. spends more per-capita than any country on healthcare, we experience the worst maternal health outcomes of high-income nations. In addition to hefty healthcare bills, an overwhelming majority of mothers experience pregnancy-related health issues that decrease productivity and utility. Thus, it is critical to research cost-effective solutions that can improve maternal health and promote equitable outcomes. Doulas are trained non-medical professionals who support mothers and families before, during and after birth. As a growing body of medical literature points to the role of doulas in decreasing costly medical interventions, insurance companies have begun covering their services. In 2014, …

From Financial Education To Financial Decisions: Evidence On College Financing, Personal Finance Behavior, And Student Attitudes, Dongwei Shi

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

I examine how financial education shapes students’ financial knowledge, college financing decisions, and longer-term financial behavior.

The first chapter studies whether taking high school financial education in Kentucky affects students’ college financing decisions using linked administrative records on high school course-taking and postsecondary financial aid. Using school-level financial education course availability as an instrument, the chapter evaluates whether exposure to financial education is associated with differences in student loan borrowing and receipt of need-based aid.

The second chapter examines whether exposure to state high school financial education mandates improves financial literacy and longer-term personal finance behavior among U.S. adults. Using …

Policy Snapshot : Health Insurance Trends Among Child Care Educators, Sara Amadon

Straus Institute for Thriving Children & Families

This brief compares the health insurance status of child care educators in 2019 and 2024—spanning the COVID-19 pandemic and preceding 2026H.R.1’s implementation—to highlight shifting coverage patterns and state-level solutions to safeguard this essential workforce.

Envisioning The Role Of Community-Owned Stores & Aligning Federal Food Policies: A Participatory Approach To Food Security And Food Sovereignty In Sambaa K’E, Denendeh (Northwest Territories, Canada), Narayan Subramoniam

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Northern Indigenous communities have relied on traditional food systems for meaningful, nutritious diets since time immemorial. But many Indigenous communities in remote northern regions of Canada still face disproportionately elevated levels of food insecurity due to climate change radically altering the availability for traditional foods, colonial food policies imposing Western diets, and the high costs of transporting store-bought foods. Extreme weather events such as wildfires further isolate fly-in remote communities increasing both the costs of transporting store-bought foods and the difficulties of harvesting traditional foods. There are many examples of community-based initiatives for supporting traditional and locally grown foods, however, …

Latino Economic Inequality In New York City: Income And Snap Recipiency, 2013–2023, Oswaldo A. Mena Aguilar

Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies

This Latino Data Project Report analyzes trends in the economic well-being of Latino households in New York City between 2013 and 2023, focusing on household income and participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The findings reveal a paradoxical pattern: although median Latino household income increased over the decade, economic inequality within the Latino community widened substantially. Income gains were unevenly distributed, with higher-income households pulling further ahead while the lowest-income households experienced stagnation or decline. Over the same period, Latino households fell further behind all other racial and ethnic groups in the city. Additionally, Latinos consistently exhibited the …

Can Schools Sustain The Rising Cost Of Retiree Health Care?, Robert Bifulco, Iuliia Shybalkina

Center for Policy Research

Many New York State school districts spend significant amounts each year for retiree health care benefits, and these payments are expected to grow over the coming decades. This brief summarizes findings from a study examining approximately 300 New York State school districts. Unlike retiree pension plans, which are typically prefunded, retiree health care benefits are funded on a pay-as-you-go basis, meaning that benefits for past employees who are currently retired are paid using current district revenues. In the average school district, pay-as-you-go spending currently amounts to 4.5 percent of district revenues. Assuming current benefit and funding policies remain, spending is …

What Do Americans Think About Federal Tax Options To Support Transportation? Results From Year Sixteen Of A National Survey, Asha Weinstein Agrawal, Hilary Nixon

Mineta Transportation Institute

This report summarizes the results from the sixteenth year of a national public opinion survey asking U.S. adults questions related to their views on federal transportation taxes. A nationally representative sample of 2,539 respondents completed the online survey from February 3 to February 27, 2025. The questions test public opinions about raising the federal gas tax rate, replacing the federal gas tax with a new mileage fee, and imposing a mileage fee just on commercial travel. In addition to asking directly about support for these tax options, the survey collected data on respondents’ views on the quality of their local …