December 22, 2022

This is the third in our 2022 Year in Review series of lists – which began with "10 Harris Events That Shaped Our Thinking in 2022," “8 New Faculty Insights That Made Us Think in 2022,” and "3 UChicago Harris/AP-NORC Polls That Helped Us Understand Those Around Us" – spotlighting the top Harris news, accomplishments, and perspectives from across our community.

Professor Konstantin Sonin on the Escalating Situation in Ukraine

Ten months into a devastating war, the Russian and Ukrainian economies are struggling yet resilient. Russian-born economist Konstantin Sonin joined The Pie to provide an update on the economic impacts of the ongoing conflict, including the massive long-term toll not yet captured in available data.

A New Podcast from the Center for Municipal Finance

Each year, state and local governments spend $4 trillion dollars.

You may be asking yourself: Where does that money come from? Where does it go? Who manages it? And what do taxpayers have to show for it?

In the newly debuted Public Money Pod, hosted by Research Professor Justin Marlowe and journalist Liz Farmer, the Center for Municipal Finance attempts to answer those questions and more, and provides perspective on the budgets, bonds, and bureaucrats at the heart of state and local public finance.

Root of Conflict

Why are some places affected by violence and disorder while others enjoy peace and stability? Root of Conflict analyzes violent conflict around the world, and the people, societies, and policy issues it affects. Harris Public Policy students meet with leading experts and key stakeholders to discuss what can be done to create more peaceful societies.

Of note, in July, the podcast hosts spoke with Ambassador Martin Kimani, the Permanent Representative of Kenya to the United Nations, about his speech criticizing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the failures of Western intervention, and what worldbuilding after colonialism can look like.

And in November, hosts spoke with Dr. Lina Haddad Kreidie, a political psychologist and Academic Director of Gender Studies at the Lebanese American University (who also spoke at the Pearson Global Forum). Her research centers marginalized communities, mainly displaced and refugee women in the Middle East. The episode discusses her work with the Intisar Foundation—studying drama therapy as a mental health intervention for refugee women and how it’s impacted communities within the camps.

This series is produced by University of Chicago Public Policy Podcasts (UC3P), in partnership with The Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts.

Professor Chris Blattman on Why We Fight

War is costly, deadly and destructive. So, why do we do it? In his new book Why We Fight: The Roots of War and The Paths to Peace, Professor Chris Blattman lays out the five main reasons why countries go to war—and why building peace is actually a lot easier than we may think.

Blattman is an economist and political scientist who studies global conflict, crime and poverty. As a seasoned peacebuilder, he has worked in a number of countries to help mitigate conflict between gang leaders, political enemies and ethnic villages. He argues that one of the keys to finding peace is using a tool called the bargaining range to give both sides a piece of what they want.

In this episode of Big Brains, Blattman discusses how wars come to be, the incentives to stop them and what it will take for Putin to stop the fighting in Ukraine.

Water Treatment and Child Mortality

A new meta-analysis by Michael Kremer and co-authors suggests water treatment could reduce child mortality by about 30% in low- and middle-income countries, making it a highly cost-effective treatment for saving lives. Kremer joined his co-author Stephen Luby to discuss some of their findings in an event hosted by the Development Innovation Lab and the Center for Global Development.

How Resilient is the US Economy?

Assistant Professor Peter Ganong joined Macro Musings with David Beckworth to talk about his work on the dynamism and resiliency of the US economy. Peter and David also discuss the income convergence story in the US, how to address increased housing costs, the economic effects of pandemic response measures, and a lot more.

A Live Podcast Taping of Not Another Politics Podcast

Since its inception, Not Another Politics Podcast has engaged in discussions of academic papers that go to the core of the most discussed topics in political science and politics, and in 2022, our hosts took the show on the road, to the NASPAA conference in Chicago, to discuss a landmark paper, “U.S. House Members in Their Constituencies: An Exploration” by Richard Fenno.

Listen to Not Another Politics Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you enjoy your podcasts.