Innovation and Development Week 2022

Event Video

Description:

If there was a silver lining in the pandemic, it was the role of innovation in saving lives and solving problems. What lessons can we learn from this experience that will help us nurture and scale innovation – particularly as we enter a new period of conflict, inequity, and uncertainty in the developing world? Makhtar Diop of the International Finance Corporation shared his insights and the potential he sees for public, private, and academic stakeholders to align their efforts and reimagine the future through innovation. After his presentation, Diop sat down with Michael Kremer, University Professor at the University of Chicago, for a conversation on scaling innovation in the developing world.

Speakers:

• Makhtar Diop, Managing Director, International Finance Corporation, World Bank
• Michael Kremer, University Professor, University of Chicago, 2019 Nobel laureate, and founder of the Development Innovation Lab

Location: City View Room, David Rubenstein Forum at UChicago (1201 E 60th St, Chicago, IL 60637)

Agenda:

• 1:30 – 2:30 pm Keynote Presentation and Fireside Chat
• 2:30 – 3:15 pm Reception

Event Video

Speakers:

• Michael Kremer, University Professor, University of Chicago, 2019 Nobel laureate, and founder of the Development Innovation Lab
• Opening Remarks: Ka Yee C. Lee, Provost, University of Chicago

Location: City View Room, David Rubenstein Forum at UChicago (1201 E 60th St, Chicago, IL 60637)

Description: In this lecture, Nobel laureate Michael Kremer, University Professor at the University of Chicago, discussed why innovation is important for development and research which estimates the social returns of investments in development innovation, and how to maximize the impact of these investments. He also discussed how the experimental method can be used as a tool for innovation. Finally, Kremer introduced the new Development Innovation Lab at the University of Chicago, which will focus on using the tools of economics to identify, test, refine and scale innovations.

Agenda:

• 4:00-5:00 pm Keynote Presentation
• 5:00-5:45 pm Reception

Event Video

Description:

This event featured two case studies on policy innovation through experimentation (for development). David Yang, Associate Professor of Economics at Harvard University, and Slaven Razmilic Burgos, Head of Evaluation and Transparency Division at the Budget Office of Chile, presented lessons from research in China and the institutionalization of evidence generation in the Chilean Budget Office. They were also joined by Leah Rosenzweig, Director at the Development Innovation Lab, for an in-depth conversation of their work.

Moderator: 

• Leah Rosenzweig, Director, Development Innovation Lab

Speakers:

• David Yang, Associate Professor of Economics, Harvard University
• Slaven Razmilic Burgos, Head of Evaluation and Transparency Division, Budget Office of Chile

Location: Saieh Hall for Economics, Room 146 (5757 S University Ave, Chicago, IL 60637)

Agenda:

• 9:30-11:00 am Reception and Presentation

Description: Over the past decade, behavioral development economics has shown how poverty affects decision making –savings, investing in more cost-effective technologies, school attendance, and usage of healthcare. In this panel, Joshua Dean and Mareike Schomerus explored recent innovations in the behavioral development economics space, how this perspective has been applied to some unexpected areas and issues, and what this means for the development policy.

Moderator:

• Rebecca Wolfe, Senior Lecturer and Executive Director of International Policy and Development at Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago

Panelists:

• Joshua Dean, Assistant Professor of Behavioral Science and Economics, Chicago Booth
• Mareike Schomerus, Vice President, Busara Center and Lecturer, Harris School of Public Policy

Location: Keller Center, Sky Suite (1307 E 60th St, Chicago, IL 60637)

Agenda: 

• 3:00-4:30 pm Presentation and Q&A. Light refreshments provided.

This event is co-hosted with the Harris School of Public Policy.

Event Video

Description:

In the twenty years since UChicago’s Rachel Glennerster and Michael Kremer proposed Advanced Market Commitments (AMCs) to address neglected tropical diseases, more than 150 million children have benefited from the ensuing vaccines. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, together with other researchers from UChicago and beyond they formed Accelerating Health Technologies to advise governments around the world on using market design in service of vaccine development. Rachel Glennerster, Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago’s Division of Social Science, Gyude Moore, Senior Policy Fellow at the Center for Global Development and Former Minister of Public Works for Liberia, and Benjamin Krause, Interim Executive Director at the Development Innovation Lab, review this history and look forward toward new frontiers for using pull mechanisms in service of development outcomes.

Moderator:

• Benjamin Krause, Interim Executive Director of DIL

Panelists:

• Rachel Glennerster, Associate Professor of Economics, Division of Social Science, University of Chicago; Former Chief Economist at the Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) and Department for International Development in the UK; Former Executive Director of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL)
• Gyude Moore, Senior Policy Fellow, Center for Global Development; Former Minister of Public Works, Liberia

Location: Saieh Hall for Economics, Room 021 (5757 S University Ave, Chicago, IL 60637)

Agenda:

• 4:00-5:00 pm  Presentation and Q&A
• 5:00-5:30 pm Reception

This event is co-hosted with the Harris School of Public Policy.

Panelists:

• David McKenzie, Lead Economist, Development Economics, World Bank

Location: Saieh Hall for Economics, Room 203 (5757 S University Ave, Chicago, IL 60637)

Agenda:

• 5:30-6:30 pm Program and Q&A

Speaker:

• David McKenzie, Lead Economist, Development Economics, World Bank

Agenda:

• 12:30-2:00 p.m Seminar

Description: This closing ceremony discussed how participants can work on innovative ways address the opportunities for development of Latin America. By discussing the challenges imposed by the COVID19 crisis and the recent electoral trends, we will also draft perspectives on the future of the region. As we get closer to 2030, it is vital to analyze where we stand and where we are headed as a region. We must create spaces to advance inclusive and innovative solutions to tackle the issues concerning labor market inclusion, poverty alleviation, inequality, as well as economic growth and productivity.

Speakers:

• Santiago Levy, Senior Fellow at Brookings Institute, Mexico
• Luis Felipe Lopez Calva, Regional Director for UNDP Latam, Mexico
• Pablo Peña, Assistant Instructional Professor at Kenneth C. Griffin Department of Economics and Director of Private Sector Partnerships at DIL

Location:International House of the University of Chicago (1414 E 59th St, Chicago, IL)

Agenda: 

• 4:30-5:30 pm Presentation
• 5:30 pm Reception

This event is co-hosted with Latin America Maters and is part of the 10th Annual Latin American Policy Forum. Information on the full LAPF program can be found here.