Strongly agree with the conclusion of this Matthew Yglesias post - more people should be funding the YIMBY movement. (And we’re happy to be a resource to any other funders who’re interested!) Still early days but wracking up impressive successes left and right.

You know how every once in a while I say "Here's a writer you should be reading, who you're probably not reading yet"? Oliver Kim is one of those. Read more Oliver Kim! 👇

Public R&D investment in Brazilian agriculture increased agricultural productivity by 110 percent, with a benefit-cost ratio of 17, by catalyzing the development of locally appropriate technology, from Ariel Akerman, Jacob Moscona, Heitor Pellegrina, and Karthik Sastry

Last, night, California YIMBY and allies won a stunning, closely-fought victory: SB 79 provides automatic “by-right” zoning for green, environmentally friendly redevelopment with many more homes, within half a mile of stations! 🧵 x.com/YIMBYLAND/stat…

Policymaking in China—once highly decentralized—has become markedly centralized since 2013, with significant consequences for policy suitability and effectiveness, from Kaicheng Luo, Shaoda Wang, and David Yang nber.org/papers/w34219

ZERO growth, possibly even negative growth, in farm productivity across 55,000 smallholder farms across 6 African countries (Ethiopia, Malawi, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, and Tanzani) in 2008-2019, despite substantial investments. pnas.org/doi/epdf/10.10…

Mapping informal settlements is incredibly tough. Now we can use (free) remote sensing data to map these places and deliver aid. Here's the breakdown:

A Chinese mining company kidnapped representatives of Rendeavour in DRC today, including Tatu City Kenya director Preston Mendenhall, a company rep tells me. Rendeavour, Tatu’s developers, has a project near Lubumbashi. The employees were threatened with violence but later freed

Cities across Asia are increasingly experimenting with AI to improve urban service delivery, but questions of responsibility, equity, and sustainability remain. Artha Global, in partnership with GIZ, is researching how Asian cities can responsibly harness AI for better service

The role of Special Economic Zones in Vietnam's economic success Last month, Tevin Tafese (German Institute for Global and Area Studies), Jann Lay (German Institute for Global and Area Studies) & Van Tran (Ho Chi Minh University) discussed how SEZs are driving inclusive structure transformation in Vietnam: voxdev.org/topic/labour-m…

🚀 Announcing Build Toronto Toronto is Canada’s largest city, its economic engine, and its greatest opportunity. If Toronto thrives, Canada thrives. But we all know the city faces deep challenges: unaffordable housing, strained infrastructure, governance gridlock, and a lack of

Higher education and the roots of Southeast Asia’s economic miracle Last month on VoxDev, Sandra de Pleijt (History at WageningenUR Wageningen U&R) & Ewout Frankema discussed the role of higher education in Southeast Asia's long-run development: voxdev.org/topic/educatio…

Ethiopia’s large-scale road expansion cut travel times to markets – boosting farm productivity, reshaping cropping patterns, and accelerating structural change. Read today's article to learn more: x.com/vox_dev/status…

If modest pensions can measurably reduce the practice of old kinship systems (e.g., adult children residing with their parents), perhaps the impact of economic development on cultural change (as opposed to the reverse) is severely underrated... Also, there is a

Wrapping up a milestone at ASE Nigeria! Our pioneer cohort has successfully completed their very first academic session — a journey of growth, resilience, and discovery. We asked our students to share their reflections and here’s what our students had to say. #Africa #ASE

AUL is honored to partner with UAAU! This week we hosted the inception meeting in Uganda bringing together city mayors, town clerks, physical planners, and partners — including Makerere University, the Ministry of Lands, and Cities Alliance. The strong interest and commitment to

I've seen Joe Studwell and land redistribution on the basis of agrarian efficiency mentioned a few times recently, so I started to write a post about it. But concluded that I have nothing to add to Dietz Vollrath 's amazing essay on it.

🆕 Where to find development economics resources I've updated my list of all the various sources of newsletters, articles, podcasts & videos relevant to development economics that I've come across in my three years at VoxDev. Read here: voxdev.org/topic/where-fi…

Not enough people in policymaking roles appreciate the level of urgency needed to address the Continent’s jobs problem. Too many people remain stuck in their ways, doing the same things over and over again.

Forthcoming in the AER: "First Generation Elite: The Role of School Social Networks" by Sarah Cattan, Kjell G. Salvanes, and Emma Tominey. aeaweb.org/articles?id=10…