London School of Economics

This course examines novel industrial policy initiatives in Europe and beyond, in response to the green and digital transitions and the supply chain disruptions since the Covid lockdowns.

This course uses economic analysis to explore important questions in contemporary public policy. The first term focuses on microeconomic policy problems while the second term focuses on macroeconomic policies. The use of mathematics is minimal (in particular with no calculus) and the emphasis of instruction is on graphical analysis and economic intuition. Precise topics and readings will be announced and are selected to be of current interest.  Last year’s topics included externalities from road transportation; the implications of high income taxes in Scandinavian countries; the trade-off behind unemployment insurance systems; the effectiveness of policies to support peripheral regions; the effects of international economic integration; the patterns of long-run income and wealth inequality; the economics of global warming; Why did the UK government grant independence to the Bank of England in 1997 and adopt an inflation target?; What caused the global financial crisis and how can policy prevent future crises?; How was global financial regulation reformed in the aftermath of the crisis?; What unconventional tools of monetary policy did central banks implement?; What causes currency crises, how can policy prevent them and what sparked the Trump trade war?; Why has the US been a more successful currency union than the Eurozone, what caused the European sovereign debt crisis and how is it related to Brexit?; How should governments deal with a debt crisis - did Greece make the right choice?; What drives convergence in income levels across countries, why do some countries stay poor and what can policy do about it?

Through theory, guest lectures, and empirical exercises, this course allows students to gain practical experience in alternative investments. Students learn to identify what the return-risk characteristics of alternative investments are, what drives their appeal, how to understand related technical publications, and how to construct a portfolio using them.

The course is concerned with theories of democratization and case studies of democratic transformations during the so-called “third wave” of democratization from the 1970s to the present. The course analyzes processes of transition and consolidation of democracy and of democratic reversal in the context of globalization. Students study the concept of democracy, theories of transition to democracy, democratic consolidation and hybrid regimes and the crisis of liberal democracy. They focus on the condition of democracy in different regions of the world, including Southern Europe, Africa, Turkey, South East Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and Eastern Europe.

The objective of the course is to explain the core debates in International Development, and to review potential policy interventions at global, national, and sub-national levels. The approach adopted in the course draws from political science and international relations, with a focus on political economy.