The global drive towards decentralization has been increasingly justified on the basis that greater transfers of resources to subnational governments are expected to deliver greater efficiency in the provision of public goods and services and greater economic growth. This paper examines whether this is the case, by analysing the relationship between decentralization and economic growth in 21 OE...

serving as a starting point, a panel of IMF staff and distinguished outside researchers on May 27 debated financial globalization’s benefits and risks. Panelists were Eswar Prasad (IMF Asia and Pacific Department), Shang-Jin Wei (IMF Research Department)—two of the study’s authors—and C. Fred Bergsten (Director, Institute for International Economics (IIE)), Jeffrey Frankel (Professor, Kennedy S...

We show that in an AK model of endogenous growth with CRRA specifications for both private and public consumption goods, income inequality exerts theoretically ambiguous effects on the optimal capital tax rate and the economy’s growth rate. In a calibrated version of the model, we find that the parameter space can be clearly divided into regions that exhibit a positive or negative relationship ...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has proposed permitting ballast water discharges--a benefit of which would be to reduce the economic damages associated with the introduction and spread of aquatic invasive species. Research on ship-borne aquatic invasive species has been conducted in earnest for decades, but determining the economic damages they cause remains troublesome. Furthermore, w...

This study examined factors impacting the success of Black male students in a Southwestern US community college. Data were collected using multiple sources, including semistructured interviews (n = 29), unstructured concept mapping, non-participant observations, and a focus group. Study findings revealed the harmful effects that glory-seeking, materialism, and excessive consumerism can have on ...

Cyanobacteria synthesize various harmful materials, including off-flavor substances and toxins, that are regarded as potential socio-economic and environmental hazards in freshwater systems, however, their production is still not well understood. In this study, we investigated the potential and properties of harmful materials produced by cyanobacteria, depending on temperature, and undertook a ...