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on Urban and Real Estate Economics |
| By: | Gabriel Ahlfeldt (HU Berlin); Fabian Bald (Viadrina University); Duncan Roth (Institute for Employment Research (IAB)); Tobiad Seidel (University of Duisburg-Essen) |
| Abstract: | We employ a quantitative spatial model that accounts for trade fritions—generated by trade costs and non-tradable services—and mobility frictions—generated by idiosyncratic tastes and local ties—to recover unobserved quality of life (QoL) and estimate the urban QoL premium. For Germany, we find that a city twice as large offers, on average, a 22% higher QoL to the average resident—far exceeding the urban wage premium of 4%. Our model-based Monte Carlo simulations suggest that the lack of strong empirical evidence for an urban QoL premium in earlier literature likely stems from measurement error in the Rosen-Roback framework due to omitted spatial frictions. |
| Keywords: | housing; spatial frictions; rents; prices; productivity; quality of life; spatial equilibrium; wages; |
| JEL: | J2 J3 R2 R3 R5 |
| Date: | 2025–09–16 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rco:dpaper:544 |
| By: | Vincent Boucher; Aristide Houndetoungan |
| Abstract: | We study the estimation of peer effects through social networks when researchers do not observe the entire network structure. Special cases include sampled networks, censored networks, and misclassified links. We assume that researchers can obtain a consistent estimator of the distribution of the network. We show that this assumption is sufficient for estimating peer effects using a linear-in-means model. We provide an empirical application to the study of peer effects on students' academic achievement using the widely used Add Health database, and show that network data errors have a large downward bias on estimated peer effects. |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2509.08145 |
| By: | Tahir Andrabi (Pomona College, California); Tomoya Murakawa (Harvard Kennedy School) |
| Abstract: | The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic affected education through school closures and disruptive shocks to household income, health, and economic activity. Using data from a survey carried out in 2024 in 108 rural villages as a continuation of the Learning and Educational Achievement in Pakistan Schools (LEAPS) panel data project in Punjab, Pakistan, we measure these shocks and their effects on the learning outcomes of primary school students. Although the duration of school closures had a minimal direct impact, COVID-19-induced income shocks significantly reduced student learning, by 0.06 SD (standard deviation), disproportionately affecting public school students (0.08 SD) compared to a minimal effect on private school students. Consequently, the pandemic widened the pre-existing private–public learning inequality in more impacted areas. The study also finds that mitigation action by schools during closures in general did not explain the variation in learning outcomes. The impact of the COVID-19-induced shock was fairly modest in magnitude compared to the already-existing learning variation owing to other school and student characteristics that normally predict educational outcomes, such as gender, school type, and maternal education. We also document long-term trends using the village panel aspect of the LEAPS project. Despite the significant disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, student performance in all subgroups by gender and school type showed improvement in the period 2011–2024 at least as much as in the previous period of 2004–2011. The findings collectively suggest there has been a steady improvement in education levels in rural Pakistani villages and that COVID-19 may have had only a small effect, or the negative impact disappeared by 2 years after school reopening. |
| Keywords: | COVID-19;educational disruption;mitigation action;public and private school inequality;Pakistan |
| JEL: | I21 I25 O53 |
| Date: | 2025–09–19 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbewp:021555 |
| By: | Hannah Magdalena Seidl |
| Abstract: | I study the transmission mechanism of Quantitative Easing (QE) in the form of large-scale asset purchases in the mortgage market to aggregate consumption. To this end, I develop a New Keynesian model that features heterogeneous households, a microfounded housing market, and frictional intermediation. This model helps explain the empirical evidence suggesting that QE increases aggregate consumption by raising house prices. I find that higher house prices account for around half of QE’s stimulative effects, with higher labor income contributing the remaining half. |
| Keywords: | Quantitative easing, heterogeneous agents, incomplete markets, sticky wages, housing, asset prices |
| JEL: | E12 E21 E44 E52 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:diw:diwwpp:dp2141 |
| By: | Tomoya MORI |
| Abstract: | The past half-century in Japan has been characterized by the comprehensive development of high-speed railways, expressways, air routes, and the widespread adoption of the internet and smartphones, resulting in a substantial decline in transportation and communication costs. Given that the agglomeration of people and firms in cities is fundamentally driven by the costs associated with mobility and communication, changes in the costs of moving people, goods, and information have exerted a significant influence on the spatial distribution of the population. This paper analyzes, through the framework of economic agglomeration theory, how the enhancement of transport and communication infrastructure—effectively dismantling distance barriers—has transformed inter- and intra-urban population distribution. Particular attention is paid to the underlying mechanisms driving these shifts, with a focus on cities as the focus of population agglomeration. |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eti:rpdpjp:25013 |
| By: | Swati Dhingra; Fjolla Kondirolli; Stephen Machin |
| Abstract: | Diverting waste away from and zero waste to landfills are key sustainability policy aims of local and national governments around the world, particularly in countries with large waste footprints from rapid consumption growth and urbanisation. Segregation at the source of waste generation can offer a low-cost solution to urban waste footprints, yet segregation rates are low in many places, especially in the cities of developing economies. This paper studies a staggered randomised intervention offering training and education to citizens about waste segregation. Citizens in the city of Patna in India were given training on waste segregation at source, recycling and its environmental benefits in a large experimental intervention undertaken in collaboration with the city administration. Segregation-at-source increased substantially among households that received the intervention, and additional boosts to segregation arose from spatial spillovers, as the programme delivered at least a double-digit benefit-cost ratio. Citizen training, when effectively designed and implemented, does deliver a low-cost solution for the cities of developing countries to both reduce their waste footprint and enhance local environmental sustainability. |
| Keywords: | waste, citizen training, experimental intervention, spatial spillovers |
| Date: | 2025–09–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp2124 |
| By: | Stephen B. Billings; Adam Soliman |
| Abstract: | We provide novel evidence on the social spillovers of homeownership by exploiting the recent rise of institutional investors purchasing single-family homes and converting them into permanent rentals. Using a granular difference-in-differences design based on proximity to each investor-purchased property, we find that neighboring property values decline by 1% relative to those slightly farther away. This decline grows over time yet decays across space, and these same properties experience increases in crime and decreases in property maintenance and voter registration. Supplemental analysis suggests these externalities arise from both landlord practices and tenant composition. |
| Keywords: | homeownership, institutional investors |
| Date: | 2025–09–08 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp2123 |
| By: | Jo Blanden; Oliver Cassagneau-Francis; Lindsey Macmillan; Gill Wyness |
| Abstract: | Inequality in elite college attendance is a key driver of intergenerational mobility. This paper shifts the focus upstream to examine how elite high school attendance - specifically, enrollment in UK private, fee-paying schools - shapes university destinations across the academic ability distribution. Using linked administrative data, we show that the main advantage conferred by private schools is not that their highachieving students are more likely to access elite degree courses, but rather that their lower-achieving students are more likely to 'overmatch' by attending more selective degree courses than might be expected given their grades. In particular, we show that lower attaining pupils from fee-paying high schools enrol in university courses around 15 percentiles higher ranked than similarly qualified state school students. The greater propensity of private school students to overmatch is driven largely by differences in application behavior, with even the weakest private school students aiming higher than their higher achieving state school peers. |
| Keywords: | higher education, educational economics, college choice, mismatch, private schools |
| Date: | 2025–08–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp2115 |
| By: | Takafumi KAWAKUBO; Takafumi SUZUKI |
| Abstract: | This study examines how becoming a supplier to a newly established large-scale plant influences the performance of incumbent small plants. Exploiting detailed plant-level data, records of new large-plant openings, and supply chain information, we construct a quasi-experimental setting based on the spatial distribution of new entrants. Our event-study estimates show that while local supplier plants benefit significantly—both statistically and economically—from large-scale plants, non-supplier plants in the same region face negative impacts, likely due to intensified competition spurred by the newly-contracted suppliers. The results underscore that such entries create “winners and losers†not only across different regions but also within the same locality. From a policy perspective, these insights highlight the importance of facilitating effective partnerships between large-scale entrants and local suppliers, as well as offering support to disadvantaged non-supplier firms. Overall, our findings illuminate the nuanced local economic consequences of large-scale plant entries and offer guidance for future industrial and regional policies. |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eti:dpaper:25083 |
| By: | Boberg, Arvid (Department of Real Estate and Construction Management, Royal Institute of Technology); Donner, Herman (Department of Real Estate and Construction Management, Royal Institute of Technology); Metsalo, Jakob (Department of Real Estate and Construction Management, Royal Institute of Technology) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines how leasehold status affects cooperative apartment prices in Stockholm, and if housing cooperatives acted rationally when offered to purchase their leasehold land. The analysis builds on over 20, 000 sales of apartments in 2021 and extends prior research in two key ways. First, while earlier studies have established that leasehold tenure is associated with a price discount, we show that the effect varies substantially within a city. Leasehold apartments in central Stockholm sell at an average discount of 3.6%, compared to 6.8% in suburban areas, with neighborhood-level effects ranging from negligible to more than 15%. This heterogeneity underscores the importance of local market conditions for understanding how leasehold status is capitalized. A potential explanation for the identified pattern is that leasehold status is more common in the city center compared to suburban areas, resulting in a smaller discount when substitutes in the form of freehold apartments are less common. Second, we move beyond buyer capitalization by estimating counterfactual apartment values under scenarios where cooperatives purchase their land. The results indicate that, at prevailing interest rates, land purchases were typically unprofitable for cooperatives, even at discounted terms offered by the City of Stockholm in 2022. The findings highlight that the ownership structure of cooperative apartments on leasehold land can result in substantial pricing issues. The results indicate that the City of Stockholm likely mispriced the land given how leasehold status is capitalized by apartment buyers. |
| Keywords: | Leasehold; Housing Cooperatives; Apartments |
| JEL: | R21 R30 R31 |
| Date: | 2025–09–17 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:kthrec:2025_010 |
| By: | Tomoya MORI |
| Abstract: | Under the accelerating population decline, Japan is shrinking at a pace equivalent to losing one prefecture each year. These changes are not uniform: while rural regions are in decline, population continues to concentrate in major metropolitan areas. However, even these large cities will eventually face the reality of having to share a shrinking pie. This series of articles explores what Japan’s regions might look like a hundred years from now and what actions we can take today through the lens of economic agglomeration theory. As the first step, this paper demonstrates how “the city, †as a site of population concentration, can serve as a sharp analytical lens through which we can envision the future of a regional economy. |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eti:rpdpjp:25012 |
| By: | Andrés Barrios Fernández; Jorge Garcia-Hombrados; Daniel Perez-Parra |
| Abstract: | This paper provides causal evidence that geographic specialization can significantly enhance police effectiveness. Using rich administrative and survey data from Chile, we examine a major reform that subdivided police operational areas - e.g., municipalities - into smaller zones known as quadrants. On average, each municipality was divided into seven quadrants, with officers permanently assigned to these territories to allow them to develop a deep understanding of their structure, crime patterns, and communities. By exploiting the staggered implementation of the reform across municipalities, we show that this reorganization enhanced police effectiveness along multiple dimensions. Among surveyed households, twelve-month victimization rates declined by 10 percentage points (36%). In line with this result, administrative records from the police reveal a 14% reduction in reported crime. The reform also enhanced public confidence: the share of households reporting high trust in police rose by 12 percentage points (30%), while those perceiving increased criminal activity fell by 15 percentage points (36%). Consequently, the share of households investing in private security measures decreased by 7.7 percentage points (37%). Evidence suggests these improvements stem from geographic specialization, as households in treated municipalities report both greater police presence and better police performance across multiple dimensions associated with a better knowledge of the quadrants and their communities. |
| Keywords: | Police effectiveness, geographic specialization, police organization |
| Date: | 2025–09–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp2122 |
| By: | Vanessa Schmidt; Hannah Magdalena Seidl |
| Abstract: | We study the effects of movements in aggregate lending standards on macroeconomic aggregates and inequality. We show in a New Keynesian model with heterogeneous households and housing that a looser loan-to-value (LTV) ratio stimulates housing demand, nondurable consumption, and output. Our model implies that the LTV shock transmits to macroeconomic aggregates through higher household liquidity and a general-equilibrium increase in house prices and labor income. We also show that a looser LTV ratio redistributes housing wealth from the top 10% of the housing wealth distribution to the bottom 50%, indicating an overall decrease in inequality. |
| Keywords: | Heterogeneous agents, incomplete markets, housing, macroprudential policies |
| JEL: | E12 E21 E44 E52 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:diw:diwwpp:dp2140 |
| By: | Letizia Gambi (KU Leuven) |
| Date: | 2025–09–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:boc:bsug25:08 |
| By: | Elena Cottini (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore; Dipartimento di Economia e Finanza, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore); Lorena Popescu; Luca Salmasi (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore; Dipartimento di Economia e Finanza, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore); Gilberto Turati (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore; Dipartimento di Economia e Finanza, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore) |
| Abstract: | This study examines the causal impact of PM2.5 air pollution exposure on premature mortality in Southern European cities from 2010 to 2018. To address endogeneity, we leverage local variations in rainfall as a source of random variation in PM2.5 exposure. Using the Two-Sample Two-Stage Least Squares (TS2SLS) estimator to reconcile monitoring station-level and city-level data, our findings reveal a statistically significant increase in premature mortality caused by PM2.5. According to our preferred specification, a 1% increase in PM2.5 causes a 1.13% rise in the under-65 mortality rate and a 1.41% rise in the infant mortality rate. The results are robust to alternative specifications. The most affected populations are those residing in urban areas (relative to suburban areas) and individuals living in cities located in richer regions (as opposed to poorer ones). |
| Keywords: | air pollution, PM2.5, cities, premature mortality, TS2SLS. |
| JEL: | I18 Q53 Q58 |
| Date: | 2025–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ctc:serie1:def143 |
| By: | Davis, John B. (Department of Economics Marquette University); (Department of Economics Marquette University) |
| Abstract: | Disadvantaged social groups in the US suffered disproportionately in the covid pandemic and Great Recession, worsening high levels of inequality associated with their post-1980 declining intergenerational income mobility. For black Americans this reflects the long history of racial discrimination beginning with slavery. Reparations paid to descendants of enslaved individuals to eliminate the black-white wealth gap is a step toward addressing this history. A further needed step is to build predominantly black communities human and social capital through public investments in community health care centers (CHCs) and historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). There is considerable evidence that investments in early childhood education positively affect later school performance, income and earnings, higher education, crime, and other well-being outcomes. CHCs and HBCUs promote early childhood education. This paper argues compensation is due to both individuals and their communities, and reparations payments should be accompanied by public investments in those communities. |
| Keywords: | reparations, racial inequality, human capital, social capital, early childhood education, CHCs, HBCUs, restitutive justice, restorative justice |
| JEL: | D31 D63 I31 J15 Z13 |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mrq:wpaper:2025-05 |
| By: | Sarah Fritz; Lorenzo Incoronato; Catherine van der List |
| Abstract: | This paper documents substantial fiscal waste in the context of one the world’s largest regional development programs - the EU Cohesion Policy. We study Italy, and find that 20% of funding commitments are never paid out and funneled into unfinished or never-started projects. In our setting, this happens for reasons unrelated to fiscal constraints - municipalities appear to simply leave money on the table. Foregone spending is more prevalent in Southern regions, but there is also stark variation across municipalities within regions. We show that such under-utilization of available funds is strongly associated with limited administrative capacity of local governments. |
| Keywords: | foregone spending, state capacity, fiscal waste |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_12126 |
| By: | C. Kirabo Jackson |
| Abstract: | This paper studies when decentralization improves public service delivery. I analyze a Chicago reform that awarded select principals greater autonomy over budgets and operations while holding resources largely unchanged. A meta-analysis of similar reforms shows substantial heterogeneity, including both positive and negative effects. Building on insights from public finance, contract design, and psychology, I argue that the returns to autonomy depend on the capacity of local decision-makers (i.e., principals in this context) and the alignment of their objectives with those of central authorities. Event-study estimates show that, on average, increased autonomy improved achievement by about 0.1 standard deviations, effects comparable to resource-intensive interventions but achieved at minimal cost. However, deconvolution analysis reveals substantial heterogeneity, with both negative and positive effects. Design-based evidence supports the theoretical predictions; high-performing principals benefit more, reallocating resources effectively (e.g., reducing class sizes), and schools with atypical student populations benefit more and may tailor services to local needs. These results highlight that local capacity, aligned incentives, and heterogeneity are central to the success of decentralization reforms. |
| JEL: | H75 H77 I2 J0 |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:34216 |
| By: | Sona Badalyan |
| Abstract: | This paper exploits a unique norm-shifting setting—a German pension reform that equalized retirement ages across genders—to examine how old-age employment propagates through workplace networks. The reform raised women’s earliest claiming age from 60 to 63 for cohorts born in 1952 onward. Using the universe of workgroups from social security records, I compare women whose peers were just above or below the reform cutoff. I find that women are more likely to remain employed at older ages when their peers do, with stronger effects in the regions of former West Germany, with its traditional gender norms. Gender-neutral pension reforms thus amplify their impact through peer influence, fostering regional convergence in late-career employment patterns. |
| Keywords: | aging, gender, peer effects, old age employment, social norms |
| JEL: | D85 H55 J14 J16 J22 J26 Z13 |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cer:papers:wp800 |
| By: | Alexandra Rottenkolber; Ola Ali; Gergely Mónus; Jiaxuan Li; Jisu Kim (Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany); Daniela Perrotta (Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany); Aliakbar Akbaritabar (Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany) |
| Abstract: | Mobility of researchers is a key driver of knowledge diffusion, innovation, and international collaboration. While prior research highlights the role of networks in shaping migration flows, the extent to which personal and institutional ties influence the direction of scientific mobility remains unclear. This study leverages large-scale digital trace data from Scopus, capturing complete mobility trajectories, co-authorship networks, and collaboration histories of 172, 000 authors. Using multinomial logistic regressions and discrete choice modelling, we systematically assess the effects of first- and second-order co-authorship ties and institutional linkages on scholars’ mobility outcomes, focusing on their first career move. Our findings demonstrate that not only first-, but also second-order co-authorship ties — connections to a scholar’s collaborators’ collaborators — are a strong predictor for the direction of a move. Scholars with extensive individual professional networks, as well as those migrating abroad, are more likely to move along individual ties. In contrast, those from prestigious institutions, as well as those moving nationally, tend to follow institutional routes more often. Discrete choice models further confirm that both individual and institutional ties increase the probability of moving to specific research institutions, with individual connections being more influential than institutional ones. This research provides empirical evidence for the role that individual and institutional connections play in shaping high-skilled labour mobility. Furthermore, it has important implications for migration theory and policy, emphasising the need to support national and international collaborative networks, both individual and institutional, to foster scientific exchange. |
| JEL: | J1 Z0 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dem:wpaper:wp-2025-028 |
| By: | David Cuberes (Maynooth University); Aitor Lacuesta (Bank of Spain); Carlos Moreno-Pérez (Bank of Spain); Daniel Oto-Peralías (Universidad Pablo de Olavide) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the relationship between land ownership concentration and the likelihood of hosting large green energy facilities, specifically mega-photovoltaic (PV) plants, defined as those exceeding 50 hectares. Focusing on Spain, we find that municipalities with a higher proportion of agricultural land concentrated in large farms are significantly more likely to accommodate mega PV plants. This effect remains robust after accounting for key factors influencing PV deployment, including terrain ruggedness, solar potential, and proximity to transmission lines and urban centers. To further neutralize unobserved factors that jointly influence land concentration and PV plant location, we leverage cadastral (parcel) data to conduct an intra-municipal analysis at the 0.5×0.5 km grid-cell level. Our findings reveal that grid cells with larger cadastral parcels have a substantially higher probability of being part of a mega PV facility. A simple theoretical model explains this pattern by highlighting the coordination challenges faced by small landowners. Unlike large ones, fragmented landholders struggle to meet developers’ land requirements, which are necessary to cover fixed project costs. Consistent with this mechanism, we also show that areas with irrigated agriculture are less likely to host mega PV plants and exhibit more unequal distributions of plant locations by land size. Finally, we provide external validity by confirming a similar positive association between mega PV plants and land concentration across U.S. counties. These findings underscore the implications of land inequality for the spatial distribution of renewable energy projects, shedding light on the limited local benefits of such investments and the growing opposition from rural communities. |
| Keywords: | solar plants; photovoltaic plants; land concentration. . |
| JEL: | O13 Q40 Q15 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pab:wpaper:25.03 |
| By: | Ulrika Ahrsjš (Stockholm School of Economics); Costas Meghir (Cowles Foundation, Yale University); MŒrten Palme (Stockholm University); Marieke Schnabel (University College London) |
| Abstract: | We examine the intergenerational effect of education policy on crime. Using administrative data that links outcomes across generations with crime records, we show that the Swedish comprehensive school reform, gradually implemented between 1949 and 1962, reduced conviction rates for both the generation directly affected by the reform and their sons. The reduction in conviction rates occurred in several types of crime. Mediation analysis suggests that key channels include increased parental educational attainment and household income, as well as reduced criminal behavior among fathers. |
| Date: | 2025–08–23 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cwl:cwldpp:2356r2 |
| By: | Dinarte-Diaz, Lelys; Gresham, James; Lemos, Renata; Patrinos, Harry A.; Rodriguez-Ramirez, Rony |
| Abstract: | This paper provides insights into human capital investments during wartime by presenting evidence from three experiments of an online tutoring program for Ukrainian students amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Conducted between early 2023 and mid- 2024, the experiments reached nearly 10, 000 students across all regions of Ukraine. The program offered three hours per week of small-group tutoring in math and Ukrainian language over six weeks, and used academic and psychosocial tools to address student challenges at different intensities of disruption. Results show that the program led to substantial improvements in learning-up to 0.49 standard deviations in math and 0.40 standard deviations in Ukrainian language-and consistent reductions in stress-up to 0.12 standard deviations. High take-up and engagement rates were observed, and four mechanisms were identified as drivers of impact: structured peer interactions, improved attitudes toward learning, enhanced socio-emotional skills, and increased student investments. A complementary experiment using information nudges to increase parental engagement highlights challenges in promoting parental investments in a conflict setting. The program was cost-effective across all experiments, with benefit-to-cost ratios ranging from 31 to 56, and scalable given its reliance on existing infrastructure and teaching capacity. |
| Keywords: | Ukraine, wartime, tutoring, student achievement, mental health |
| JEL: | I21 I24 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:1663 |
| By: | Rongyan Chen; Ci Chen; Ziyang Yan |
| Abstract: | In the mid-1990s, the concept of smart growth emerged in the United States as a critical response to the phenomenon of suburban sprawl. To promote sustainable urban development, it is necessary to further investigate the principles and applications of smart growth. In this paper, we propose a Smart Growth Index (SGI) as a standard for measuring the degree of responsible urban development. Based on this index, we construct a comprehensive 3E evaluation model (covering economic prosperity, social equity, and environmental sustainability) to systematically assess the level of smart growth. For empirical analysis, we selected two medium-sized cities from different continents: Wuhu County, China, and Colima, Mexico. Using an improved entropy method, we evaluated the degree of smart growth in recent years and analyzed the contributions of various policies to sustainable urban development. Guided by the ten principles of smart growth, we further linked theoretical insights to practical challenges and formulated a development plan for both cities. To forecast long-term trends, we employed trend extrapolation based on historical data, enabling the prediction of SGI values for 2020, 2030, and 2050. The results indicate that Wuhu demonstrates greater potential for smart growth compared with Colima. We also simulated a scenario in which the population of both cities increased by 50 percent and re-evaluated the SGI. The analysis suggests that while rapid population growth tends to slow the pace of smart growth, it does not necessarily exert a negative impact on the overall trajectory of sustainable development. Finally, we conducted a study on the application of Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) theory in Wuhu County and proposed several policy recommendations aimed at enhancing the city's sustainable urban development. |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2509.04529 |
| By: | Albina, Iván; César, Andrés; Ciaschi, Matías; Falcone, Guillermo; Gasparini, Leonardo |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the causal effects of trade shocks on local labor markets (LLMs), with a focus on the rural–urban divide. In particular, it analyzes the impact of China’s integration into global trade on Chilean LLMs with varying degrees of rurality. The identification strategy exploits variation in pre-shock industrial specialization across LLMs and changes over time in global Chinese import penetration and industry-specific export demand. We study short-run effects (1996–2006) and medium run dynamics (through 2022). Urban LLMs, more exposed to import competition, experienced declines in income, increases in poverty and informality, and persistent schooling losses. Rural LLMs, linked to primary sectors benefiting from Chinese demand, saw sustained income growth and reductions in poverty and informality. These asymmetric effects likely contributed to narrowing regional disparities and underscore the importance of geographic exposure in shaping the distributional consequences of global trade integration. |
| Keywords: | Comercio internacional, Evaluación de impacto, China, Finanzas, Investigación social, Equidad e inclusión social, Ciudades, Pueblos nativos, |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dbl:dblwop:2522 |
| By: | Ivandic, Ria; Kirchmaier, Thomas; Machin, Stephen |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the effects of international terror attacks on out-group hate crimes committed against Muslims in a local setting. Event studies based on rich administrative data from the Greater Manchester Police on 10 terror attacks reveal an immediate big spike in Islamophobic hate crimes and hate-based incidents when an attack occurs. In subsequent days, the hate crime incidence is magnified by real-time media reports. The attacks create an attitudinal shock that leads residents to perceive local minority groups that share the religion of the attack’s perpetrators as an out-group threat. The overall conclusion is that, even when they reside in places far from where jihadi terror attacks take place, local Muslim populations face a media-magnified likelihood of hate-based victimization. But only those incidents salient to resident populations, because of where they happen or because of the media’s magnification of them, impact the incidence of local hate crimes. |
| Keywords: | international terror attacks; out-group; Islamophobic hate crime; media magnification |
| JEL: | J1 |
| Date: | 2024–08–31 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:122123 |
| By: | Drydakis, Nick |
| Abstract: | The study evaluates the effectiveness of a 12-week AI module delivered to non-STEM university students in England, aimed at building students' AI Capital, encompassing AI-related knowledge, skills, and capabilities. An integral part of the process involved the development and validation of the AI Capital of Students scale, used to measure AI Capital before and after the educational intervention. The module was delivered on four occasions to final-year students between 2023 and 2024, with follow-up data collected on students' employment status. The findings indicate that AI learning enhances students' AI Capital across all three dimensions. Moreover, AI Capital is positively associated with academic performance in AI-related coursework. However, disparities persist. Although all demographic groups experienced progress, male students, White students, and those with stronger backgrounds in mathematics and empirical methods achieved higher levels of AI Capital and academic success. Furthermore, enhanced AI Capital is associated with higher employment rates six months after graduation. To provide a theoretical foundation for this pedagogical intervention, the study introduces and validates the AI Learning-Capital-Employment Transition model, which conceptualises the pathway from structured AI education to the development of AI Capital and, in turn, to improved employment outcomes. The model integrates pedagogical, empirical and equity-centred perspectives, offering a practical framework for curriculum design and digital inclusion. The study highlights the importance of targeted interventions, inclusive pedagogy, and the integration of AI across curricula, with support tailored to students' prior academic experience. |
| Keywords: | Artificial Intelligence, AI literacy, AI Capital, University students, Grades, Academic performance, Employment rates |
| JEL: | I23 I21 J24 J21 O33 O15 I24 J15 J16 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:1668 |
| By: | Han, Yajie; Pkhikidze, Nino; Qin, Yu; Yang, Yi |
| Abstract: | Rural roads, serving as vital links between remote areas and economic centers, play an indispensable role in rural development. This paper investigates the relationship between rural road development and various economic outcomes in China from 2008 to 2021. Based on comprehensive novel road network data, satellite nighttime light images, county-level statistics, and household-level survey data, analyses are conducted at multiple levels. At the grid level, the findings show a consistent positive correlation between rural road mileage and nighttime light intensity, suggesting that road development fosters the growth of economic activity. The correlation is more pronounced in plains than in mountainous areas and is stronger for roads of higher quality. Economic prosperity and population size further enhance the economic benefits of rural roads. Additionally, the analysis finds significant links between rural road development and key metrics such as population growth, agricultural production, and the income and consumption of rural households. |
| Date: | 2025–09–08 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:11212 |
| By: | Riley K. Acton; Emily Cook; Paola A. Ugalde |
| Abstract: | We examine the role of students’ political views in shaping college enrollment decisions in the United States. We hypothesize that students derive utility from attending institutions aligned with their political identities, which could reinforce demographic and regional disparities in educational attainment and reduce ideological diversity on campuses. Using four decades of survey data on college freshmen, we document increasing political polarization in colleges’ student bodies, which is not fully explained by sorting along demographic, socioeconomic, or academic lines. To further explore these patterns, we conduct a series of survey-based choice experiments that quantify the value students place on political alignment relative to factors such as cost and proximity. We find that both liberal and conservative students prefer institutions with more like-minded peers and, especially, with fewer students from the opposite side of the political spectrum. The median student is willing to pay up to $2, 617 (12.5%) more to attend a college where the share of students with opposing political views is 10 percentage points lower, suggesting that political identity plays a meaningful role in the college choice process. |
| Keywords: | college choice, polarization, politics, higher education |
| JEL: | I20 I23 J1 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_12113 |
| By: | Tate, Anya |
| Abstract: | The late 19th-century reforms to the British patenting system reduced the cost of obtaining a patent from over £100 in 1851 to just £4 by 1883. While increasing accessibility, this cost reduction led to an increase of low-quality patents often replicating previous inventions, raising concerns about the system's effectiveness. As a result, the 1902 policy proposed novelty examination for the first time, increasing the cost by 25%. This paper examines whether the implementation of this policy in 1905 had a differential effect on patenting activity across British regions. Despite the significance of this policy, it has received extremely limited academic attention. This research aims to fill this gap and add to the literature on the regional impacts of patent system reforms in this period. This study employs panel regressions using data on every geocoded patent sealed between 1895-1915 in the PatentCity database with regional employment in 28 industries as controls. Results indicate no change in the regional distribution of patenting activity as a result of the novelty examination. These findings are consistent with those of Nicholas (2011) for the 1883 policy and have important implications for the geography of inventive activity and the distributional impacts of invention policies. |
| JEL: | O30 R10 |
| Date: | 2025–08 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:129440 |
| By: | Karthik Muralidharan; Abhijeet Singh |
| Abstract: | Many interventions that “work” in small-scale trials often fail at scale, highlighting the centrality of effective scaling for realizing the promise of evidence-based policy. We study the scaling of a personalized adaptive learning (PAL) software that was highly effective in a small-scale trial. We adapt the PAL implementation for scalability by integrating it into public school schedules, and experimentally evaluate this adaptation in a more representative sample over 20 times larger than the original study. After 18 months, treated students scored 0.22σ higher in Mathematics and 0.20σ higher in Hindi, a 50–66% productivity increase over the control group. Learning gains were proportional to student time on the platform, providing a simple, low-cost metric for monitoring implementation quality in future scale-ups. The adaptation was cost effective, and its key design features make it widely scalable across diverse settings. |
| JEL: | C93 I21 O15 |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:34205 |
| By: | Maria De Paola; Roberto Nisticò; Vincenzo Scoppa |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the impact of co-workers’ fertility on individual fertility decisions. Using matched employer-employee data from Italian social security records (2016–2020), we estimate how fertility among co-workers of similar age and occupation affects the individual likelihood of having a child. We exploit variation introduced by the 2015 Jobs Act, which reduced fertility among workers hired under weaker employment protection. Focusing on workers hired before the reform and using the share of colleagues hired after the reform as an instrument for peer fertility, we find that a one-percentage-point increase in peer fertility raises individual fertility by 0.4 percentage points (a 10% increase). Heterogeneity analysis suggests that while social influence and social norms are key mechanisms, information sharing and career concerns, particularly among women, tend to moderate the response. Our findings highlight how changes in employment protection may have unintended fertility spillovers through workplace social interactions. |
| Keywords: | career concerns, EPL, fertility, social learning, social norms, workplace |
| JEL: | C3 J13 J65 J41 M51 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_12131 |
| By: | Bandiera, Oriana; Buehren, Niklas; Goldstein, Markus; Rasul, Imran; Smurra, Andrea |
| Abstract: | Adolescent girls across low-income countries face disadvantages stemming from limited agency over their bodies and barriers to investing in their human capital. We study how these outcomes are shaped in times of aggregate crisis, in the context of the 2014–2016 Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone. This is a setting in which adolescent girls have long faced disadvantage because of a high prevalence of sexual exploitation and violence towards them. Our study is based around an evaluation of a club-based intervention for young women implemented during the epidemic. We track 2, 700 girls aged 12–18 from the eve of the epidemic in 2014 to just prior to when Sierra Leone was declared Ebola free in 2016. The club-based intervention provides a safe space where girls can spend time away from men, receive advice on reproductive health, vocational training, and/or microfinance. During the epidemic all schools were closed. We show that without the protection of time in school, in control villages teenage girls spent more time with men, pregnancy rates rose sharply, and their school enrolment dropped post-epidemic. The provision of a safe space breaks this causal chain: It enables girls in treated villages to allocate time away from men and reduce out-of-wedlock pregnancies. These effects are most pronounced in places where girls face the highest predicted pregnancy risks. In such locations, the intervention also increases school re-enrolment rates post-epidemic. To further pin down mechanisms, we exploit a second layer of randomization of input bundles offered by clubs. This reinforces the idea that the safe space component is critical to driving outcomes for teenage girls. Our analysis has implications for school closures during health crisis in contexts where young women face sexual violence, highlighting the protective and lasting role safe spaces can provide in such times. |
| JEL: | J13 J24 |
| Date: | 2025–09–02 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:129086 |
| By: | Kavalov Boyan (European Commission - JRC); Kucas Andrius (European Commission - JRC); Kompil Mert; Proietti Paola (European Commission - JRC); Sulis Patrizia (European Commission - JRC); Maistrali Antigoni (European Commission - JRC); Oliete Josa Sergio; Georgelin Lenaic |
| Abstract: | "This report provides summary comparative assessment of 11 Global Gateway Transport corridors in Africa. The focus is on the comparative modelling results under four specific objectives: 1) Reduce carbon footprint and preserve biodiversity; 2) Enhance digitaisation; 3) Improve accessibility: access to public services in the corridor territory, linking also rural road networks, urban mobility and connectivity in and between cities; 4) Unlock productive areas and support value chains’ development, e.g. mining / including raw materials, agriculture / agri-business, industry, etc.; and the overall objective to strengthen transport and trade corridor efficiency. Selected core comparative indicators are also provided for additional information and guidance.The following main conclusions have been drawn:1. All 11 shortlisted corridors are attractive for investments.2. The largest benefits are expected from interventions in transport infrastructure and accessibility.3. The investments in reducing carbon footprint and preserving biodiversity also appear quite promising.4. The most challenging area for intervention seems to be digitalisation. Synergies with investments in transport and accessibility could be exploited, to reduce the cost of digitalisation interventions.5. The challenges in boosting productivity appear as the most diverse ones and need to be further assessed by corridors, areas and sectors. A potential high-productivity cluster is identified in Western Africa.6. Large urban agglomerations and major transport and logistics infrastructure entities often demonstrate different intervention profiles from the remaining wide corridor area. Additional in-depth studies are needed to better understand their specific challenges, opportunities and trade-offs." |
| Date: | 2025–08 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc142789 |
| By: | Beyene, Winta |
| Abstract: | I study the informational value of community resilience in credit markets during natural disasters. Exploiting a severe flood in Germany in 2013, I combine loan-level data on car loans with a composite measure of community resilience based on structural local characteristics linked to disaster recovery capacity. After the flood, only low-income borrowers faced credit tightening, but in high-resilience areas they experienced smaller rate hikes and maintained access to credit. Resilience also predicts repayment after disasters, yet banks ignore it in normal times. This state-contingent reliance shows that community resilience enters credit pricing only in crises, when its information content beyond standard borrower characteristics is valuable enough to justify adoption. |
| Keywords: | Financial resilience, natural disasters, social capital, consumer credit |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:safewp:325484 |
| By: | Ying Cui (School of Economics, Capital University of Economics and Business, China; China Economics and Management Academy, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing, China); Hong Liu (China Economics and Management Academy, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing, China); Liqiu Zhao (School of Labor and Human Resources, Renmin University of China, China) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the causal impact of mother's schooling on various outcomes of adoles- cent development by exploiting the temporal and geographical variations in the enforcement of compulsory schooling laws in China. Using data from China Family Panel Studies, we find that mother's education increases adolescents' school enrollment, math test scores, college aspiration, and internal locus of control related to education. Mother's education also improves adolescent mental health status and reduces the incidence of underweight. We also find considerable gender heterogeneity in the effects of mother's education. The results further indicate that mother's education leads to an increase in family resources for children and an improvement in maternal mental health and parenting, which we interpret as potential mechanisms behind our findings. |
| Keywords: | Mother's education, School reforms, Child development, China |
| JEL: | I21 I24 J13 J24 O15 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cuf:wpaper:783 |
| By: | Christopher Avery; Geoffrey Kocks; Parag A. Pathak |
| Abstract: | School choice systems increasingly use common applications, where students can apply to multiple schools on a single form, though schools make admission decisions independently. We model three application systems: a common application, a decentralized system with costly separate applications, and a ranked-choice system using a matching algorithm. Our model shows that while a common application may expand access, it increases competition and may produce worse matches than a decentralized system where application costs encourage more selective applications. Ranked-choice systems combine reduced application costs with preference-based matching that reduce mismatches. We examine these predictions by analyzing how Boston's charter school sector was affected when it adopted an online common application. Counterfactual simulations suggest the common application performs no better than alternatives on several metrics and did little to increase access for disadvantaged groups. A ranked system consistently outperforms a common application across various levels of competition and assumptions on preference stability between application and enrollment stages. |
| JEL: | I20 |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:34207 |
| By: | Mukherjee, Srutakirti; Raimi, Daniel (Resources for the Future) |
| Abstract: | Place-based policies designed to support fossil fuel–dependent communities are emerging in the United States and abroad. However, there has been little analysis to understand which, if any, existing place-based economic development policies can serve as models in the energy transition. In this analysis, we review the empirical evidence on the effectiveness of three major federally funded place-based economic development programs, then assess their relevance to the energy transition. We find that existing policies, depending on their design details, can be effective in directing investment and improving local economic outcomes in targeted locations. However, these programs can contribute to neighborhood gentrification, and economic benefits may flow primarily to residents living outside the targeted community. Adapting any of these policies to an energy transition context would require changes in eligibility criteria, geographic targeting, selection mechanisms, and more. We offer several conceptual models for how such policies could be structured but caution that much additional research and community engagement will be needed to determine which mix of interventions is likely to be most effective in ensuring an equitable transition toward a clean energy future. |
| Date: | 2023–11–15 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rff:report:rp-23-16 |
| By: | Daniel Oto-Peralías (Universidad Pablo de Olavide); Demetrio Carmona-Derqui (Universidad Pablo de Olavide); Dolores Gutiérrez-Mora (Universidad de Sevilla) |
| Abstract: | Naming streets and public spaces after prominent figures and national symbols following a cultural and political agenda is a widespread practice of governments throughout the world. We study whether these commemorative policies actually influence people. Street names are ubiquitous urban elements; subtle pieces of information embedded with cultural and political meanings to which individuals are exposed on a daily basis. Through in-person and online surveys, we find that respondents have more knowledge about the figures commemorated in their streets and give more importance to them, compared to similarly relevant figures. We also find suggestive but inconclusive evidence of the influence of street names on gender and religious attitudes. These results have implications for urban commemorative policies around the world as well as for debates about the efficacy of interventions conducive to socially desirable outcomes. They also inform how people acquire knowledge, form their opinions and attitudes, and construct their identities. |
| Keywords: | street names, commemorative policies, urban policy, identity, education |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pab:wpaper:25.04 |
| By: | Dey, Subhasish (University of Warwick); Kapoor, Mahima (University of Warwick); Mukherjee, Anirban (University of Calcutta) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we examine if in the UK labour market, for a given job, immigrants are more educated than the natives. The answer to this question has critical policy implications as such skill mismatch signals misallocation of resources. Our theoretical framework explains why we might observe such a mismatch in a full information setup. In our framework, both hard skills (captured by years of education) and soft skills (based on local culture) are critical for productive activities. We further assume that natives have a comparative advantage in soft skills, while immigrants have a comparative advantage in hard skills. Therefore, in equilibrium, immigrants over-invest in hard skills, making them overeducated for a job. Moreover, between first and second-generation immigrants, the degree of overeducation is higher among the first-generation immigrants. We test our theoretical results using a nationally representative survey data from the UK and find support for our theoretical predictions. |
| Keywords: | second-generation Immigrants ; education-occupation mismatch ; UK JEL Codes: J08 ; J15 ; J61 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wrk:warwec:1576 |
| By: | Ina Ganguli; Megan MacGarvie |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the evolving trends and policy dynamics of international student migration, focusing on their implications for STEM workforce development and innovation. While the United States has remained a leading destination for international students, recent years have seen a plateau or decline in incoming students, contrasted by growth in countries like Canada, Australia, and emerging hubs such as China and India. International students, particularly in STEM fields, play a critical role in shaping host countries' innovation ecosystems, often transitioning to permanent residents and STEM workers. We review immigration policies, including post-graduation work and residency pathways, highlighting their varying impacts on student inflows and innovation. Policies in Canada and Australia have until recently eased these transitions, while restrictive measures in the U.S. and U.K. have posed challenges. By documenting these trends and policy shifts, we identify gaps in the literature and outline directions for future research at the intersection of international education, immigration, and innovation. |
| JEL: | I23 O31 J61 |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:34212 |
| By: | Anna Elffers (Independent researcher); Cecile Wentges (Get Lost Cultural Agency); Marjelle Vermeulen (Erasmus University Rotterdam) |
| Abstract: | The Netherlands is increasingly experiencing cross-sector collaborations between the cultural and creative sectors and industries (CCSI) and the business community. Cross-sector partnerships ‘create more value together for both businesses and non-profits in the arts and cultural sector, than they could have done separately’ (Wang and Holznagel, 2021, p. 95). However, the opportunities for such partnerships in The Netherlands are not yet fully exploited. Cross-sector partnerships can have advantages for both CCSI and businesses. The CCSI is highly dependent on subsidies and very much focused on this money stream. Partnerships with businesses can create new opportunities and spaces for arts and culture and thereby mitigate this dependency on subsidies. Businesses can also benefit from a cross-sector partnership. ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) reporting guidelines stimulate the business community to drive sustainable and responsible business practices. However, the business community is often still looking for ways to give shape to the ‘S’ of Social. Artists and cultural organizations are often perfectly outfitted to help businesses create social value in the places where they are active, e.g. by making buildings and neighborhoods more lively, easy to navigate or safe, by building communities and strengthening social cohesion or by giving meaning and identity to the past, present and future of certain place. A good partnership concerns a transformative collaboration, in which both parties work together towards a shared goal. As a result of the current hybridization movement, organizations from different sectors are moving towards the ‘social center’. In addition to financial value, businesses increasingly pursue soft values such as diversity and inclusion, employee wellbeing and social impact on local communities. In the CCSI, ‘hybridisation debates point to the presence of social, economic, political and creative and artistic logics/goals, with different mixes’ (Ferreira et al., 2023, p 929). Consequently, CCSI and the business community increasingly use a mix of orientations with shared interests: this offers a good starting point for transformative cross-sector partnerships. This research therefore focuses on the question: in what ways can the CCSI and businesses jointly make a social impact? By studying different projects that were carried out by the Get Lost Foundation in the Netherlands, we analyze how cross-sector partnerships can be successfully formed and built. We thereby pay attention to the important ‘translator’ role of intermediaries. |
| Keywords: | Cross-sector partnerships, cultural and creative sectors and industries, businesses, social impact |
| JEL: | L31 M14 Z11 |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cue:wpaper:awp-06-2025 |
| By: | Laura Ketter; Todd Morris; Lizi Yu |
| Abstract: | This paper documents a robust link between COVID-19 lockdowns and the uptake and persistence of working from home (WFH) practices. Exploiting rich longitudinal data, we use a difference-in-differences strategy to compare office workers in three heavily locked-down Australian states to similar workers in less affected states. Locked-down workers sustain 43% higher WFH levels through 2023 - 0.5 days per week - with a monotonic dose-response relationship. Persistence is driven by adjustments on both sides of the labor market: employers downsize office space and open remote or hybrid positions, while employees relocate away from city centers and invest in home offices and technology. |
| Date: | 2025–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2506.16671 |
| By: | Wataru Kodama (International Fund for Agricultural Development); Dina Azhgaliyeva (Asian Development Bank); Peter Morgan (PJM Consulting) |
| Abstract: | Literature links food insecurity to adverse welfare outcomes, including the educational performance of children. This paper investigates whether food insecurity, exacerbated by recent food inflation, has hindered schoolchildren’s recovery from learning loss following coronavirus disease-related school closures. We examine this relationship using household data collected in 2023 from nine countries (Afghanistan, Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan)—severely affected by food inflation. Our data document high severity of food insecurity and limited perceived learning progress after schools reopened in many countries. Using a novel instrumental variable, the relative severity of food inflation compared to general inflation, we find a causal link between households’ food insecurity and delays in learning progress after schools reopened. This effect is particularly pronounced among schoolchildren in higher grades and those who experienced longer durations of school closure, suggesting that food insecurity hampered recovery from learning loss during the school closure. |
| Keywords: | food inflation;food security;learning progress;Central Asia and Caucasus;South Asia |
| JEL: | I32 I24 Q18 D12 |
| Date: | 2025–09–17 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbewp:021552 |
| By: | Chiara Cavaglia; Sandra McNally |
| Abstract: | Policy makers recognise the importance of encouraging young people to stay in education for longer. We use the experience of the Great Recession in England to evaluate whether the incentive to invest in human capital bears fruit in terms of educational achievement and future labour market outcomes. We compare those on the cusp of their post-compulsory education to those who had already passed that point in their lives before the recession arrived. We also use variation in the severity of the Great Recession across different areas to identify effects. Our results suggest an effect on enrolment that translates into higher levels of achievement, which is driven by an increase in vocational qualifications. We also show that younger cohorts fare well relative to later cohorts in terms of early labour market outcomes. |
| Keywords: | Employment, unemployment, education participation |
| Date: | 2025–08–08 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cverdp:042 |
| By: | William P. Luan; Roxana Leal; John S. Zhou; Jonathan S. Skinner |
| Abstract: | There is increasing evidence on regional variations in U.S. Medicare utilization based on older patients who move. Yet evidence is limited for younger ages in the U.S., and movers may differ systematically from those who don’t move. In this paper, we harness the mandatory migration of military personnel and dependents (age 5 to 64) to estimate supply and demand factors in a system of care in which military physicians are salaried and copayments and deductibles are negligible. In our sample of 3 million enrollees, we find that place or supply effects explain as much as 80 percent of the overall regional variation for both the entire sample and for active-duty personnel. These regional place effects are correlated across age groups, with correlations as high as 0.84 between middle-aged and older military enrollees. These regional supply-side variations cannot be explained by differences in health, financial incentives, or quality of care, but appear consistent with location-specific differences in physician beliefs. |
| JEL: | H56 I1 I11 |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:34204 |