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1. Happiness and health in China: The paradox of progress

Author:
Carol Graham, Shaojie Zhou, and Junyi Zhang
Publication Date:
06-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
The past two decades in China brought unprecedented rates of economic growth, development, and poverty reduction. Indeed, much of the reduction in the world’s extreme poverty rates during that time can be explained by the millions of people in China who exited poverty. GDP per capita and household consumption increased fourfold between the years 1990 and 2005.1 China jumped 10 places forward on the Human Development Index from 2008 until 2013, moving up to 93 of 187 countries, and life expectancy climbed to 75.3 years, compared to 67 years in 1980.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Health, and Human Welfare
Political Geography:
China

2. Stemming the Backlash Against Globalization

Author:
Carol Graham
Publication Date:
04-2001
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
There is much speculation about a new round of protests at the upcoming meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The protestors contend that globalization is bad for poor people in poor countries. But the evidence suggests the opposite: that globalization provides the poor in developing countries with new opportunities for upward mobility. Yet it also introduces new vulnerabilities, particularly for those in the middle income strata, which cause even the upwardly mobile in these strata to negatively assess their economic progress. We propose three sets of policies for poor countries — increasing access to higher levels and better quality education, eliminating market distortions that block the upward mobility of the poor (including excessive levels of inequality), and providing more broadly available safety nets for people without steady incomes — that could help prevent these negative sentiments from growing into a broader backlash against globalization, which would ultimately hurt the poor in these countries the most.
Topic:
Development, Globalization, Human Welfare, and Third World