Making Toilets ‘Cool’ Needs to be Major Health Priority in India

For hundreds of millions of people in rural India, living life without a toilet used to be quite common. However, thanks to the Indian government’s toilet building program, millions of people now have regular access to toilets

Ways to Address Poverty and Inequality: A Summary of Your Comments

In a recent column, I asked readers to write in with ideas about how full employment would influence the debate about inequality in the U.S. Since the column was published, eradicating poverty and trying to address inequality

What Are the Costs, Benefits of Restoring U.S.-Iran Relations?

In economics, individuals or entities act based on the hope that the benefits of their actions will outweigh the costs. The economic value of an action is measured by the benefit it provides.

A current hot topic in

The Difficulty of Measuring Inequality

Inequality is a topic of obvious concern worldwide. Nevertheless, problems arise when we measure inequality without a standard definition. Not having a unique and unambiguous definition has the consequence that different measures can lead to different conclusions.

Inequality

Economic Inequality: Does a Solution Exist?

From the French Revolution to the rise of the Communist Party in China, inequality has been the primary motivating factor of the great evolutions of society. Many commentators seem to have hit the nail on the head

Is Puerto Rico America’s Greece?

The current predicaments of Greece and Puerto Rico have been a long time in the making. No single policy or economic agreement is to blame, but the difficulties involved in both situations are likely to negatively impact

Charity, Investing and Risk

A number of people advised me not to write a column involving fraud and charities, especially religious-based charities, because they considered it controversial. As I was deciding whether or not to do so, a good friend advised

Solar Ear Helps Those with Hearing Losses at Minimal Cost

Globally, approximately 325 million people suffer from some degree of hearing loss. Experts estimate that helping these people comes to a lifetime cost of around $300,000 per person. The cost to society includes more than just dollar

Innovations in International Development

Explore the UN’s SDG website:   Act Now

In September 2015, at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit in New York, new Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) were

Is Some Space Exploration Socially Irresponsible?

On July 16, 1969, at 9:32 in the morning, a Saturn V rocket blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida. This mission, known as Apollo 11, would prove to be arguably the most successful space mission in history,

Employee Ownership — An Idea Many Agree With, Few Know

The philosophy behind an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) has three parts, according to ESOP advisors: broaden ownership of capital, create financial security and incentives, and urge better employee productivity. It is a wonder that ESOPs are

Why Anti-poverty Aid Needs Financial Literacy

Across the United States, it is not uncommon to see billboards and advertisements for a local lottery. These are often joined by other joint lotteries, some of which cover several states. While the variety is seemingly endless,