In this episode of Development Dialogues, host Catherine Chaney is joined by Max Bearak, Anant Sudarshan and Jessica Seddon to examine one of the most complex challenges in global development: how can the clean energy transition move forward both quickly and equitably, particularly for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) still grappling with poverty?
A central tension throughout the discussion is the balance between emissions reductions and economic growth. While wealthy nations historically contributed the most to climate change, LMICs are now under pressure to take costly action.
- Max Bearak is a reporter for The New York Times who covers international climate negotiations, energy politics, and new approaches to reducing emissions. His recent Poynter Lecture at Yale asked: Why are the rich failing the poor on climate change?’
- Anant Sudarshan is an economist at the University of Warwick and a Senior Fellow at the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago. His work focuses on environmental regulation and air pollution, and he’s the senior editor of an upcoming VoxDevLit on that topic.
- Jessica Seddon is a governance and environmental policy expert whose career spans India and the U.S. She focuses on how institutions can better use data to tackle challenges like air quality and climate risk. She is currently a Senior Fellow at Yale’s Jackson School of Global Affairs, director of the Deitz Family Initiative on Environment and Global Affairs, and faculty affiliate of Yale’s Economic Growth Center.
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