AMCs: a great tool for the abundance agenda
Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson’s recently published book, Abundance, has sparked a nationwide conversation about the ability of the U.S. government to deliver effective services and promote growth and innovation. While chapters on housing and energy use have generated debate about the appropriate role of regulation and spending, much less discussed is a section nestled […]
Unlocking Agricultural Innovation for Climate Action
Agricultural innovations are essential for tackling climate change in low- and middle-income countries. On February 19th, the University of Chicago Market Shaping Accelerator (MSA), the Innovation Commission for Climate Change, Food Security, and Agriculture, and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) hosted the Catalyzing Innovation event, where experts from the private sector, development finance institutions, universities, […]
Five steps multilateral development banks can take now to unlock pandemic financing
“Much of the delay in COVID-19 vaccine deliveries to low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) resulted from their signing purchase agreements later than high-income countries (HICs). These lags in part reflect the restrictive lending criteria the multilateral development banks (MDBs) adopted for vaccine financing, which precluded countries from using MDB funds to purchase vaccines before they were approved by […]
A Shark Tank for Accelerating Innovation for Climate and Pandemic Preparedness
At the end of a year-long competition, three teams took the stage last week to pitch their visionary ideas to promote innovation for addressing climate change, pandemics, and public health. Each team was grilled by expert judges in a “Shark Tank for innovation” co-hosted by the Center for Global Development and the University of Chicago Market […]
Transforming Pandemic Preparedness with Platform-Based Broad-Spectrum Antivirals
Epidemic and pandemic-potential viruses pose an unpredictable and severe threat to global health. Future respiratory disease epidemics from influenza or novel coronaviruses are projected to cause 2.5 million global deaths annually (Center for Global Development). The COVID-19 pandemic exposed vulnerabilities in our capacity to swiftly respond to a novel pathogen, with at-home antiviral drugs taking […]
Inter American Development Bank seminar on shaping markets to promote vaccine equity and address climate change
Faculty Director Rachel Glennerster presents her talk entitled “Shaping Markets to Promote Vaccine Equity and Address Climate Change” to the Inter American Development Bank in an internal seminar.
A Closer Look at Innovation Challenge Phase II Ideas: Repurposing Generic Drugs
Drugs often have uses beyond their original intended purposes. For example, semaglutide (i.e., the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy) was originally approved for use by people with diabetes and, later, for long-term weight management. However, due to a lack of financial incentives, new uses often go under-explored for drugs whose patents have expired. Once […]
A Closer Look at Innovation Challenge Phase II Ideas: Germicidal Ultraviolet Light for Indoor Air Quality
In the recent past, waterborne and foodborne diseases such as cholera and typhoid fever were among the leading causes of death across the globe. For example, in 1900, typhoid fever accounted for nearly 2% of deaths in the US (35,000 deaths) (Census, 1900). Fortunately, advancements in water and food sanitation practices have significantly reduced the […]
A Closer Look at Innovation Challenge Phase II Ideas: Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Diagnostics
Currently, 1.3 million global deaths are attributed to antimicrobial resistance (AMR) annually, and this number has been projected to rise to 10 million by 2050 (Murray et al., 2022; O’Neil, 2016). Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) arises from pathogens evolving to survive against therapeutics such as antibiotics and antifungals. Resistance to therapeutics makes conditions more difficult and […]
Principles for using market shaping to combat climate change
MSA team members William Arnesen (Policy Manager) and Professor Rachel Glennerster (Faculty Director) recently published a draft chapter in the National Bureau of Economic Research’s collected volume “New Directions in Market Shaping” entitled “Market Shaping for Climate Change.” The piece sets out: basic principles for when to use push and pull mechanisms for climate change, […]
