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Book Launch · “Infrastructure Policy and Inequality” by Michael A. Cohen
The Observatory on Latin America presents the book launch: Infrastructure Policy and Inequality, by Michael Cohen
Welcoming Remarks:
Joel Towers
President, The New School
Book Presentation:
Michael Cohen
Director of the Doctoral Program in Public and Urban Policy, The New School
Discussants:
Aromar Revi
Director, Indian Institute for Human Settlements
Sakiko Fukuda-Parr
Professor of International Affairs, The New School
Nidhi Srinivas
Professor of Management, The New School
September 24, 2024
6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Wollman Hall, Fifth Floor, Room B500,
65 West 11th Street, New York
*This is an in-person event. Please RSVP by clicking on the red RSVP button on the linked page.
This book reframes the purpose of infrastructure from being an input to economic growth to becoming a major instrument in reducing socio-economic inequalities in both industrialized and developing countries.
Per Michael, this book surveys infrastructure policies and performance over several decades, drawing on global and national lessons of COVID-19 and extensive working experience in 55 countries. “It reviews the World Bank’s experience launching a 30-year program to alleviate urban poverty through 7,000 projects. It shows that many significant policy changes have improved global urban policies adopted by national and local governments, yet they have failed to significantly address and reduce intra-urban inequalities.”
It suggests that the “underperformance” of infrastructure could be improved by paying more attention to users and the demand side, thereby contributing to overcoming many obstacles facing low-income communities worldwide.