Departmental news

The Department of Economics welcomed Jill Pay, Chairman of The Gender Index and former Serjeant at Arms of the House of Commons, as the latest in its series of inspirational female guest lecturers.

Jill’s lecture - 'My Kaleidoscope Career That Led to The Gender Index' – ranged across her fascinating career journey, highlights of which included helping to host President Barack Obama at the Houses of Parliament and meeting Nelson Mandela, and also covered her current work as Chairman of The Gender Index the first, free-to-use index benchmarking the impact of female-led companies on the UK economy.

Jill is best known to the public as the first female Serjeant at Arms of the House of Commons. She was appointed in January 2008 by Her Majesty the Queen after a lengthy selection process, making history on two counts – she was the first woman appointed to the post and the first appointee from a non-military background. “I needed a backbone of steel,” Jill commented, noting also that the strong network she had built with other women working in the Palace of Westminster since starting as Head Office Keeper in 1994 was a vital support for her.

Speaking to a busy lecture theatre, Jill summed up the role as holding the balance between ensuring the security of the House of Commons and protecting the public’s right to enter the building, observing democracy in action and lobbying their Members of Parliament. There was also a strong element of ceremony and theatre – the Serjeant at Arms plays a key role in the annual State Opening of Parliament and leads the Speaker’s Procession at the start of every sitting day. Sharing a photograph of herself in uniform, Jill noted that she was the only person entitled to wear a sword within the House of Commons.

After four busy years in the role, Jill stepped down to focus on her personal mission – to help women, children and small businesses grow, develop and thrive. Her passion for empowering and supporting women has led to the creation of The Gender Index where Jill teamed up with AI specialist John Cushing through her work with the Women in Enterprise APPG. “Data Man met Gender Woman, and the Gender Index was conceived,” she joked.

Jill is also very active with the Coram children’s charity and with a number of organisations supporting women in business and public life. She encouraged the female students present to challenge any feelings of imposter syndrome, sharing that when she had felt daunted in the House of Commons recruitment process she decided to respect the fact that the very thorough HR sift had recognised she had the potential to succeed in the role, so she had better believe in herself just as much as they had. She also encouraged the students to have a go at new challenges and to encourage each other to succeed.

The Gender Index aims to drive change through data, exposing barriers to female success and enabling predictive modelling of the impact of policy changes. “We want to see more female-led, fast-growth companies in the UK,” Jill said.

Warwick student Aimee Cornish said "It was incredibly inspiring to hear Jill’s story and understand her career trajectory since becoming Serjeant at Arms for the House of Commons. Her message on gender equality is pertinent to the current climate of societal expectations for young individuals’ development, for which Jill serves as a wonderful role model’.

Read more about The Gender Index: The Gender Index

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves MP has delivered a major policy speech outlining a number of changes to UK planning law, including a pledge to "introduce a new approach to planning decisions on land around stations, changing the default answer to yes.”

Dr Amrita KulkaLink opens in a new window, Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics, comments:-

“Among a number of policy headlines in her speech today, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced ‘a new approach to planning around stations’ in order to make more land available for housing.

"Policies to increase access to housing in general, and access to affordable housing in particular, in and near cities can improve economic growth and individual prosperity, while preventing households from being forced to re-locate to regions with worse opportunities.

“In 2021, the US state of Massachusetts introduced reforms (Chapter 40A) that required municipalities to permit apartment buildings and higher density development within an 0.5-mile radius of commuter rail and subway stations.

“With colleagues, I simulated the results of the Chapter 40A reforms in Greater Boston. We found that while the effects of this policy vary from place to place, it has the potential to increase housing supply and reduce house prices and monthly rents, especially in strictly regulated suburban municipalities near Boston, in the long run.

“Although the US and UK planning systems are very different, we may well see similar effects here in the UK as a result of this policy change."

• Read the US research: Kulka, Amrita and Sood, Aradhya and Chiumenti, Nicholas, Under the (Neighbor)Hood: Understanding Interactions Among Zoning Regulations (December 24, 2024). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4082457 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4082457

The Warwick Economics Summit (WES) is one of the largest student-led conferences in Europe. WES 2025 will host speakers from Nobel Peace Laureates to former World leaders and showcase keynote speeches on chemical disarmament to panel debates on the future of AI.

The summit is hosted yearly at the University of Warwick, with its 24th edition, WES2025, set to take place from 24-26 January 2025. Among our past speakers, we have hosted 19 Nobel prize recipients and numerous heads of state. Some of the summit's attractions include keynote speeches, specialist discussion panels, and workshops targeted at delegates.

Daniel Rego, co-President of WES 2025 said

“It has been a great experience working with such a talented group of students to bring the 24th edition of WES to life. This year, we have increased the number of discussion panels in the conference as well as broadened our scope to include more conversations between economists and experts in science and technology. I am personally looking forward to our panel on digital currencies and the challenges and opportunities resulting from their widespread adoption”.

Keynotes

• Kate Raworth – Author of Doughnut Economics (In-Person)
• Tawakkol Karman – 2011 Nobel Peace laureate, journalist, and human rights activist (In-Person)
• Paul Donovan – Chief Economist of UBS (In-Person)
• Ugochi Daniels – Deputy Director General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) (In-Person)
• Ahmet Üzümcü – Former Director General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (In-Person)
• Paolo Gentiloni – European Commissioner for Economy, former Prime Minister of Italy (In-Person)
• Simonetta Sommaruga – Former President of the Swiss Confederation, Former Member of the Swiss Federal Council (In-Person)
• Max Klymenko – Consultant, Forbes 30 under 30, and TikTok creator on business (In-Person)
• Michael Spence – Nobel Economics Winner (Virtual)
• Kevin Chika Urama – Chief Economist at African Development Bank (Virtual)

The Future of Global Development: Envisioning a Path for Economic Convergence

• James John – Director of IMF Europe Offices
• Chinwe Egwim – Chief Economist and Head of Economic Research at Coronation Merchant Bank
• Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin – Former Investment Minister of Egypt, Executive Director at IMF, and World Bank Managing Director
• Arianna Legovini – Director of the Development Impact (DIME) department at the World Bank
• Chelsey Dulaney – EM Reporter at Wall Street Journal

Healthcare In Crisis: The Role Of Nationalisation And Government In Pandemic Response

• Nora Colton – Director of the UCL Global Business School of Health
• Katharina Hauck – Professor of Health Economics and Deputy Director at Imperial College London
• Rocco Friebel – Associate Professor of Health Policy and Director of the Global Surgery Policy Unit at LSE
• David Rowland – Director of the Centre for Health and Public Interest
• Sarah Neville – Global Health Editor at Financial Times

The AI Economy: The Role of AI in Transforming Industries

• Professor Thorsten Beck – Director of the Florence School of Banking and Finance
• Dr. Anjali Mazumder – AI and Justice and Human Rights Theme Lead at Alan Turing Institute
• Michael Peel – Journalist at Financial Times

Beyond Banknotes: Navigating the Future of a Cashless Society

• Nick McLaren – Head of Future of Money at Bank of England
• Paul Buitink – Managing Director of Holland Gold
• John Howells – CEO of LINK

The World Ahead: Navigating The Next Economic Era

• Richard Portes – Professor at LBS, Founder and Honorary President of CEPR
• Felipe Camargo – Lead Global Economist at Oxford Economics
• Bhanu Baweja – Chief Strategist at UBS
• David Omojomolo – Economist at Capital Economics

Among the invited guests, Warwick Economics alumnus Dr Mahmoud Mohieldin will be delivering a keynote talk. Dr Mohieldin, who was awarded an Honorary Degree at the Department of Economics degree ceremony on 23 July last year, is a former Investment Minister of Egypt, Executive Director at IMF, and World Bank Managing Director.

WBS alumnus, Max Klymenko (MSc International Business, 2017), is also a keynote speaker at the conference. Max was listed on the Forbes 30 under 30 and is known as a TikTok creator on business.

For details of the event please visit Warwick Economics Summit: https://www.warwickeconomicssummit.com/

Mark Zuckerberg has announcedLink opens in a new window changes to moderation on Meta platforms, including an end to independent fact-checking on its platforms, increases in the amount of political content recommended to users, and " getting rid of a number of restrictions on topics like immigration, gender identity and gender that are the subject of frequent political discourse and debate."

Dr Mateusz Stalinski,Link opens in a new window Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics, comments:-

“Meta’s decision to reduce the amount of content moderation across their platforms does not come as a surprise. With X increasingly branding itself as leader in promoting largely unrestrained freedom of expression on social media, Meta has faced competitive pressure to take action.

“Social media platforms have a track record of responding to each other’s policy changes. Following Twitter’s ban on political advertisement in 2019 (Elon Musk reinstated them in 2023), Facebook swiftly took action to introduce a tool that allowed its users to opt out of political ads during the 2020 election campaign.

“While Meta’s recent announcement to reduce censorship is partially forced by policies of its competitors, it also directly benefits the platform itself. Research Link opens in a new windowconducted by researchers from the University of Warwick, Bocconi University, and Columbia University shows that exposure to toxic content on social media increases user engagement, which can improve platforms’ advertising revenue. From this angle, the increased external pressure to protect the freedom of expression is a welcome excuse to forward business goals without being explicit about it.”

7 January 2025

This summer’s Paralympic Games saw a triumphant return to form for Warwick Economics graduate and professional wheelchair tennis player Daniel Caverzaschi after almost two years off the court owing to injury and surgery.

With his doubles partner Martín de la Puente, Daniel won Spain's ever first medal in wheelchair tennis - a bronze – in a dramatic match on the famous Roland Garros courts.

Daniel’s Paralympian journey began during his first year at Warwick, when he qualified for the London 2012 Games.

He shares with us some reflections on his summer of sport, memories of his time at Warwick and his busy life away from the courts:

Tell us about your experience of taking part in the Paralympic Games in Paris. What was the atmosphere like?

The atmosphere in Paris was something truly special. Winning the bronze medal against the French pair on the courts of Roland Garros, stadium absolutely packed, was a moment that dreams are made of. Seeing a full stadium for wheelchair tennis was an absolute highlight for me. And confronting a full stadium of French cheering like crazy for my opponents (and sometimes even booing us), may sound funny, but actually represents the integration I want: where people don’t see the disability in us, but just the fierce competitors who, in this case, they want to beat! This is the perfect representation of disability normalisation, isn’t it?

It’s hard to say if these were my favourite Games, but I will certainly never forget them. Just being there was already a personal victory, and winning Spain’s first-ever wheelchair tennis medal made it even more unforgettable.

One clear takeaway from Paris is that interest in adapted sports is growing significantly.

What were your expectations going into the Games – in singles and in doubles?

At the start of the year, my main goal was simply to qualify. After the injuries and surgeries, I wasn’t sure how far I could go. In singles, I wanted to build on my past performances, but the Games felt too soon after my injury. However, all my singles matches had a lot of drama, and when I put everything into perspective, I’m satisfied with my performance.

In doubles, Martín and I knew we had a chance, but we had to beat one of the favourite pairs, the Dutch. Once we did, we knew we could make history. The semifinals are still hard to think about—we lost against the world number 2 pair in a super tie-break by just two points. That’s elite sports for you! We had a strong chance going into the bronze match, but playing against the hosts is always complicated. Perhaps it was meant to be that we had to lose the semifinals to win the bronze against the French. After all, they say the Spanish love playing at Roland Garros!

What do you think of as your most satisfying career achievements?

Winning the bronze medal in Paris is definitely one of my career highlights. It wasn’t just about the medal but about the long road it took to get there. My Paralympic diplomas in Rio and Tokyo were also important milestones. These moments are special because they show my consistent effort over the years and the progress we’ve made in wheelchair tennis as a sport. Of course, the Paralympic Games are extra special, but we also compete in the four Grand Slams—playing at Wimbledon, the US Open, Roland Garros, and the Australian Open is an experience like no other. I can’t wait for the Grand Slam season to kick off in Australia in 2025; I feel more ready than ever. The best is yet to come, my friends!

How have you managed to stay so competitive at the elite level for so long in a sport in which the competition keeps getting tougher?

It comes down to discipline, both physically and mentally. The level of competition keeps increasing, which pushes me to work even harder. I focus a lot on physical training, but mental conditioning is just as important. Surrounding myself with the right people has also been crucial. I’ve always had a great team behind me, and their support has helped me maintain my competitive edge. I also have very clear goals, which keeps my hunger for success alive.

Another key factor, and something which I think is important for sports but for life in general, is keeping a resilience mindset and seeing all the barriers that come to you as opportunities to grow and to come back stronger. I’m very proud of how I’ve managed the setbacks in my career and in life. This has led me to come back so fast to the Top10 after a serious injury and surprise everyone - even myself - this past year.

Where did your initial interest in tennis start? And who has been most instrumental throughout your career?

I’ve loved tennis for as long as I can remember. As a kid, my parents encouraged me to play many sports, regardless of my disability. I really enjoyed skiing, but it’s probably best I swapped the skis for the racket because I’m known to be a bit too daring! Once I started playing wheelchair tennis, I knew it was the sport for me. It's also one of the most professionalized adapted sports out there, with a strong competitive yearly calendar. My family has always supported me, and I’ve had amazing coaches who have guided me throughout my career. There have been many people along the way—mentors, teammates, and even competitors—who have inspired me to keep improving. A big shoutout as well to my sponsors, some of which have been supporting me for the past decade, for believing in me throughout all these years.

How did you manage to combine intensive training - and qualification for London 2012! - with studying for your (first-class) degree at Warwick?

Ufff, that was a tough one. I can remember the exact moments as if it were yesterday… I remember my conversation with Robin Naylor where I had to make a decision in February whether I should take a gap year in order to focus on traveling the world and qualify for London 2012, or attempt both things at the same time, risk failing one of the exams and not being able to take the resits because it coincided with the Games. It wasn’t an easy decision. Robin was incredibly supportive and gave me the confidence I needed. I obviously chose the risky decision… And it was all about time management and a lot of discipline. Balancing my degree with training for the London 2012 Paralympics and traveling 9 weeks in 3 months all around the world from February to May, just before the end of year exams, was extremely challenging and stressful, but as I said I’m someone who enjoys a good challenge. I had to make sacrifices, but ultimately, my passion for both tennis and my studies kept me motivated. And the confidence that my parents and Robin gave me in giving it my best. Late nights, early mornings, and discovering the role of coffee in those moments were part of the routine, but it was worth it in the end. The grind it took to accomplish those goals led me to one of my most happy memories. That’s when I realized that giving it all, regardless of the outcome (in this case it was positive but in other cases it wasn’t), brings happiness.

What are your strongest memories of studying Economics at Warwick?

Warwick was an amazing place to study. I have great memories and made many friendships that last to this day. Aside from the social element, graduating with a first-class degree in Economics was a huge sense of accomplishment. The university was a community that supported and encouraged me, both academically and athletically, while the discipline I learned during my time at Warwick has carried over into my tennis career.

Please bring us up to date with what you’ve been doing professionally away from the tennis court since you graduated.

Since graduating, I’ve focused a lot on using my platform to promote and normalize disability through sport. In 2023, I co-founded VLP Sports, which works with brands to raise awareness about athletes with disabilities and create impactful campaigns. I’ve always wanted to be an entrepreneur, and it made sense to combine my passion for sports with disability normalization and apply some of the elements I learned with my economics degree as well!

How do you combine elite tennis with your other roles and ambitions?

It’s definitely a balancing act. Tennis is my main focus, but my work with VLP Sports is also a big part of my life. I’ve learned to manage my time effectively and have built a great team to support me in both areas. It’s not always easy and requires making sacrifices, but I’m passionate about both and have found a way to make it work. My team helps keep everything on track, allowing me to continue competing while also pursuing my other professional goals.

You have written that one of your passions is to motivate people to see problems as opportunities for growth and differences as advantages. Could you tell us more about this as an approach to life?

I believe that we all face challenges, but it’s how we respond to those challenges that defines us. I was born with my disability, but I didn’t let that stop me from pursuing my dreams. Instead, I’ve used it as a source of strength. I want to show people that differences are not limitations—they are opportunities to grow and excel. My goal is to create a world where social barriers don’t exist, and where everyone is judged on their abilities, not their disabilities. This is my mission, and it’s also the mission of my company, VLP Sports.

We wish Daniel every success in his 2025 matches!

Photo (published with permission of Dani Caverzaschi): Dani Caverzaschi (left) with Martín de la Puente (right) at the Paris Paralympics Games 2024.

We have caught up with Lis Prager, Warwick Economics alumna and Fintech entrepreneur to get an update on how her mission to close the gender wealth gap was progressing. Back in 2023 we found out from Elisabeth how and why she and her business partner and friend Nitika (also Warwick alumna) were trying to set up a personal finance solution combining education, guidance and access to advice.

Back in June 2023 you told us that the gender investment gap was huge, with high-earning women losing out on almost £800K over their career by not investing (Ellevest 2018). How are you trying to solve this problem?

"You’re right – the investment gap is big, and the gender wealth gap is even bigger! Women, despite having ever-more money and assets, face a variety of challenges when it comes to building wealth. What is building wealth? Simply said, it’s growing your money to achieve the life you dream of. What does that take – it takes knowing what you want to achieve, having a plan to achieve it and then getting the education, guidance and accountability to make it happen.

Women specifically lack access to relevant financial plans, solid and accessible education and relatable and timely guidance. We’re time poor, don’t have sufficient financial education and don’t see ourselves in the advisors who say they’ll manage our money. Consequently, we feel disempowered when it comes to our money and don’t do anything… Aila is addressing this by putting a digital personal trainer for your finances in every woman’s pocket, so she can invest, save and budget to achieve the life she dreams of."

"Like a sports personal trainer, who helps you understand your current level of fitness and then crafts a personalised plan, educates you and holds you to account to help you achieve your fitness goal, Aila does the same with money."

According to Nordic Fintech Magazine Aila Money is listed as one of the fintech company to watch! Described as one of those companies that push boundaries, transform industries, and shaking up the status quo with their creative energy.

As a co-founder of Aila Money what boundaries are you pushing and what are you trying to transform?

"We are really trying to push the boundaries on how to empower women to build their wealth. We’re democratising financial planning and guidance for women. As mentioned, we anchor all the plans, education and guidance in the users’ life goals and their data. This personalisation of education and guidance makes finance relevant to women and helps them change their money behaviours in a sustained way. This was demonstrated by users on our no-code beta version saving on average hundreds of pounds, 90% feeling more confident about their money and, the average user starting to invest over £1500 per year."

What have you been focusing on in the last 18 months?

"As a founder you wear all hats – from strategic, to operational – from thinking through business models, to crafting the financial models, to crafting brand and marketing plans, to executing the post or editing the video, to creating the product prototype, to hiring the team and managing the team that will build it. That being said, two focal areas emerge:

• Creating a truly user-centric product – we built and tested a no-code version of Aila and grew the number of users to over 200. This gave us great insights and a good understanding of our engaged user, to allow us to build the Aila app.
• Building a community – we’ve been trying and testing different messages, tools and formats to understand and build a community around Aila. This has given us a great insight again into who we serve and what their thoughts and challenges are when it comes to growing their wealth."

Tell us about Aila Money App. What does it do and why should it appeal to women in particular?

"Aila helps you calculate the cost of your life goals, then – based on where you are today – helps you plan how to achieve them, sets and tracks actions so you complete them. Aila also educates you based on your goals and data and embeds behavioural science to make sure you stay motivated along the way. And yes, we also recognise that sometimes a digital solution isn’t enough, so Aila has a marketplace of human experts (coaches and advisors) to help.

If that sounds abstract, take a moment to think of the life you want to lead – you might want to buy a house, get married, start a family and maybe one day start a business or go on a travel break. Each of these things will cost you something, but rarely does someone calculate that total (and often scary) number of your dreams. If you don’t know what you’re aiming for, it’s hard to put in place a plan and even harder to achieve it."

Does Aila utilise anything you learned at Warwick?

"Aila does embed things I learned at Warwick; ranging from topics like inflation, compounding and interest rates which were covered in stats, to more intangible ones like helping people understand their beliefs around money (which we I remember covering in part of the history of economics)."

Have you fully embraced AI solutions within the App?

"We’ve begun embedding aspects of AI into Aila. We have ambitious plans and are already working with some researchers to understand how people want their financial guidance and advice delivered by an AI. It’s super interesting – we’re learning things every day!"

What are your goals for 2025 and beyond?

"We launch the Aila app in January 2025 and are really focusing on traction and engagement – we want to create a product that not only solves the wealth gap but truly empowers women when it comes to their money. We’ll also be starting a pre-seed fundraise so we can continue to develop the product and start embedding the machine learning and AI that can personalise things even more!

Join our journey – download the Aila app today and follow us on socials to see what we’re up to!"

We wish Lis and her business partner Nitika lots of success with the Aila app launch.

Related content

• Aila App is available (for Apple and Androids) from Aila website.
• Previous article: From Warwick Economics graduate to FinTech entrepreneur: Interview with alumna Elisabeth Prager

Italian higher education leader Professor Giovanna Iannantuoni visited Warwick University and the Department of Economics last month as part of her mission to deepen international relationships in the HE sector.

Professor Iannantuoni is an economist, Rector of the University of Milano-Bicocca, and the first woman President of the Conference of Rectors of Italian Universities. In the Italian system a Rector is similar to a UK Vice-Chancellor, with responsibility for academic and financial leadership. It is an elected position with a six-year term.

In addition to meetings with Warwick University Vice-Chancellor Professor Stuart Croft and members of Warwick’s senior leadership team, Professor Iannantuoni delivered a guest lecture focusing on her observations of the strengths and weaknesses of the Italian university system, and opportunities for international collaboration in teaching, learning and research.

Having travelled widely herself as a student and academic, Professor Iannantuoni is a strong advocate of working across borders, saying:

“internationalization improves the quality of teaching, research and service to society, helps ensure people have adequate skills for a rapidly evolving and interconnected world, but above all, it means a future of peace and coexistence between different cultures and societies.”

Professor Iannantuoni also outlined some of the ways the Italian HE sector is contributing to national recovery after the coronavirus pandemic.

The Italian National Recovery and Resilience Plan is a 10 billion euro programme investing heavily in higher education and research as a means to promote economic growth through innovation.

The University of Milano-Bicocca is one of the 11 Innovation Ecosystems created under the Plan, to address territorial research and innovation challenges, focusing on urban regeneration. The Multilayered Urban Sustainability Action (MUSA) project has turned the university campus and its neighbourhood into a kind of living laboratory where academics, commuters and residents come together to test technical and social innovations in real time.

The lecture was part of an occasional series co-ordinated by the Quantitative and Analytical Political Economy Research Centre (QAPEC).

Professor Francesco Squintani introduced Professor Iannantuoni and chaired the event.

• Listen to a short interview with Professor Iannantuoni exploring some of the themes of her talk.

Professor Stefano Caria has recently featured in the VoxDevTalks podcast series, discussing new work in the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) Policy Insights series on reducing barriers to employment in low and middle income countries.

J-PAL’s Policy Insights programme aims to bring together lessons emerging from multiple academic studies and publish policy briefs to help inform decision-making in governments, NGOs, firms, and funders working to address similar challenges.

Hosted by Tim Phillips, the episode, “Helping jobseekers signal their skills” also features Professor Marianne Bertrand of Chicago Booth School. Professor Bertrand and Professor Caria are co-chairs of the J-PAL Labor Markets sector, responsible for developing Policy Insights work in this area.

In the podcast, Professor Caria and Professor Bertrand discuss the key insights from Improving job seekers’ employment and earnings through credible skills signals, published in November. Identifying a “major market failure,” Professor Bertrand explains that matching skills to jobs is not straightforward. Employers don’t want to hire someone who lacks the skills for the role; but they also don’t want to hire someone with greater skills than are required as that person is likely to move on quickly once their skills are publicly demonstrated.

It is also the case that job seekers, especially young people, don’t always find it easy to assess their own skills against those set out in job descriptions.

Strategies to address this might include paying inexperienced workers less; investing in training; or relying on referrals from friends and families of existing workers. Professor Bertrand notes that “referrals have advantages but also some clear limitations,” warning that less-well-networked groups like women and younger workers can lose out.

Professor Caria adds that “for young people especially, who are trying to enter the labour market, the idea that unless they have the right connections they’re not going to land the job can be extremely discouraging.”

The policy brief reviews fourteen randomized evaluations to set out the impact of one relatively low-cost intervention – enabling job-seekers to demonstrate their skills in a reliable and standardised way. For example, they could get a certificate from a recognised local institution such as a college or an NGO after taking part in a skills evaluation workshop.

Professor Caria concludes: “The evidence seems clear that such programmes help job-seekers better understand their own skills, so they apply for more appropriate roles, and they help employers make better hiring decisions. Job-seekers who can demonstrate their skills tend to earn more, and they tend to stay in role longer, which is a benefit to the firm and helps to grow the economy overall.”

• Listen to the podcast: VoxDev Development Economics / Helping jobseekers signal their skills
• Read the policy brief: Improving job seekers’ employment and earnings through credible skills signals | The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab
• Read an academic literature review by Professor Caria and Professor Kate Orkin which covers these interventions: Barriers to Search & Hiring in Urban Labour Markets | VoxDev

After four decades of dedicated service, Professor Wiji Arulampalam, a distinguished member of the Department of Economics at the University of Warwick, is retiring. Renowned for her ground-breaking research and being cited over 11,000 times, Wiji leaves behind a legacy that will resonate for years to come.

Joining the Department in 1984, Wiji has achieved numerous accolades, such as being named among the World's Top 2 percent Scientists by Stanford University, in 2020. Her work has helped shape the academic and practical understanding of economics for the next generation.

Professor Ben Lockwood, Head of Department, said:
"Wiji, thank you for everything you have done for the Department over the past forty years. As well as being an exceptional researcher and valued teacher, you have also given so much to us all over the years with your good humour and kindness. You will be greatly missed."

Wiji's retirement marks the end of a remarkable chapter in the Department’s history, but her legacy will endure through the many students and colleagues she inspired.

Please see our video dedicated to Wiji below:

The recent COP29 discussions in Baku have drawn attention once more to an underlying tension - climate campaigners tend to regard metals and minerals, as well as fossil fuels as negative influences on nature and the climate, while by contrast the many poorer economies richly endowed with such resources see them as vital to their prospects for future growth and greater prosperity.

A new book by Tony Addison and Alan Roe, both former members of the Department of Economics, shines new light on these debates by providing detailed, but critical analysis of the many opportunities which the global transition to net-zero offers to countries rich in those rare metals and minerals, and also natural gas which are essential to a low-carbon technological future.

In Resources Matter: Ending Poverty while Protecting Nature, the authors offer a range of ideas that address concerns around the dominance of fossil fuels and mining in developing countries, and propose strategies which could instead ensure much greater impact from these traditional industries as drivers of economic growth, transformation and poverty reduction.

“The problems that characterize the sector are not unsolvable, and much more can be done to improve the chances of inclusive development and to support the transition to net zero.”

The book is a follow-up to Extractive Industries: The Management of Resources as a Driver of Sustainable Development, published by Oxford University Press in 2018. This first book was an edited set of papers from over 30 authorities that covered all aspects of the role and management of metals, minerals, oil and gas in poorer economies. The new book provides fresh data and insights that connect the previous analysis to the policies needed to address the global climate crisis. It is underpinned by the anxiety that the annual COP discussions fail to adequately recognise the opportunities.

Both books draw on wide-ranging research carried out by the UNU World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER). The new book will once more be on open-access – a factor that enabled the first book to top Oxford’s Scholarship Online rankings of most accessed economics titles.

Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin, the UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), comments:

“Their earlier seminal book was influential in UN decision making circles, including at the regional level, where a series of roundtables based on its outcomes and policy implications were conducted... I have no doubt that this new contribution to our knowledge will be as influential, as the world is moving fast towards the finishing line of the 2030 SDG Agenda,”

Discussing the book’s key findings, Alan Roe said:

“In climate debates, poorer countries are regarded predominantly as victims of global warming - and of course they are increasingly struggling with challenges including desertification, excess heat, and increased flooding. Hence solutions to their problems focus mainly on finding ever more eye watering sums of climate finance from richer economies. However, the debates neglect the fact that many of these countries also have substantial opportunities, based on their rich endowments of the metals crucial to the energy transition as well as natural gas, These debates need to change the way they think about the extractive industries."

Tony Addison added:

"Resources matter because ending poverty while protecting nature cannot be achieved unless the world invests in the resources necessary for the materials that underpin the transition to net zero.”

Addison and Roe make a strong case for many lower income countries being better supported by international agencies to enable them to exploit responsibly the opportunities for investment, greening and sustainable growth associated with their huge endowments of critical metals, minerals and natural gas.

If done properly, they argue, this would contribute to progress on several of the SDGs, reduce harmful emissions, improve rather than impair already stressed fiscal positions, and take the pressure off the search for the huge sums of global “climate finance” that are proving ever more difficult to raise.

• Resources Matter: Ending Poverty While Protecting Nature was published on 19 December 2024. If you would like to contact the authors, please write to economics.alumni@warwick.ac.uk and we'll forward your email to Alan and Tony.

LINKS:

• Addison A, Roe A. R. (2024) Resources matter: ending poverty while protecting nature , Oxford University Press. 2024
• Addison A, Roe A. R. (2018) Extractive Industries: The Management of Resources as a Driver of Sustainable Development (2018)
• Roe, A. R. (2024). Climate change and poorer economies: some reflections after COPs 27 and 28. Mineral Economics, 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13563-024-00476-5