Why Egyptians filled Tahrir Square to bring down Hosni Mubarak and what it means for our understanding of the causes of prosperity and poverty
So close and yet so different: Nogales, Arizona, and Nogales, Sonora, have the same people, culture, and geography. Why is one rich and one poor?
Theories that don't work: poor countries are poor not because of their geographies or cultures, or because their leaders do not know which policies will enrich their citizens
The making of prosperity and poverty: how prosperity and poverty are determined by the incentives created by institutions, and how politics determines what institutions a nation has
Small differences and critical junctures, the weight of history: how institutions change through political conflict and how the past shapes the present
"I've seen the future, and it works" : growth under extractive institutions: what Stalin, King Shyaam, the Neolithic Revolution, and the Maya city-states all had in common and how this explains why China's current economic growth cannot last
Drifting apart: how institutions evolve over time, often slowly drifting apart
The turning point: how a political revolution in 1688 changed institutions in England and led to the Industrial Revolution
Not on our turf, barriers to development: why the politically powerful in many nations opposed the Industrial Revolution
Reversing development: how European colonialism impoverished large parts of the world
The diffusion of prosperity: how some parts of the world took different paths to prosperity from that of Britain
The virtuous circle: how institutions that encourage prosperity create positive feedback loops that prevent the efforts by elites to undermine them
The vicious circle: how institutions that create poverty generate negative feedback loops and endure
Why nations fail today: institutions, institutions, institutions
Breaking the mold: how a few countries changed their economic trajectory by changing their institutions
Understanding prosperity and poverty: how the world could have been different and how understanding this can explain why most attempts to combat poverty have failed.
