Kennedy School Review

BY NATALIE UNTERSTELL The world is currently watching Brazil fight the “longest recession in a century, the biggest bribery scandal in history, [and] the most unpopular leader in living memory,” and that’s not even counting the Zika virus epidemic. An equally severe but less visible crisis is also facing the country right now:  discrimination against […]

BY JESSICA CUSSINS The Harvard Kennedy School encourages us to ask what we can do. At a time when a U.S. government shutdown is an ongoing and legitimate concern, the importance of getting things done should not be underestimated. But as graduate students taking time away from the confines of the workplace, we are in […]

BY JEN SMITH Over the weekend, the Panama Papers were top news from Argentina to Zimbabwe. They have dominated the coverage in The Guardian and Financial Times, two British papers. By contrast, the New York Times placed the story on page 3; the Washington Post and Wall Street Journal were similarly quiet. With more than […]

BY MICHAEL GOOD How does one measure urban revitalization? For the Kresge Foundation in midtown Detroit, it is the sound of hammers clanking on steel beams as formerly empty lots surrounding its offices finally undergo construction. It’s bulldozers and work crews tearing up Woodward Avenue to install tracks for the new M-1 line, a light […]

BY ANDREA SORCE If you’re from North Carolina like me, your social media feeds blew up last Wednesday afternoon. #wearenotthis. “We” being North Carolinians. “This” being HB2, the sweeping anti-LGBT legislation passed last Wednesday in a specially-convened session. HB2 prohibits transgender residents from using restrooms that match their gender identity and also nullifies municipal anti-discrimination […]

BY JEN SMITH “Mom: home safe. sleepy. love you.” I sent this message letting her know I made it home to Cambridge safely after spending ten days in Israel, learning about nations torn by generational conflict.  During my time there, we visited the Syrian border, went to the edge of the Gaza Strip, and talked […]

BY JASMINE CHIA, YAN MIN AUNG, AND KARENG BRANG SHAWNG Myanmar has suffered one of the world’s longest running civil wars, one rooted in ethnic conflict. The fighting continues to the present day: the Arakan Army is still launching insurgent attacks in Rakhine state, a state on Myanmar’s western coast, and the Kachin Independence Army, […]

BY BENJAMIN LUXENBERG President Obama should offer the Merrick Garland nomination to the Supreme Court in the form of a “forward contract” to Senate Republicans. As defined by Investopedia, forward contracts are “a customized contract between two parties to buy or sell an asset at a specified price on a future date.” One of the […]

BY KARL T. MUTH AND KATHERYN R. DEVELVIS What sugar we see in candies and packets at restaurants pales in comparison to that which we do not see in processed foods and drinks. Likewise, the prices we pay for sugar at the grocer’s counter are only the tip of the iceberg compared to the camouflaged […]

BY ADITI KUMAR Donald Trump declared last week that he “doesn’t mind” starting a trade war with Mexico “when we’re losing $58 billion a year.” Not only is this a gross mischaracterization of our trade relationship, it also suggests a trade policy that will harm U.S. economic and political interests. Clearly, many aspects of U.S. […]

BY ANDREA BLINKHORN AND CAROLINE GIMMILLARO As the world’s attention fades from the devastating impact of the Ebola virus epidemic to the new uncertainties of the Zika virus outbreak, it is more important than ever for the international community to consider the communication lessons learned from West Africa. In the aftermath of Ebola, the international […]

BY HUGO ZYLBERBERG When I first read Tim Cook’s “Message to [Apple’s] customers,” I felt on the receiving end of a marketing push. Sure, I agree the government should not be able to read my online diary, and sure, I agree the government should not be able to weaken encryption for everyone. But the real […]