Research Library

As Congress resumes work this spring on a bill granting Trade Promotion Authority to President Obama for completion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact, many members have sought inclusion of a chapter on currency manipulation. Currency manipulation is a legitimate concern. However, countermeasures require clear, objective identification of currency manipulation. Both the IMF and the U.S. Treasury Department have mandates to identify currency manipulation, yet neither has done so in the past 20 years. If it can be done, why has it not happened more often? In this issue brief, Russell Green, Will Clayton Fellow in International Economics, reviews the difficulties of operationalizing a currency manipulation chapter and argues that the difficulty of identifying currency manipulation suggests serious political obstacles to implementation.

Jennifer Herricks, postdoctoral fellow in disease and poverty, testified before the Texas House Committee on Public Health about a bill establishing a sentinel surveillance program for emerging and neglected tropical diseases.

Part 2 of a two-part blog on China’s economy. Part 1 can be found here.

At this point, projections indicate that a…

In a two-part blog, Russell Green, Will Clayton Fellow in International Economics, examines whether a slowdown of China's powerhouse economy will impact the country's global agenda.

Over the past 40 years, we have seen a consistent pattern of war and conflict leading to the collapse of public health systems and the subsequent reemergence of deadly tropical infections. "Outbreaks have undermined the health and livelihoods of individuals, the economic growth of communities, security and ultimately the development potential of nations," writes Peter Hotez, fellow in disease and poverty. "We may now be witnessing the beginnings of a similar pattern in the Middle East and North Africa region."

The 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) constitute an economic powerhouse, yet these countries also harbor a mostly hidden burden of poverty and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). Almost 200 million people live in extreme poverty in ASEAN countries, and many of them are affected by at least one NTD. However, NTDs are prevalent even among upper middle-income ASEAN countries such as Malaysia and Thailand, especially among the indigenous populations.

Peter Hotez, fellow in disease and poverty, testified about the continuing threat of neglected tropical diseases before the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations.

On Jan. 12-13, 2015, the Baker Institute Latin America Initiative and Mexico Center, in conjunction with the AJC's Belfer Institute for Latino and Latin American Affairs, hosted the symposium "Co-Responsibility and Reform: Foreign and Domestic Perspectives on Immigration." The organizers convened a select group of stakeholders — including diplomats, policy experts, scholars, journalists, activists and government officials — to explore foreign and domestic immigration policies and develop recommendations for effective strategies on both sides of the border.

William Martin, director of the Drug Policy Program, and Katharine A. Neill, Alfred C. Glassell, III Postdoctoral Fellow in Drug Policy, testify about the likelihood of marijuana being used as a gateway to harder drugs and the effects of decriminalization on teen use rates before the Texas House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee.