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Simon Johnson

Simon Johnson

Writing for PS since 2007
179 commentaries

Simon Johnson, a 2024 Nobel laureate in economics and a former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund, is a professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management, Faculty Director of MIT’s Shaping the Future of Work initiative, and Co-Chair of the CFA Institute Systemic Risk Council. He is a co-author (with Daron Acemoglu) of Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity (PublicAffairs, 2023). 

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  1. Trump Can Win Against China – in Ukraine
    johnson181_Alexander ManzyukAnadolu Agency via Getty Images_russian oil Alexander Manzyuk/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

    Trump Can Win Against China – in Ukraine

    Nov 25, 2024 Simon Johnson & Oleg Ustenko argue that forcing Russia to withdraw would yield a clearer win for the US than tariffs on Chinese imports.

  2. Only Harris Will Deliver Shared Prosperity
    johnson180_JIM WATSONAFP via Getty Images_kamala harris JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

    Only Harris Will Deliver Shared Prosperity

    Nov 1, 2024 Simon Johnson says that Donald Trump’s discredited protectionism would benefit the few at the expense of the many.

  3. Trump’s Proposed Tariffs Are a Gift to the Rich
    krueger52_FREDERIC J. BROWNAFP via Getty Images_shipping port us FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images

    Trump’s Proposed Tariffs Are a Gift to the Rich

    Oct 7, 2024 Simon Johnson cites research showing that middle-class US households would foot the bill.

  4. How to Create More Good Jobs
    bildt104_Doug MillsPoolGetty Images_semiconductors Doug Mills/Pool/Getty Images

    How to Create More Good Jobs

    Aug 2, 2024 Simon Johnson touts the 2022 US CHIPS and Science Act, which will nurture geographically dispersed innovation hubs.

  5. Human Capital for the Age of Generative AI
    palacio140_Getty Images_AI Getty Images

    Human Capital for the Age of Generative AI

    May 30, 2024 Simon Johnson & Eric Hazan explain how adoption of the technology could help suitably qualified workers climb the wage ladder.

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    The US Economy’s Trust Deficit

    Michael Spence considers the causes and consequences of Americans’ declining faith in media and government.
  2. halland9_FREDRIK VARFJELLNTBAFP via Getty Images_norwaynaturalgas Fredrik Varfjell/NTB/AFP via Getty Images
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    Norway Is a Ukraine War Profiteer

    Håvard Halland & Knut Anton Mork argue that the country should give its windfall gains from gas exports to those on the front lines.
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    Navigating the Risks of Digital Public Infrastructure

    Carl Gahnberg calls for guardrails and policy guidelines to prevent governments from abusing the policy paradigm.
  4. gill10_Nhac NguyenGettyImages_vietnam_street_vendor Nhac Nguyen/Getty Images
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    Services Are the New Road to Development

    Indermit Gill & Aaditya Mattoo explain why developing countries need a new paradigm to replace the old manufacturing-led model.
  5. dalay4_GAVRIIL GRIGOROVPOOLAFP via Getty Images_putin Gavril Griforov/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
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    Russia Just Lost Its Great-Power Status

    Galip Dalay explains why the fall of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad has diminished the Kremlin’s global influence.
  6. moyo30_sesameGetty Images_philanthropy sesame/Getty Images
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    Twelve Questions for Philanthropists

    Dambisa Moyo offers practical advice to those who want to contribute effectively to charitable causes.
  7. op_aschecter1_Westend61Getty Images_books Westend61/Getty Images
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    PS Commentators’ Best Reads in 2024

    PS editors

    At the end of a year of domestic and international upheaval, Project Syndicate commentators share their favorite books from the past 12 months. Covering a wide array of genres and disciplines, this year’s picks provide fresh perspectives on the defining challenges of our time and how to confront them.

     ask Project Syndicate contributors to select the books that resonated with them the most over the past year.
  8. seid1_Reinhard Dirscherlullstein bild via Getty Images_seagrass Reinhard Dirscherlullstein bild via Getty Images
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    The World Needs Ocean-Based Climate Solutions

    Ilana Seid calls for creative mechanisms for financing investment in our planet’s largest carbon sink.
  9. varoufakis122_Spencer PlattGetty Images_wallstreet Spencer Platt/Getty Images
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    The West Is Not Dying, but It Is Working on It

    Yanis Varoufakis argues that Western power is alive and well, but the lofty values that once sustained it have been abandoned.

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