Development policies based on new insights into how people actually think and make decisions will help governments and civil society achieve development goals more effectively. A richer and more accurate understanding of human behavior can make it easier to tackle such difficult development challenges as increasing productivity, breaking the cycle of poverty from one generation to the next, and acting on climate change, finds a new World Bank report titled “World Development Report (WDR) 2015: Mind, Society, and Behavior” issued on December 2, 2014. The report examines early, exciting work that suggests ways of diagnosing and solving the psychological and social factors that influence development. The new approaches are complements to a host of other standard economic tools.
Varun Gauri, Co-Director of WDR, presented the report, followed by panel discussion with Professor Yasuyuki Sawada and Professor Norito Kawakami.
Program
10:00-10:05 Opening Remarks
Kiyoshi Kodera, Vice President, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
10:05-10:35 Keynote Speech
Varun Gauri, Co-Director, World Development Report (WDR)
Presentation
World Development Report (WDR) 2015: Mind, Society, and Behavior (PDF)
10:35-11:25 Panel Discussion and Q&A
Yasuyuki Sawada, Professor, Graduate School of Economics, University of Tokyo / Visiting Fellow, JICA Research Institute
Presentation
WDR 2015 Mind, Society, and Behavior: Comments (PDF)
Norito Kawakami, Professor, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Tokyo
Presentation
Presentation at a seminar of the World Development Report 2015 (PDF)
Varun Gauri, Co-Director, World Development Report (WDR)
moderated by Ichiro Tambo, Director, JICA Research Institute
11:25-11:30 Closing Remarks
Yasusuke Tsukagoshi, Special Representative, Japan, World Bank Group
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| Kiyoshi Kodera, Vice President, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) |
Varun Gauri, Co-Director, World Development Report (WDR), World Bank Group |
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| Panel discussion |
The seminar took place at JICA International Conference Hall |
Speaker
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Varun Gauri Varun Gauri is Senior Economist with the Development Research Group of the World Bank and Co-Director of the World Development Report 2015: Mind, Society, and Behavior. His current research examines why public agencies comply with human rights court rulings and why individuals support public goods. His publications include the books Courting Social Justice: The Judicial Enforcement of Social and Economic Rights in the Developing World and School Choice in Chile. His research has appeared in top journals in the fields of political science, development, and economics. His work has been covered in The New York Times, The Economist, The Washington Post, and The Indian Express. He has BA from the University of Chicago and a PhD from Princeton University, and has held positions as Visiting Lecturer in Public and International Affairs at Princeton University and Visiting Professor in the Department of Economics at ILADES in Santiago, Chile. Website |
Related materials
- World Development Report 2015: Mind, Society, and Behavior (full report in English)
- Press release "Development Economics and Development Policy Are Due For a Redesign, Says World Bank Report"
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| 小寺清 国際協力機構（JICA）理事 |
ヴァルン・ガウリ 世界銀行グループ 世界開発報告（WDR）執筆担当共同局長 |
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| パネルディスカッション | 会場の様子 |
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| 小寺清 国際協力機構（JICA）理事 |
ヴァルン・ガウリ 世界銀行グループ 世界開発報告（WDR）執筆担当共同局長 |
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| パネルディスカッション | 会場の様子 |