Economics | Penn Today

Illuminating interactions between decision-making and the environment

With a unifying model based in game theory, Andrew Tilman, Joshua Plotkin, and Erol Akçay of the School of Arts and Sciences inform dynamics in fields as diverse as ecology and economics.

This is how we’ll live when the government gives us all a basic income

Ioana Marinescu of the School of Social Policy & Practice compared the effects of a system of universal basic income to the lives of lottery winners, who often receive their winnings in installments. “Whether in the U.S. or Sweden, most of [the winners] kind of keep doing what they were doing before but feel more comfortable. Most people keep working, take a bit more vacation, feel more financially secure, and that’s about it,” she said. “It suggests that the changes are not enormous, except for the fact of feeling more financially secure.”

Finger about to press button that reads 2020 start

The state of the auto industry in the 2020s

The Wharton School’s Professor of Management John Paul MacDuffie names current trends in the auto industry and where it’s headed in the future.

The great extrapolator

Chris Sanchirico of the Law School wrote about the economic statistics cited in President Trump’s State of the Union address.

aerial view of suburban housing with LA skyline in background

Vincent Reina on housing, barriers, and what we need from housing policy

New challenges to the housing market and its policies are “unprecedented,” say the Penn Design professor. He outlines potential improvements to the country’s largest affordable rental housing programs and the possibility of retrofitting housing to help reduce utility cost burdens.

How to recession-proof your retirement

Wharton’s Olivia S. Mitchell discusses how individuals can plan for retirement when facing an economic downturn.

Book cover illustration of Amy Offner's book Sorting Out the Mixed Economy: The Rise and Fall of Welfare and Developmental States in the Americas

Amy Offner traces the roots of neoliberalism in Latin America

Decades of negative media attention have reinforced Colombia’s reputation as a violent region controlled by drug cartels. Amy Offner views the nation through a much different lens.

Double exposure wind turbine and oil refinery side-by-side

Why sustainable investing is a safe bet

The new reality of climate change has shifted attitudes about sustainable investing, and expands the question of whether an investment is risky into whether a business is factoring in environmental impact.

The US’s hidden export subsidy

Chris William Sanchirico of the Law School and Wharton School wrote an op-ed about comparatively low U.S. taxes on foreign profits of U.S. multinational enterprises, which he argues are effectively export subsidies.

What’s the future of rental clothing?

Wharton School Marketing Professor Cait Lamberton, in a Q&A, explains why rental clothing has caught on and where it’s going.

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