Nation & World
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Is China headed toward instability?
Foreign policy experts discuss likely fraught succession at kickoff of two months of events marking 75th anniversary of People’s Republic
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Penslar, Feldman examine plight of Jewish Americans after 10/7 attack
Scholars trace history of group in U.S., discuss why many wrestling with what it means for Israel, their own place in nation’s culture
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Can a 50-year-old philosophy help make democracy better today?
New book based on ideas of renowned Harvard scholar John Rawls argues it all comes down to fairness
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U.S. seems impossibly riven. What if we could start from scratch?
Key would be focusing on social, political, economic fairness, according to new book on ideas of political philosopher John Rawls
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What are the risks of wider Middle East conflict?
Kennedy School scholars examine spread of conflict between Israel and Hamas to include Hezbollah, Iran
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A tale of three cities — and their turn to right in heartland
Government professor’s new book focuses on roles of race, class, and religion in evolution of former New Deal Democrats
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Sorting reality from ‘truthiness’
A Harvard and MIT symposium seeks to understand and address propaganda and misinformation in the new media ecosystem.
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Academia, meet the press
With its increasingly popular website called Journalist’s Resource, the Shorenstein Center is putting academia’s insights at reporters’ fingertips, and making a broader case for knowledge-based reporting.
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Education reform, by the numbers
The Strategic Data Project at the Graduate School of Education aims to develop a new corps of data analysts who can help to lead reform of the nation’s public school systems.
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Fun that helps change the world
Brazilian urban specialist Edgard Gouveia Jr., who has won international attention for his approach to grassroots development through game play, demonstrates his techniques to Harvard students.
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Palin’s game-changing legacy
Political journalists Mark Halperin ’87 and John Heilemann, M.P.A. ’90, returned to Harvard Thursday night to screen and discuss the new HBO Films adaptation of their best-seller “Game Change,” showing that the drama of Sarah Palin’s 2008 vice presidential nomination can still draw an enthusiastic crowd.
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Feminism, now stalled
A Harvard law professor, former judge, and ardent feminist points to the cultural impediments that have stalled feminism’s quest for an equal workplace.
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Shining a spotlight into darkness
Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Helen Whitney opens a three-day series of William Belden Noble lectures titled “Spiritual Landscapes: A Life in Film.” Her work draws out examples of how faith can foster not only inner peace, but also public turmoil.
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The business of changing the world
What will the next generation of social entrepreneurs need to succeed? Analysts debated the future of the budding field — and Harvard students demonstrated it — at Harvard Kennedy School on Feb. 24.
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India to retain economic ties to Iran
Though India shares global concerns about the possible development of nuclear weapons by Iran and is working to reduce its reliance on Iranian oil, India needs to continue fuel imports that are critical to the welfare of millions of people, said India’s ambassador to the United States.
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Superstar teachers
As leaders in government and business search for ways to strengthen the U.S. recovery, new research from faculty at Harvard and Columbia indicates that elementary school teachers have an impact on how much their students earn as adults and, by extension, on the nation’s economy.
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Fostering global understanding
A panel of scholars made up of the directors of the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Centers met to discuss how to promote better understanding between the Islamic world and the West.
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Poised to strike?
As Iran moves closer to having a nuclear weapon, Israel faces an existential moment.
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Student’s aim: A harvest of good
Annemarie Ryu ’13 hopes to create an American market for tasty, nutritious jackfruit, while helping to support struggling Indian farmers at the same time.
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Less bluster, more action
America’s tenuous relationship with Pakistan has faced one test after another in the past year. To rebuild trust and form a true partnership, both sides have to accept blame, said Cameron Munter, the U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, at Harvard Kennedy School on Feb. 13.
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Innovation recognized by Ash Center
New York City’s Center for Economic Opportunity (CEO) was named the winner of the Innovations in American Government Award today by the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the Kennedy School of Government.
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A call to reverse security measures
Ralph Nader and Bruce Fein visited Harvard Law School for a talk sponsored by the HLS Forum and the Harvard Law Record. At the event, both men discussed what they called lawless and violent practices by the White House and its agencies that have become institutionalized by both political parties.
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In the end, Somali famine preventable
Despite historical links to natural disasters, the modern world’s global food web means that famines today are created more by man than by nature. Officials say a famine just ending in Somalia was caused by a failure of international early warning systems and the local Al-Shabaab militia blocking food aid.
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Duncan urges experiments in education
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan called for large-scale educational reform during a talk at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education.
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Putting history on trial
Historians can prove useful in a courtroom, a case involving Kenyan abuse reveals, and they can learn a lot too.
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New initiative for better teaching
The Harvard Initiative for Learning & Teaching sponsored a daylong conference that united experts and scholars from the University and beyond to debate, discuss, and share ideas on innovative pedagogy.
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The revolution continues
In a conversation that ranged from the recent parliamentary elections to the ongoing sexual abuse of women to a new wave of journalists, panelists at the Feb. 2 Harvard Kennedy School Forum on Egypt expressed both fear and hope for a country still in the midst of a revolution.
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Experts assess impact of Citizens United
At an event sponsored by the Harvard Law School (HLS) American Constitution Society on Tuesday, HLS Professor Lawrence Lessig, author of “Republic Lost,” and Jeff Clements, author of “Corporations Are Not People,” reviewed the impact that Citizens United has had on the political process.
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Up by his bootstraps
Cambodian writer Tararith Kho, who grew up amid war and pushed relentlessly to be educated, is now a Harvard Scholars at Risk fellow. His weapons are well-turned words.
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Not your average road trip
Harvard Business School just sent all 900 first-year M.B.A. students into the field to solve real-world problems in emerging markets from Buenos Aires to Mumbai, in the most ambitious element of an experimental new course. HBS, pioneer of the celebrated case-study method, is working to craft a business education model for the 21st century.
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Peace in our times?
A Harvard Kennedy School panel assembled to discuss “Is War on the Way Out?,” the oddly counterintuitive notion that violence, among both individuals and states, is on the wane, or at least on a downward trajectory.
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Measuring effective teaching
Reports of an ongoing study examine the role of classroom observation in helping to determine effective teaching.
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Harvard’s ties to India
Over the past several years, Harvard University has been ramping up its involvement in India and South Asia, a trend catalyzed by Harvard’s South Asia Initiative, which was founded in 2003 to foster the University’s engagement in the region. Harvard’s understanding of the region’s importance is highlighted by President Drew Faust’s January visit to India.
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Education’s future, globally
Students in Harvard’s Graduate School of Education convened last week to examine how to address some of the world’s educational challenges.
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North Korea: Country behind a curtain
Many nations are watching the succession of Kim Jong-un to the leadership of North Korea, hoping a smooth transition will lead to economic reforms and opportunities to limit the further development of nuclear weapons, a Harvard panel said.
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Choice management
In a paper published last year, Harvard professors David Laibson and Brigitte Madrian argued that employers should design investment menus for their employees that facilitate good choices, “rather than assuming that giving people every option under the sun will lead to the right decision.” The report, co-authored with James Choi of Yale, was recently honored with the TIAA-CREF Paul A. Samuelson Award.