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05:08

Ocean Plastic: What to do about it

This video addresses the question of how to deal with the plastic problem in the ocean in a sustainable way. Scientists all over the world are busy researching what plastic means for the ocean. But what we are increasingly asking ourselves is: how do we solve this problem? Thing is, despite the gaps in the knowledge that we have and the obvious need to fill them, research and science alone cannot make any difference, unless they translate into action. Science can be seen as the backbone of…

10:48

Existing Structures of Global Governance

This chapter is about global governance and structures to deal with complex global environmental problems. Governance is a set of complex interactions between state and non-state actors at the global level.There are several key trends to look at in global environmental governance, including the increase in international environmental agreements and the involvement of more actors. These have led to fragmentation, segmentation, and decoupled decision making, as well as increasing inter-linkages…

15:37

Aggregate Demand with Flexible Exchange Rate

In this chapter, Professor Sachs discusses international trade and how it is affected by the exchange rate, which is in turn affected by financial flows and the differences of interest rates at home and abroad. There are two ways to manage the exchange rates of a country, namely by supply and demand, or by the central bank setting the price. This is explained using the case of exchange rate of Renminbi to the US dollar, as managed by the People’s Bank of China. Countries have the right…

06:17

Growth and Inequality

This chapter focuses on growth and inequality, and more specifically, the Kuznets Curve, in order to show the relationship between income per capita and inequality. Kuznets suggested that the relationship has an inverted U-shape. In the final stages of a country’s development, he argued, inequality would increase; after a certain point, however, inequality would decrease. This curve, and the points in question, are different for each country. The rise of inequality has had political…

09:26

Introduction: The Oceans and Sustainable Development

The global ocean connects us all and provides our livelihoods, the oxygen we breathe, and transportation, among other things. The ocean is included in SDG 14. This course will try to provide a deeper understanding of the complex understanding of the ocean, environment, and climate system. Humans receive resources from the ocean, as well as risks. There will be weekly lectures on different topics, including the basic physics of ocean circulation, the ocean ecosystem, how the deep ocean works,…

07:33

The Challenge of Urban Politics, Planning and Governance, Part II

Urban politics comes down to making decisions with short, medium, and long-term impacts in a context of scarce resources between competing priorities, making planning very important. Types of planning include spatial planning, strategic planning or growth management planning, spatial literacy planning, precinct-level planning, and other intersectional types of planning. This is considered through the case study of the City of Johannesburg, South Africa. Watch Part I This video is licensed…

11:52

Getting to Know the SDGs

An introduction to the course Transforming Our World: Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Jeffrey Sachs profiles the history of the sustainable development agenda, from the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, to the creation and implementation of the Millennium Development Goals, to the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015. The chapter provides a brief overview of what each of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals are and how to achieve their associated 169 targets. This…

11:29

Corruption Trends in the Extractive Sector

The extractive sector is famously prone to corruption. Resource rich countries on average score far worse than their non-resource rich peers on measures of corruption. Among the aspects of the resources sector most susceptible to corruption: the allocation of valuable licenses and contracts, particularly through subcontracting and in oil trading; regulation; spending of oil and mining revenues; and the efforts of government officials to participate in and profit from the extractive sector.…

13:29

Aggregate Demand with Fixed Exchange Rate

This chapter begins by explaining the impact of aggregate demand in an open economy, via fixed and flexible exchange rates. In a fixed or pegged exchange rate, the central bank doesn’t allow the value of the national currency to deviate relative to foreign currencies, and will intervene in foreign markets to stabilize price. Professor Sachs explains aggregate demand through fiscal expansion or government spending, and then talks about how currencies operate when they are pegged using the…