The George Institute for Global Health hosted me for a virtual #GeorgeTalks.

I was joined in conversation by Professor Anthony Rodgers, Head of the Cardiovascular Program at The George Institute.

We discussed my book, Randomistas: How Radical Researchers Changed Our World.

Per Capita Australia CEO Emma Dawson and Andrew Leigh chat in a Facebook Live event on 8 May 2020.

How will COVID-19 Shape the Progressive Agenda for Australia's Future? -- Conversation with the Australian Fabians

Opened by Victoria Fielding, Deputy Chair of the Australian Fabians.

Moderated by Leon Cermak, SA Chair of the Australian Fabians.

Conversation recorded via Zoom, broadcast live on Facebook.

Andrew Wear will be in conversation with Andrew Leigh MP on Andrew Wear's new book Solved!: How Other Countries Have Cracked the World's Biggest Problems and We Can Too.

Sometimes the solutions are closer than we think. Denmark will reach 100 per cent renewable electricity by 2030. Iceland has topped gender equality rankings for a decade and counting. Singaporean students beat almost all others in maths and reading. South Koreans will soon live longer than anyone else on Earth. The US city of Boston, global epicentre of biotech, has the most innovative square mile on the planet.

How have these places and more achieved such remarkable success? Policy adviser Andrew Wear examines what has worked around the world and how we can apply the lessons at home, introducing us to inspiring community leaders, renowned authorities and visionary policymakers transforming the globe.           

'A terrific idea, brilliantly executed. This book deserves to spark a national conversation.' - George Megalogenis

'In a time of chaos, there are answers all around us if we take the time to look. Which is exactly what Wear does in this invaluable book.' - Annabel Crabb

Andrew Wear is a senior Australian public servant. He has degrees in politics, law, economics and public policy, and is a graduate of the Senior Executive Program at Harvard Kennedy School.

Dr Andrew Leigh MP is the Shadow Assistant Minister for Treasury, Shadow Assistant Minister for Charities and Federal Member for Fenner in the ACT. He holds a PhD in public policy from Harvard. His latest book with Joshua Gans is Innovation + Equality: How to Create a Future That Is More Star Trek Than Terminator.

A Keynote panel at the Australasian AID Conference 2020.

Debating RCTs, and other topics in impact evaluation Barton Theatre

This year the Nobel prize for economics went to three economists who have promoted the use and importance of Randomised Control Trials (RCTs) in development economics and interventions. But how useful are RCTs in the real world of development assistance? And what more generally needs to be done to improve the quality and impact of impact evaluations, and to promote learning in aid?

Chair:

Professor Stephen Howes, Director, Development Policy Centre, ANU

Australia now incarcerates a greater share of the adult population than at any point since 1899. Much of this increase has occurred since the mid-1980s. Since 1985, the Australian incarceration rate has risen by 130 percent, and now stands at 0.22 percent of adults (221 prisoners per 100,000 adults). Recalculating Indigenous incarceration rates so that they are comparable over a long time span, I find that incarceration rates for Indigenous Australians have risen dramatically. Fully 2.5 percent of Indigenous adults are incarcerated (2481 prisoners per 100,000 adults), a higher share than among African-Americans. The recent increase in the Australian prison population does not seem to be due to crime rates, which have mostly declined over the past generation. Instead, higher reporting rates, stricter policing practices, tougher sentencing laws, and more stringent bail laws appear to be the main drivers of Australia’s growing prison population.

For all the talk about ‘uninterrupted economic growth’, Australia’s economy has underperformed in recent years. Economic growth has slowed, wages growth has declined, and productivity is in reverse. For the median household, living standards have fallen since 2013. At the heart of the malaise is a complacent federal government, which has done little to encourage dynamism in the economy. Too many sectors are dominated by cosy monopolists, too few start-up firms are challenging the incumbents, and there is too little genuine innovation. Over the past generation, the Australian economy has been lucky. But without more diversity and dynamism, our economy risks failing to deliver the outcomes that are essential to long-term wellbeing.

Andrew Leigh is in conversation with ANU Vice-chancellor Brian Schmidt on Andrew's new book with Joshua Gans, Innovation + Equality: How to Create a Future That Is More Star Trek Than Terminator.

In Melbourne, on 19 November, I launched Innovation + Equality:How to create a future that is more Star Trek than Terminator, which I co-authored with Joshua Gans.