Transitioning from Global Inequalities: The Role of Institutions in Development

The Inequality Working Group at Development Days 2025 invites submissions from postgraduate and early-career researchers on pressing global economic challenges. The fundamental question driving this event is:

How can developing societies navigate transitions to prosperity while contending with waste, conflicts, and the legacies of maldevelopment?

The recent recognition of research on disparities in prosperity and the role of institutions through the 2024 Nobel Prize in Economics highlights the urgency of rethinking development beyond the traditional Euro/North Atlantic frameworks. This workshop aims to expand academic discourse toward creating an inclusive global economy.

The challenges of understanding the fundamentals of economics on a global scale are well illustrated by the difficulties—and often failures—of transplanting successful policies from one country to another. While many of these policies, such as a focus on education or infrastructure, have substantially improved the prosperity of nations, new problems, like brain drain or debt crises, cast these once-universal solutions in a less favorable light. Moreover, they leave open the question: how can a developing society be transformed into a developed one?

For the 2025 Development Days Conference and Pre-Conference Workshop, we enthusiastically welcome submissions from postgraduate and early-career researchers working on the following subjects, or on other topics related to the conference theme:

1. Critical Appraisals of Institutions and Prosperity:

Alternative approaches to understanding the role of institutions in national development.

2. Alternative Measurements of Development: 

New frameworks for assessing institutional effectiveness and societal progress.

3. Southern-based Explanations for Global Wealth Inequalities:

Insights into how the wealth of rich nations perpetuates disparities.

4. Models of Economic Development:

Innovative theories that challenge orthodox economics and propose alternative fundamentals.

Contributors are encouraged to adopt critical, critical and heterodox perspectives on the role of institutions in development, drawing upon diverse disciplinary lenses such as economics, sociology, political science, and development studies. Furthermore, we eagerly anticipate contributions that amplify the voices and experiences of marginalized communities and societal segments.

Submission Guidelines

Abstract Length: Up to 500 words

Deadline for Abstract Submission: 24 November 2024

Notification of Acceptance:2 December 2024

Full Paper Deadline: 31 January 2025

Word Count for Papers: 3,000 to 5,000 words

Submitted papers should adhere to the conference’s author guidelines. Applicants can also apply to be considered for a travel and accommodation scholarship. For any inquiries or clarifications, please do not hesitate to contact the Working Groups via email to: inequality@youngscholarsinitiative.org