WORKING PAPERS
May 2008
"Labor Regulations and European Industrial Specialization: Evidence from Private Equity Investments"
By Ant Bozkaya, Research Fellow, The Dubai Initiative/Science, Technology, and Public Policy Program
European nations empirically substitute between employment protection regulations and labor market expenditures like unemployment insurance benefits in the provision of labor market insurance to workers. While perhaps substitutes from a worker's perspective, employment regulations more directly tax firms making frequent labor force adjustments. These labor adjustments are especially important for the portfolio companies of both venture capital and buy-out investors. European nations providing worker insurance through labor market expenditures developed stronger domestic private equity markets over the 1990-2004 period than those nations favoring employment protection. These patterns are further evident in US-sourced private equity investments into Europe. Moreover, tests for industry specialization suggest that countries with more flexible labor markets tend to specialize in sectors characterized by high labor volatility. These results are relevant to the literature examining the impact of labor market regulations on entrepreneurship and productivity growth due to reallocation across firms and sectors.
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April 2008
"Estimating the Impact of the Hajj: Religion and Tolerance in Islam's Global Gathering"
By Asim Khwaja, Associate Professor of Public Policy; Dubai Initiative Faculty Affiliate, David Clingingsmith and Michael Kremer
This working paper, co-authored by DI Faculty Affiliate Asim Khwaja, argues that the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca increases observance of global Islamic practices while decreasing participation in localized practices and beliefs. The authors' evidence suggests that these changes are more a result of exposure to and interaction with Hajjis from around the world, rather than religious instruction or a changed social role of pilgrims upon return.
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March 14, 2008
"Legalizing Nuclear Abandonment: The Determinants of Nuclear Weapon Free Zone Treaty Ratification"
By Matthew Fuhrmann, Research Fellow, Project on Managing the Atom/International Security Program and Xiaojun Li
Matthew Fuhrmann and co-author Xiaojun Li examine when and why states ratify regional nuclear weapons free zone (NWFZ) treaties.
February 2008
"Giving Green to Get Green: Incentives and Consumer Adoption of Hybrid Vehicle Technology"
By Kelly Sims Gallagher, Director, Energy Technology Innovation Policy and Erich Muehlegger
Federal, state and local governments use a variety of incentives to induce consumer adoption of hybrid-electric vehicles. The authors study the relative efficacy of state sales tax waivers, income tax credits and non-tax incentives and find that the type of tax incentive offered is as important as the value of the tax incentive.
January 3, 2008
"Keeping an Eye on an Unruly Neighbor: Chinese Views of Economic Reform and Stability in North Korea"
By Bonnie Glaser, Scott Snyder and John Park, Associate, Project on Managing the Atom
"Beijing viewed North Korea's explosion of a nuclear device in October 2006 as not only an act of defiance to the international community and a threat to regional stability, but also an act of defiance toward China. Chinese officials admit that their toolbox for managing the North Korean nuclear weapons challenge must now include a combination of pressure and inducements."
January 2008
"The Economics of Nuclear Energy Markets and the Future of International Security"
By Erwann O. Michel-Kerjan and Debra Decker, Associate, International Security Program
This paper discusses the evolution of nuclear energy markets and key drivers of the growing "nuclear renaissance." We focus on uranium, the largest part of the nuclear fuel markets, and analyze market demand, supply, and prices since the 1970s. We review the forces impacting this market—historically and prospectively—and note proliferation concerns surrounding nuclear energy: i.e. the same facilities that enrich uranium for electricity generation can also enrich it further for nuclear weapons.
December 11, 2007
"U.S. Primacy, Eurasia's New Strategic Landscape, and the Emerging Asian Order"
By Alexander Vuving, Associate, International Security Program
This paper argues that the current structure of international power in Asia is transitional. But neither hegemony nor multipolarity will likely be the next Asian order. The paper then assesses the prospects of the emerging regional order in Asia in terms of four options: bipolarity, the East Asian Community, U.S.-China condominium, and shared leadership. The paper concludes by discussing how Southeast Asian countries should prepare for the future strategic environment.
October 2007
"A U.S. Cap-and-Trade System to Address Global Climate Change"
By Robert N. Stavins, Albert Pratt Professor of Business and Government; Member of the Board
In a paper commissioned by the Brookings Institution's Hamilton Project, Stavins, the co-director of the Harvard Project on International Climate Agreements (HPICA) proposes "a specific cap-and-trade system with several key features including: an upstream cap on CO2 emissions with gradual inclusion of other greenhouse gases; a gradual downward trajectory of emissions ceilings over time to minimize disruption and allow firms and households time to adapt; and mechanisms to reduce cost uncertainty."
May 2007
Political Islam in Egypt
By Emad Shahin, Faculty Affiliate, Dubai Initiative; Visiting Associate Professor, Department of Government, Harvard University
The landscape of political Islam in Egypt has changed dramatically over the past decade and a half. Since the mid-1990s, the country's mainstream Islamic movement, the Muslim Brotherhood (MB, or Muslim Brothers), has undergone a significant transformation; an Islamist centrist party, Hizb al-Wasat, has emerged and for the past ten years has been struggling to acquire official recognition; and the country's radical movements, especially the Jama`a Islamiya, have reassessed some of their tactics.
April, 2007
Useful Void: The Art of Forgetting in the Age of Ubiquitous Computing
By Viktor Mayer-Schoenberger, Associate Professor of Public Policy
