Humza Khan, Northwestern University -- Energy is foundational to modern society, with the scramble to secure this resource driving large parts of history. However, at a time when the U.S. is producing more oil than ever and renewable technology is rapidly advancing, it is ironic that greater energy production and transmission are severely needed.
Eliana Svilik, Stanford University -- Global energy markets have transformed since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine shifted key resource flows, creating new winners and losers. Prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the former was the world’s second largest producer of natural gas and third largest producer of crude oil. EU member states relied on this supply for the majority of its oil and gas as part of a developed, seemingly mutual partnership. As the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion nears, changes in energy supply chains demonstrate that the U.S. and EU have largely won the concurrent energy war.
Amy Cao, Stanford University -- On January 20, President Trump returned to office. In the month since, the President has levied 25% tariffs against Canada and 10% tariffs against China. After President Trump’s first term already dismantled the World Trade Organization (WTO) and associated guardrails, the effects this time could be catastrophic beyond imagination.
Fasih Zulfiqar, IBA Karachi -- Out of the global Muslim population of 1.6 billion, just 14% utilize banking services. In Pakistan, only 21% of adults had bank accounts as of December 2017. While there are multiple factors behind the low bank account penetration in Muslim-majority nations, religion plays a pivotal role.
Aliyah Banerjee, The University of Texas at Austin -- Safety apps have become popular solutions to address women’s safety in India, using features like panic buttons, location-sharing, and SOS alerts to enable safe travel at night and aid in instances of sexual violence or harassment. However, a lack of digital literacy, feelings of constraint with location-sharing services, fear of control by abusive partners, data privacy concerns, and perpetuation of sexual violence stereotypes pose significant barriers for female users of these apps. To alleviate these concerns, using one-sided matching is proposed to build a novel safety platform for women.
Finn Marten, Kiel University & Kiel Institute for the World Economy -- International economic system has changed dramatically over the last few years. Geopolitical events like the US-China rivalry and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine destabilized international economic systems, causing a full-scale trade war and an unprecedented sanctions regime. Such events signal a rise in “geoeconomics”—the strategic use of economic instruments like financial sanctions or tariffs to achieve geopolitical ends.
Griffin Young, American University — The political ramifications of unaffordable housing have already bubbled up in big-city politics, with cities like San Francisco making national headlines for blocking new development while simultaneously dealing with an affordability crisis. Although NIMBY (not in my backyard) views transcend the political spectrum, many of its proponents share a common trait: ownership. While the housing crisis locks many young Americans out of home ownership, rising home prices reward homeowners with a massive increase in home equity. In this way, soaring housing prices create winners and losers.
Thomas Sarsfield, University of Missouri – Saint Louis — “I propose to consider the question, ‘Can machines think?'” So asked Alan Turing in his landmark research essay Computing Machinery and Intelligence in 1950. Six years later, at a conference at Dartmouth College in 1956, researchers would coin the term ‘Artificial Intelligence.’ At the time, many of the researchers believed a ‘thinking machine’ would reach human-level intelligence within a generation, and capital began to pour into research projects aiming to advance AI technology.
Lily Haak, University of Florida — In 2010, before the wave of hyper-consumerism and big data engulfed digital markets, author and academic Debra Satz penned “Why Some Things Should Not Be for Sale.” Satz identifies the qualities of repugnant markets—like those for human kidneys or for services that exploit women’s reproductive abilities, child labor, etc.—and qualifies them all as both economically unviable and ethically compromising. Since Dr. Satz published her book, the tech sector has progressed considerably, with the adoption of social media as a full-fledged marketplace. But as consumers reap the benefits of remote online browsing and enhanced accessibility, they’re inadvertently sacrificing components of their privacy. In this new digital landscape, how do we assess the risks of selling our data—are we being bought and sold digitally?
