Some Great New Blog Finds

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in , at 1/28/2009 07:38:00 AM
Dear readers, I have been remiss in providing this blogging staple of pointing out fine new blogs that address similar fare to what you get here at the IPE Zone. Let me now correct this deficiency.

By all means, make a visit to the Global Economic Governance blog run by, well, the Global Economic Governance program at Oxford. Among the blogs mentioned here, it is the closest analog to yours truly's site. Although posting there is not very heavy, each topic receives thoughtful, in-depth coverage from acknowledged experts such as IPE godfather Robert Keohane talking about the possibilities for a global cap-and-trade climate change regime.

The credit crisis watchers among you will have probably seen the Baseline Scenario, a blog run by the insightful James Kwak and former IMF Chief Economist Simon Johnson. There is probably no more comprehensive source for up-to-the-minute commentary on the unfolding crisis. If you're thinking that Johnson and Co. are just rehashing the IMF line, note that Kwak has already found virtue in Joseph Stiglitz's proposals for dealing with the crisis. Stiglitz, of course, is the guy who unloaded on the IMF bigtime not so long ago in his book Globalization and Its Discontents. I particularly like the feature "Financial Crisis for Beginners" which should get anyone up to speed on the subject matter in no time.

Probably the heavyweight here is news of famous development aid skeptic William Easterly entering the blogosphere via Aid Watch. I am a bit disappointed to note that Easterly's schtick is becoming very repetitive as he starts by dumping on his former employer the World Bank, the Millennium Development Goals, and environmental concerns. I look forward to probing the libertarian-leaning Easterly on the latter point as I have received much flak for saying he has a Cato-esque attitude of "global warming...what global warming?"

And speaking of the World Bank, the world's most prominent aid institution has two more blogs, can you believe. The first has a regional focus, East Asia & Pacific. Their specialty is in case studies of World Bank operations in the region such as shrimp farming in Indonesia's restive Aceh region as well as fair trade cashews and ethical coffee cultivation elsewhere in Indonesia. Really, Easterly ought to go visit this fine blog. Next, it is a pleasure to note that probably the world's foremost expert on migration and remittances, Dilip Ratha, has put up a blog dedicated to the subject matter in People Move. Ratha and his team cover migration in fine detail.

All these blogs are definitely worth your while. Plus, I am sure that I have missed notable new blogs on the scene. If you have any more suggestions for the blogroll--as heroically stretched as it already is--just get in touch.