Toward a Better World: Memoirs of a Life in International and Development Economics

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University of Toronto Press, Jan 18, 2018 - Business & Economics - 344 pages

Toward a Better World describes the life, times and perspectives of Gerry Helleiner, a Canadian activist and university-based economist, who worked for roughly 40 years with developing countries and international organizations. In his memoir, Toward a Better World, Helleiner, recounts the profound early experiences in Africa that propelled him into a rewarding career devoted to research, advice and teaching in international economics, economic development and global poverty reduction.

Describing himself as privileged, Toward a Better World recounts his early life as a young academic, having first landed in Africa in the 1960s for the purpose of research for Yale University. Detailing both successes and setbacks, frustrations and hopes, Helleiner, conveys his often difficult, yet transformative, experiences in Nigeria and Tanzania, missions in Uganda and South Africa, and witnesses the wavering efforts being made towards poverty alleviation in international organisations . Providing lively behind-the-scene accounts of multilateral economic meetings in the 1970s through the 1990s, Helleiner addresses his engagement with economic policymakers, his views often challenging common practice.

In Toward a Better World, Helleiner speaks to his early motivation as a young man in Africa, and his lifework as a practicing economist determined to make a positive effort in addressing global poverty.

 

Contents

Introduction and Overview
3
Part I Beginnings
15
Part II An International and Development Economist in Africa
41
Part III An International and Development Economist in International Organizations
115
Part IV An International and Development Economist in Canada
219
Part V Reflections on a Life in International and Development Economics
283
Notes
299
Index
309
Copyright

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About the author (2018)

Gerry Helleiner is a professor emeritus of Economics at the University of Toronto and Officer of the Order of Canada.

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