Dear Development Colleague,
Like you, I have spent much of my life trying to help improve the lives of people in lower-income countries. I am aware, of course, of problems right here in the United States, including poverty, inequality, racism, malnutrition and more. But recently, I’ve felt compelled to pay greater attention to local challenges. From lead in the water in Flint to deadly encounters between police and black Americans to rising income inequality, there is plenty to tackle. While we all know context matters, I wonder if there’s more we could do to draw from a rich history of efforts to address difficult issues in developing countries around the world.
So I’m inviting you to help answer a question: what have we learned in global development that can be adapted and applied to pressing problems in the United States and other rich countries?
In addition to witnessing distressing trends at home, my interest was piqued by a call for proposals from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation that asked, “Throughout its history, the United States has learned from great ideas from abroad, from bagels to democracy. Why not do the same for health?” The foundation was seeking approaches – not yet widely tested or implemented in the United States – to promote health equity and wellness and build connections across generations and sectors (including health, social services, and urban planning). This is a fitting topic given the United States, despite spending the most on health care per capita, has poorer outcomes than many other rich countries. For example, the maternal mortality rate in the United States is higher than in any other developed country. And while lower-income countries like Nepal and Vietnam have sharply reduced this risk, the rate of American women dying from pregnancy-related complications is rising.
Another area where we might learn from others is how to confront the legacy of slavery and address persistent racial discrimination and tensions. Over the past 30-plus years, there have been several dozen truth and reconciliation commissions around the world, with a concentration in Latin America and Africa. While they have taken different forms, their overarching purpose is to pursue restorative justice by providing an account of past abuses and supporting reconciliation through hearings, public education, commemoration, and engagement. Some experts have proposed a truth and reconciliation process in the United States. What have we learned from dozens of commissions (as well as two small-scale efforts in the United States) about how we could systematically address racial divisions and advance reconciliation?
Maybe there are opportunities to adapt solutions first started or scaled in the developing world: conditional cash transfers, community policing approaches, mobile health, and paying for outcomes. What are the most compelling global development innovations and evidence the next US president should consider applying in a domestic context? Are there initiatives and research projects exploring this that I should know about?
Please send any ideas or suggestions using the comment section below or send me an email at chuang@cgdev.org.
Many thanks!
Cindy
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