Course Description

National Economic Education Delegation NEED unites the skills and knowledge of a vast network of professional economists to promote a nonpartisan understanding of the economics of policy issues in the United States. 

Instructor: Jon Haveman, Ph.D., Executive Director, National Economic Education Delegation. 

The following topics will be presented  - June 30, July 7, 14, 21, 28, Aug 4, 11, 18

US Economic Update: This presentation is updated on a monthly basis. It will highlight important trends in the US economy and spotlight particular policy issues that might have a significant bearing on future trends in important economic series: GDP, employment, inflation, interest rates, among others.

Federal Debt: The US federal debt has been increasing rapidly and is poised to grow more in the coming years. This deck will provide statistics on the growing debt and will provide an indication of the sources of growing debt. It will also provide a discussion of the implications for the economy and government budgets going forward. Finally, a discussion of policy options available for addressing the debt will be discussed.

Climate Change Economics: Climate change is one of the most significant challenges humanity faces, but economics can help us understand the problem and how to address it. These materials will address the science of climate change (by way of background), discuss the economic costs associated with climate change, present a set of policy options for mitigating these costs, and provide evidence on the real-world experience with some of these policy tools.

Economic Inequality: Income inequality in the United States has been increasing over the last several decades. This presentation will address causes, consequences, and potential policy responses.

The Black-White Wealth Gap: In 2019, the average White family held 7 times the wealth of the average Black family. This presentation provides a detailed discussion of the nature, sources, and implications of this gap along with suggestions for policies that can work to narrow the gap. The present gap in wealth between Black and White families is 400 years in the making. Beginning with the slave trade, slavery, and more than 100 years of post-Civil War policies that discriminated against Black Americans, the wealth gap is not surprising. The policies that contributed to the gap are not well understood and will be discussed in some detail. Solutions to the gap are often focused on what the Black community can do to enhance its wealth holdings. However, these solutions may not be the panacea that many believe. Indeed, other proactive policies at the level of the federal government may be necessary to address the gap.

Discriminatory Policies: This deck will explore government policies that have helped contribute to racial inequities and those that might help to reduce them.

Cryptocurrencies: This talk will provide a glimpse into the world of cryptocurrencies and “FinTech.” Bitcoin is the earliest and largest crypto currency, and the speaker will describe how it came to be, what it is and what its broader implications might be. The innovations underlying Bitcoin have shaken up the world of finance and raise important public policy questions such as: 1) Why do we need (or want) cryptocurrencies? 2) Do we want Facebook to run our payment system and 3) What role does or should government regulation and the Fed have in the evolving world of cryptocurrency and online finance?

Bio: Jon Haveman is the Executive Director of the National Economic Education Delegation (NEED). He has a reputation for providing audiences with edible economic information that is readily useful in their work and private lives. Jon was previously a Senior Economist with the President’s Council of Economic Advisers and he also held a faculty position in the Business School at Purdue University. Dr. Haveman holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Michigan.