Sanford Journal of Public Policy

05/10/2018

In 2017, Duke's own Nancy MacLean published a scathing, controversial history of modern libertarian ideology focusing on economist James Buchanan and political donor Charles Koch. What are the book's implications for politics today? Read first-year Blake Rosser's review of Maclean's Democracy in Chains to find out.

It’s 2018: the Koch-funded Tea Party exerts significant influence over the Republican party, pushing an agenda to cut the social safety net and passing a tax bill that disproportionately benefits h…

04/23/2018

Black Panther box office numbers continue to soar, symbolizing a win for diversity and inclusion in film. Read first-year MPP Jayson Dawkin's new article for deeper political and societal analysis that you should consider as you walk out of the theatre, if you haven't already seen the movie

Unless you have been living under a rock this past year, you’ve likely heard about the excitement surrounding the film “Black Panther.” Even more likely, you’ve seen it. The hype is not without mer…

12/07/2017

Last week, Professor Phil Bennett spoke with Sanford students about his experiences in journalism and the importance of asking the right questions. In public policy, as in journalism, the questions you ask are often more important than the answers you uncover. Read first-year Gabrielle's new article for some questions you should consider when conducting research, implementing policy, or just finishing your final memos of the semester.

According to Phil Bennett, questions are more important than answers. On November 28th, the Emmy-award winning journalist and Sanford professor spoke with students about the importance of asking th…

12/06/2017

First-year MPP Blake Rosser sits down with Jay Pearson, Assistant Professor at Sanford to discuss the reactions to the publishing of his challenging op-ed in the L.A. times, “Donald Trump is a Textbook Racist,” in which he comprehensively explains how the president’s behavior fits every academic definition of racism. Jay Pearson is an assistant professor at Duke’s Sanford School of Public Policy, with research focusing on the health disparities between distinct social groups.

Jay Pearson is an assistant professor at Duke’s Sanford School of Public Policy, with research focusing on the health disparities between distinct social groups. He recently published a cha…

11/29/2017

While education should be a key component of the US government’s strategy to counter violent extremism in Africa, recent research suggests that greater access to education can increase support for violence if it is of poor quality or divorced from opportunities for employment and civic engagement, writes second-year MPP Sarah Maniates.

The international development sector, especially in the United States, is facing an uncertain future. Long considered to be both a virtuous endeavor and a crucial mechanism for achieving US foreign…

11/27/2017

The Sanford Journal of Public Policy is proud to announce the publication of our fall 2017 edition! This issue is the culmination of more than a year of work to relaunch the print edition after a long hiatus. Meredith Bunnel and I are pleased to present this work as a joint venture between the class of 2017 and the class of 2018. Physical copies will be available soon!

Check it out here:https://sites.duke.edu/sjpp/files/2017/11/SJPP-Volume-7.pdf

11/14/2017

First-year MPP Meg Fee covers Representative Adam Schiff’s visit to Duke University as part of the Terry Sanford Distinguished Lecture Series. The ranking democrat on the House Intelligence Committee addressed Russia, his fears for the future of American Democracy, and how he thinks we can contribute during these changing times.

Representative Adam Schiff spoke at Duke University as part of the Terry Sanford Distinguished Lecture Series on October 30th, the same day Special Counsel Robert Mueller handed down the first indi…

10/26/2017

How do we tax the virtual? Second-year Master of International Development Policy (MIDP '18) Edison Jakurti analyses the challenges that the European Union is facing in taxing digital giants such as Amazon and Google, for which a majority of operations are online.

Tax policy reform specifically targeting the digital economy has become a hotly debated subject in the European Union (EU). In recent years, several EU member states have faced issues in taxing dig…

10/11/2017

First-year MPP Blake Rosser believes Democrats not supporting Medicare-for-all are peddling an inconsistent argument.

On September 13th, Bernie Sanders and 16 Democratic co-sponsors introduced the “Medicare for All Act of 2017” to establish a national health insurance program. Responses to the legislation, and its…

08/30/2017

Kicking the semester off with second-year MPP Rohini Ravi’s article on the current realities of climate change and how sustainable developments taking place in Sub-Saharan Africa can act as a model on ways to offset the detrimental effects of climate change.

Climate Change: Current State Climate change discussions are nothing new. Fossil fuels and alternative energy discussions have been in place since before Al Gore’s Inconvenient Truth in 2006…

07/26/2017

Human psychology makes repealing and replacing Obamacare extremely difficult, writes Neil Browning '17. Read more about loss aversion and the uncertain future of Obamacare in our newest article.

Despite having control of the Senate, House, and Presidency, Republicans have been repeatedly unsuccessful in their attempts at repealing the Affordable Care Act and replacing it with an alternativ…