Free Primary Education is widely seen as a tool to promote long-term growth, but in a new working paper (🚨), @eleonoraguarnieri.bsky.social, Helmut Rainer and I show that the effects are more immediate and wide-reaching, with FPE leading to reduced fertility and greater female empowerment.

When ethnic groups within countries become more culturally distant from those holding power in the central government, their likelihood of rebelling increases significantly. We spoke with @eleonoraguarnieri.bsky.social of @bristoluni.bsky.social about why such conflicts arise. #econsky

@valderfranziska.bsky.social asks what drives gender differences in health. Her evidence from Denmark points to an important role of providers: women are less likely to be prescribed lifesaving drugs, but can improve their outcomes when they change doctors.

@erikapoveag.bsky.social studies the impact of violent crime on education. As organized crime surges in Ecuador, school dropout rates rise. Children aged 11–14 are most affected, not due to fewer resources, but to fear and instability.

We continue with Ellen Greaves (@uofebusiness.bsky.social). She shows that better schools don't always boost nearby home prices. Her work shows the "school premium" only appears when the alternative is a clearly worse school.

@farahzadishadi.bsky.social shows that after 9/11, intermarriage rates for American Muslims dropped sharply—driven more by changing preferences among non-Muslim Americans than Muslims themselves.

The day concludes with Bin Huang (@econ.uzh.ch). He shows that in Mao-era China, forced integration reduced trust and growth. But decades later, the same villages built stronger, more productive ties. Institutions turned diversity from a burden to an asset.

We kick off the last day of BÆM 2025 with @caterinapavese.bsky.social. She uses data from the Netherlands to show that early integration boosts cultural assimilation but can hurt education—especially for disadvantaged children.

Do classmates with disabilities affect learning outcomes? @sofiasierrav.bsky.social studies this question in Chile. Students in inclusive classrooms show slightly lower test scores but the impact varies by disability type and is eased when teachers stay with the same class over time.

@giuliaferrero.bsky.social shows the sex preferences of parents in a war setting. Her results suggest that families exposed to ethnic conflict had more children if they only had daughters. The war amplified sex-selective fertility and abortions, revealing how violence shapes family choices.

Oleksandra Cheipesh (@uc3meconomics.bsky.social) shows that media role models matter, even in childhood. In early-2000s Ukraine, girls with more exposure to female-led animated series later pursued more education and STEM—and both boys and girls held fewer gender stereotypes.

Alessandro Toppeta (@sofi.su.se) shows that more school isn't always better: in Sweden, teens randomly tested after holidays show stronger non-cognitive skills, especially those from wealthier families. More breaks may boost development, but they risk widening inequality.

Our keynote speaker Michèle Tertilt (@econunimannheim.bsky.social) provides a fascinating overview of the economics of women’s rights. Her findings illustrate the importance of economic forces for rights expansions, but also how the impact of these forces varies with culture.

We continue with @leitemariante.bsky.social. Do unconditional cash transfers discourage work? Not for women in Brazil. A boost in benefits led more mothers to join the labor force, especially when it helps easing childcare burdens. Paper: drive.google.com/file/d/1ksDE...

@saraspaziani.bsky.social shows that gender quotas in Italian governments boosted female representation, and over time, strongly increased access to anti-violence services. Political representation can help to reduce gender-based violence.

Why do sons more often take over the family firm than daughters? Using rich Finnish data, @cipriandomnisoru.bsky.social shows the gender gap starts early—with son-biased fertility, unequal grooming. Norms vary strongly by industry. Paper: docs.iza.org/dp17800.pdf

First up is Anna Hochleitner (@nhhecon.bsky.social). Using academic reference letters and two experiments, Anna shows that recommendation letters for women emphasize effort over ability, shaping hiring decisions. Recruiters often don’t realize the bias, undermining diversity efforts.

Day 3 of the 2025 Bristol Applied Economics Meetings (BÆM)! After two fantastic days on development economics, we continue with the meeting on “Gender, Diversity, and Human Capital”. Stay tuned for some excellent papers!

Welcome to the 2025 Bristol Applied Economics Meetings (BÆM)! We’re kicking off with Development Economics. We have an exciting lineup of speakers, incl. @saralowes.bsky.social as keynote and Devesh Rustagi & @deanyang.bsky.social as invited speakers. Stay tuned for one key takeaway per talk!

📣Last call for BÆM 2025! 💥Development Economics (May 6-7), Keynote: @saralowes.bsky.social (UCSD) 💥Gender, Diversity, and Human Capital (May 8-9) Keynote: Michèle Tertilt (Mannheim). Submissions close tomorrow, 28th Feb! More info 👇 bsky.app/profile/paul...

📢 Free Virtual Course for Economics Students! The ReCIPE (@cepr.org) research programme is hosting a course on ‘Key Concepts for Economies in Conflict and Fragile Settings’, taught by a series of experts in the field. More details & registration: recipe.cepr.org/event/virtua...

Thrilled to share that my job market paper has found a home. Huge thanks to the editors, referees, and everyone who supported me along the way, especially my mentors Ana Tur-Prats, Davide Cantoni, and Helmut Rainer.

Keep your papers coming and join us for the Bristol Applied Economics Meeting (BÆM) on Development Economics, May 6-7! 📢 Invited talks by the brilliant @saralowes.bsky.social, Devesh Rustagi & @deanyang.bsky.social 📅 Submission deadline: Feb 28. Details here👉http://baem.info

📢 #CallForPapers @cepr.org #Workshop on #Ethnicity #Identity & #Conflict #Economics #EconSky to be held in Brussels, Belgium from 23-24 June 2025. Submissions now open! 📆Deadline: 15 December 2024 More information: cepr.org/events/cepr-...

📢Call for papers: Bristol Applied Economics Meeting (BÆM) on Development Economics (May 6-7) Keynote: Sara Lowes @sararlowes (USCD) Invited speakers: Devesh Rustagi (Warwick) and Dean Yang @deanyang (Michigan) Call with all details: baem.info/CfP_DEV_25.pdf 2/4

BÆM is back! Come and join us in beautiful Bristol for the 2nd edition of the Bristol Applied Economics Meetings: Development Economics: May 6-7 Gender, Diversity, and Human Capital: May 8-9 Submit your paper by Feb 28. Travel support is available. baem.info. 1/4