Turnaround: Third World Lessons for First World Growth

In his new book, Turnaround: Third World Lessons for First World Growth (Basic Books, 2013), Brookings Nonresident Senior Fellow Peter Blair Henry, dean of the NYU Stern School of Business, explores how large developing countries—China, India and Brazil—and even smaller ones have broken free from previous periods of poverty and turned their economies into engines of growth, using policies often thrust upon them by advanced nations who now seem unwilling to heed their own recommendations. The book uses case studies to demonstrate how the policy pendulum in emerging economies now swings in the direction of prudence and self-control, and how with similar discipline, the First World may yet recover and create long-term prosperity for all its citizens.

On March 15, Global Economy and Development at Brookings hosted a discussion of Turnaround and whether advanced economies can learn lessons from the emerging world on how to spur economic growth. Henry gave a short presentation on his book, followed by a panel discussion. Panelists included Uri Dadush, director of the International Economics program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and Brookings Senior Fellow Domenico Lombardi. Lesley Wroughton, senior correspondent for Thomson Reuters, moderated the discussion.