The Inequality Podcast

We bring together scholars across disciplines to discuss the causes and consequences of inequality and strategies to promote economic mobility. Listen and discover novel insights and strategies to address today’s most pressing issues in inequality.

Filter

Episode #23: Advances and Obstacles in Gender Inequality, Featuring Martha Bailey and Natasha Quadlin

February 24, 2025

We explore the history of gender inequality with economist Martha Bailey on War on Poverty programs and sociologist Natasha Quadlin on education and the job market.

Episode #21: David Lay Williams on the Intellectual History of Inequality

January 27, 2025

Host Steven Durlauf speaks with David Lay Williams on how 2,500 years of political thought—from Plato to Marx—shaped our understanding of economic inequality.

Episode #20: Transdisciplinary Approaches to Wealth Inequality, Featuring Alberto Bisin and Jean-Philippe Bouchaud

January 13, 2025

Host Steven Durlauf speaks with Alberto Bisin and Jean-Philippe Bouchaud on how insights from physics, math, and history transform the study of wealth inequality.

Episode #19: Sports, Race, and Labor, Featuring Bomani Jones, Ilyana Kuziemko, Matthew Notowidigdo, and Kenneth Shropshire

December 30, 2024

College athletics is in flux as NIL deals redefine the athlete experience. This live panel, moderated by Damon Jones, features Bomani Jones, Ilyana Kuziemko, Matthew Notowidigdo, and Kenneth Shropshire, exploring the broader context of paying college athletes.

Episode #17: Bhash Mazumder on Intergenerational Mobility and Its Many Dimensions

December 2, 2024

Economist Bhash Mazumder shares insights on intergenerational mobility with host Steven Durlauf, exploring income mobility, flawed estimates, health metrics, and the impacts of redlining and urban renewal on mobility in the US.

Episode #16: Family, Identity, and Inequality, Featuring Ariel Kalil and Mesmin Destin

November 18, 2024

Inequality is often viewed through macro-level forces. Today, we shift focus to smaller-scale factors: Steven Durlauf and Ariel Kalil discuss family roles in inequality, while Mesmin Destin explores identity-based motivation and interventions like peer mentorship.

Episode #15: How Neighborhoods and Schools Shape Inequality, Featuring Felix Elwert, David Harding, Geoffrey Wodtke, and Marissa Thompson

November 4, 2024

Neighborhoods and schools impact inequality and mobility through factors like socioeconomic status, segregation, and resources. The episode's guests discuss how these environments shape opportunities and outcomes, with a focus on neighborhood effects.

Episode #14: Janet Gornick on the Importance of Measuring Socio-Economic Inequality

October 21, 2024

Steven Durlauf speaks with Janet Gornick, director of the Stone Center at CUNY and an expert on measuring socio-economic inequality. They discuss her work with LIS, gender inequality, family structure, and the future of interdisciplinary social science.