Rebuilding the Post-Pandemic Economy
After suffering the worst economic shock since the Great Depression last year, the American economy is recovering in fits and starts. While many businesses are reopening their doors and thriving, continued uncertainty about the course of the virus, the inflation outlook, labor shortages, and many other factors are hampering a full return to normal activity. The COVID-19 pandemic also reinforced and exacerbated many of the biggest structural economic challenges in our society. It precipitated the largest economic relief and stimulus spending in US history and transformed the way that millions of Americans live and work, with automation, e-commerce, and telework all playing a bigger role.
The pandemic and its aftershocks reignited not only the perennial debates about the appropriate role and size of government, but also present new and urgent questions about how the post-pandemic economy will take shape. The policy volume Rebuilding the Post Pandemic Economy examine important questions about how the post-pandemic economy will take shape. What are some initial lessons we can take away from the novel government programs that were deployed to provide economic relief and stimulus? How can we implement new infrastructure investments to maximize efficiency and equity, and best respond to the climate crisis? After a year of widespread school closures, what have we learned about the role of K-12 education in perpetuating or reducing social and economic inequities? And how should American trade policies evolve to promote economic recovery and strengthen America’s role in the global economy?
Introduction: Rebuilding the Post-Pandemic Economy
The COVID-19 pandemic plunged the US economy into recession, challenged the survival of millions of businesses, and threatened the economic security of American households. The recession officially lasted only two months, ending in April 2020, but looming economic challenges remain and the path of the post-pandemic recovery is uncertain. The US labor market recovery is ...
Will the climate incentives in the IRA be enough to meaningfully reduce emissions?
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (the “IRA”) represents Congress’ most substantial attempt to date to lessen American reliance on fossil fuels and to transition the country’s power supply toward zero-emission sources. Per the Joint Committee on Taxation’s estimate, the Act commits approximately $369 billion toward measures aimed at improving energy security and mitigating the ...
COP27 and Climate Inequality
Much of the conversation at COP27 has focused on economic compensation and assistance for developing countries who will likely bear the greatest damages from climate change but contribute little to overall global emissions. If carbon emissions are left unaddressed, the climate crisis will not only become more costly to global health and the global economy, ...
Seven Recent Developments in US Science Funding
Over the past century, scientific research and development (R&D) has fueled US economic and military might and propelled the country’s status as a global superpower. These investments have helped to launch not only the technologies that define modern life, including the internet, mobile and personal computing, and artificial intelligence, but also the healthcare advances that ...
State Capacity for Building Infrastructure
This paper, by Zachary Liscow, examines state capacity for infrastructure construction in the United States. It identifies three elements of state capacity that drive up costs and slow down timelines: insufficient personnel, onerous procedures, and a lack of adequate tools. Liscow offers specific suggestions about ways to address these challenges and improve US public capacity ...
Aspen Economic Strategy Group Welcomes New Members
Aspen Economic Strategy Group Welcomes New Members Leading policymakers, business executives, and academics join bipartisan group dedicated to promoting evidence-based solutions to America’s economic challenges. WASHINGTON, DC, MARCH 12, 2025 – The Aspen Economic Strategy Group (AESG) today announced that eleven new members have joined the bipartisan group of distinguished leaders and thinkers who are ...
An Energy Strategy for National Renewal
After two decades of relatively constant energy consumption, the nation faces a surge in power demand driven by artificial intelligence, domestic manufacturing, and continued electrification, developments that challenge an already-constrained electricity grid. In this way, the United States’ energy strategy must effectively bridge economic policy and geopolitical power while serving as a calibrated response to ...