Engage

We partner with think tanks, researchers, and experts to spark new ideas in development, grow capacity, and close knowledge gaps. We organize events and conferences that serve as conduits for gathering ideas that shape future research. Check out our recent and upcoming activities below.

We are actively working to grow our list of institutional partners and building a network of contributing experts. Given our global mandate, we operate out of regional hubs. The hub in Rome, Italy, is supported by the Government of Italy, in collaboration with the Bank of Italy and the Einaudi Institute for Economics and Finance (EIEF). It facilitates connections with think tanks in Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. The hub in Washington, D.C. facilitates partnerships with global institutions to engage with think tanks in Latin America and the Caribbean and the broader Western Hemisphere.

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Measuring Development 2025: Biodiversity on Land and at Sea

For over a decade, this conference has connected cutting-edge research with real-world policy solutions. This year’s theme will explore how to enable more effective conservation of the wildlife on which people depend. Organized by the Institute for Economic Development, the World Bank’s Development Economics Vice Presidency, and the Center for Effective Global Action (CEGA). Register now to hear from experts and be part of the future of biodiversity measurement.

Date: April 29, 2025
Location: Washington, DC
Contact: dimeanalytics@worldbank.org

Enhancing External Debt Statistics for Greater Transparency and Sustainability

The Enhancing External Debt Statistics for Greater Transparency and Sustainability event, organized by the Institute with the Government of Japan and the Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific, will include a panel conversation with World Bank Chief Economist & Senior VP for Development Economics Indermit Gill, representatives from the Government of Japan, and regional academics. It will offer participants a chance to connect with World Bank practitioners, access the latest World Bank research and data, and explore new forms of debt instruments and methodologies.

Date: April 07, 2025
Location: Chiba, Japan
Contact:

Growth Academy for the Middle East and North Africa

The University of Chicago, the World Bank, and the Institute for Economic Development are partnering with the Economic Research Forum of Egypt to organize the Growth Academy for the Middle East and North Africa workshop in Cairo, Egypt. Structured around the key themes of the World Development Report 2024: The Middle-Income Trap, this intensive workshop and Modelling Long-Term Growth in Developing Countries training will focus on the middle-income trap and the concepts of creative destruction for middle-income economies.

Date: April 30, 2025
Location: Cairo, Egypt
Contact: growthacademy@uchicago.edu

Refugees & Other Forcibly Displaced Populations: VoxDevLit Launch Event

Forced displacement has reached unprecedented levels, with over 120 million individuals displaced globally as of mid-2024. World Bank Senior Economist Sandra Rozo discusses evidence from economic research on the impacts of refugees in low- and middle-income countries, and shares how policy can support forced migrants. Watch the discussion from this VoxDevLit Launch webinar.

Watch the event replay

Date: March 11, 2025
Location: Online
Contact:

Escaping the Middle-Income Trap at the 1st Mile

Hosted by IFAD and the World Bank Rome Office, with support from the Institute, this closed-door event during the 48th session of the IFAD Governing Council highlighted key insights from the World Development Report 2024: The Middle-Income Trap. Somik Lall, Senior Adviser to the Chief Economist of the World Bank Group and lead author of the report, presented its main findings and discussed how rural investment can be a pathway for countries to transition from middle-income to high-income status.

Date: February 13, 2025
Location: Rome, Italy
Contact:

Building data together: An international workshop on building-related open microdata

A growing volume of building-related microdata is now released with open data licenses and have become the focus of large-scale data integration undertakings, methodological developments, new data partnerships, and ultimately policy relevant analyses. This emerging data space has significant potential not only for single national statistical systems, but also for international harmonization and comparative analysis. The developments in this rapidly evolving data space were the focus of this workshop.

Date: January 24, 2025
Location: Paris, France
Contact: Claudia.Baranzelli@oecd.org

Empowering Climate Resilience

Organized by the Institute and the Coalition for Capacity on Climate Action (C3A), this event will facilitate discussions around the upcoming World Bank Policy and Research Report (PRR) on “Rethinking Resilience: Empowering People for a Changing Climate.” Stay tuned for the official release of this report in early 2025.

Date: December 05, 2024
Location: Paris, France
Contact: wbginstitute_contact@worldbank.org

Italy and the World Bank Group: Partnering for Africa's Prosperity

On November 8, 2024, Palazzo Koch in Rome hosted the conference 'Italy and the World Bank Group: Partnering for Africa's Prosperity,' organized by the World Bank, Banca d'Italia, and Italy's Ministry of Economy and Finance.

Watch the event replay , | Read more

Date: November 08, 2024
Location: Rome, Italy
Contact:

Trade, Value Chains and Financial Linkages in the Global Economy

The Bank of Italy, the European Central Bank, the World Bank Development Economics Vice-Presidency's Research Group, and the Institute for Economic Development are organizing the third edition of this conference to bring together leading world scholars from both academia and policy institutions to take stock of recent developments in international trade, value chains, financial linkages and their macroeconomic implications.

Date: November 14, 2024
Location: Rome, Italy
Contact:

6th Washington Area International Finance Symposium (WAIFS)

The 6th Washington Area International Finance Symposium (WAIFS) is a research conference that highlights academic work from researchers at leading finance institutions in the Washington DC area. The goal of WAIFS is to bring together researchers working in international finance and macroeconomics. Researchers, practitioners, and students from policy institutions and universities present and discuss new ideas in the field.

Date: October 11, 2024
Location: Washington DC
Contact: cwatson@worldbank.org