Can Globalization Still Deliver?

Dr. David Lipton, first deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), delivered the Institute’s sixteenth annual Stavros Niarchos Foundation Lecture, “Can Globalization Still Deliver?” on May 24, 2016. Known for his nonpartisan stature and depth of thinking in real time during crises, Lipton explained why globalization—which once lifted many out of poverty and launched an era of "Africa Rising"—has lost its momentum since the global financial crisis, dimming prospects for rising living standards in emerging and developing countries with each passing year. He will outline what is needed to restore the promise of globalization in a world economy where growth has become increasingly unstable. The Honorable Lawrence H. Summers, a member of the Institute’s board of directors and its executive committee, introduced Dr. Lipton. 

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Lecture has been presented at the Institute in previous years by such noted economists turned global policymakers as Agustín Carstens, Alan Greenspan, Mario Monti, Jean-Claude Trichet, Long Yongtu, Ernesto Zedillo, and Larry Summers. This signature annual event is made possible by the ongoing generous support of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.

Lipton has been first deputy managing director of the IMF since 2011. This past March, he was reappointed for a second five-year term beginning September 1, 2016. Prior to assuming this position, Lipton was special assistant to President Obama and served as senior director for international economic affairs jointly at the National Economic Council and National Security Council in the White House. He also has had senior private sector experience, as managing director at Citi, where he was head of global country risk management, and at Moore Capital Management. He served in the Clinton administration at the Treasury Department from 1993 to 1998 as under secretary and previously as assistant secretary for international affairs.