Why are some nations rich and others poor? Is it culture, the weather, geography? Perhaps ignorance of the right policies? Simply, no. None of these factors is either definitive or destiny. Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson conclusively show that it is man-made political and economic institutions that underlie economic success (or lack of it). Based on fifteen years of original research, Acemoglu and Robinson marshall historical evidence from the...

A plague of everyday violence lies beneath the surface of the world's poorest communities. Common violence-- like rape, forced labor, illegal detention, land theft, police abuse and other brutality-- has become routine and relentless. Basic public justice systems in the developing world have descended into a state of utter collapse. Haugen and Boutros offer a searing account of how we got here-- and what it will take to end the plague.

"'I see multiple colonial governors, ' says Ghanaian software entrepreneur Herman Chinery-Hesse of the international development establishment in Africa. 'We are held captive by the donor community.' The West has positioned itself as the protagonist of development, giving rise to a vast multi-billion dollar poverty industry - the business of doing good has never been better. Yet, the results have been mixed, in some cases even catastrophic, and leaders...

Examines the forms that poverty takes around the world, its many causes, the serious negative consequences that it has for individuals and societies, and the effort to eliminate it.

The co-founder of Women Thrive Worldwide documents her advocacy work in three impoverished nations, evaluating broad poverty-inducing forces while describing how women she has met have successfully overcome restrictive systems.