What have been some of the most challenging aspects of conducting research in this field, and how did you overcome these challenges? 

Early on, one of the major challenges was finding a place with the right kind of support: interested colleagues, staff who could assist with fieldwork, and, especially, a community of graduate students interested in similar questions. That kind of environment takes time to build. Oxford had a very strong community with a lot of support, funding, and students working in this area. When I later returned to Stanford, we hired younger development economists and were able to build a similarly vibrant student community working on different aspects of behavior and development.

How do you see your research influencing policy or contributing to real-world change? 

Mostly through understanding behavior and what lies behind different types of decisions. That’s what matters. In addition, the direct policy impact has largely come through my students. Many have gone into academia, but many others have joined organizations like the World Bank, the IMF, or private companies. One student, for example, helped set up a commodity exchange in Ethiopia, which certainly had policy impact. So my influence on policy has been felt primarily through the work that my students go on to do.
 

How have things changed in your field since you first began your research, and how has this influenced the way you approach your work? 

Research methodologies have evolved significantly over time. In the early days, researchers did not even use surveys. Later, surveys became more rigorous, and the field moved toward panel data to follow households over longer periods. With the introduction of GPS, it became possible to work with spatial data in new and more precise ways. The emergence of randomized controlled trials marked another major shift and shaped development economics for many years, although that influence is now starting to decline. Conceptually, the growing importance of behavioral economics has also been a major change and has become increasingly central to how we study issues in economic development.

What gaps do you feel need to be addressed in your research field, and what do you anticipate you will study more in the future? 

There are always gaps. It never is a finished business. The challenges also change over time. Recently, in a very short period, many things built over our lifetimes have been undone. The question is whether to try to rebuild them or conclude that they did not work and try something else. I do not think many of the solutions being proposed now will last; they are not effective. The erosion of the rule of law is especially disturbing. Even democracies struggle with it, but in this country, it has essentially gone out the window. The neglect of international law is also profoundly shocking.

Could you elaborate on the broader shifts you’ve observed in recent years, especially the weakening of institutions and systems that once supported development and international cooperation? 

Closing down USAID is a massive change. Development institutions could certainly be improved, but shutting them down entirely is something very different. These shifts have also affected research funding. Funding has dwindled, and academic positions in development have declined. The job market in development economics overall seems to be shrinking. There is also less interest in people who study democracy, because their work would necessarily be critical of what is happening. It has been a significant backward step.

In times of uncertainty, what gives you hope for the future of your field? 

My students! Their enthusiasm has not disappeared, and the enthusiasm among researchers remains strong as well. Our international contacts remain solid, and parts of the world, especially in Europe, such as Germany and Switzerland, have not given up on these ideals. For example, Esther Duflo recently moved from MIT to Zurich, and we may see more moves like that.

Lastly, what book would you recommend for students interested in a research career in your field? 

Development economics now covers everything; it’s essentially all economics for 80 percent of the world, so there isn’t one book that summarizes it. If someone wants to start a research career focused on market institutions, I would recommend the book I wrote on that topic: Market Institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa: Theory and Evidence (MIT Press, 2003). But if I had to pick a book I personally enjoyed, it would be the historian Fernand Braudel's three-volume Civilization and Capitalism, which looks at market institutions across the world from 1400 to 1800. It was eye-opening and a lot more interesting than traditional, battle-focused history.
 

As he approaches retirement at the end of 2025, Dr. Fafchamps offers insights drawn from decades of research on behavior and institutions. His legacy endures through his students and the body of research that continues to shape scholarship worldwide.

On November 14, 2025, CDDRL and the King Center on Global Development hosted "Unfinished Business: A Tribute to Marcel Fafchamps" — a full-day academic symposium celebrating the career and contributions of economist Marcel Fafchamps on the occasion of his retirement. Featuring a keynote by Marcel himself, this tribute brought together colleagues, collaborators, and students to engage with the themes and ideas that have shaped his influential work in development economics, labor markets, and social networks.

Marcel's keynote on "Behavioral Markets" can be viewed below:

The Office of the President of Mongolia, under the auspices of the President of Mongolia and in collaboration with the Ban Ki-moon Foundation for a Better Future of the Republic of Korea and Stanford University’s Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center (APARC) of the United States, will host the international conference “Sustainability Dialogue 2025 – Climate Action: Billions of Trees” from June 5-7, 2025, in Ulaanbaatar.

The Sustainability Dialogue serves as a strategic cornerstone for fostering regional collaboration and advancing sustainable development. The dialogue will bring together global policymakers, experts, researchers, and practitioners, who will convene to address shared environmental challenges and tackle the escalating impacts of climate change through urgent and coordinated global action – the vision captured in Sustainable Development Goal 13 (SDG 13) of the United Nations-adopted 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The conference will serve as a platform to reinforce collective commitment to SDG 13 by advancing efforts in mitigation, adaptation, policy integration, education and awareness, and the mobilization of international financial support.

In alignment with the vision of Khurelsukh Ukhnaa, the President of Mongolia and his national “Billion Trees” initiative, the conference will host discussions under the following four themes: Climate Financing for Sustainability; Technical Cooperation, Social Responsibility, and Expertise Sharing; Partnerships for Climate Resiliency and Regional Sustainability; and Climate Action Through Land Restoration and Conservation.

More than 400 participants from 11 countries will attend the conference, including over 40 distinguished speakers from the environmental, financial, and technological sectors. Notable opening speakers include: The 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations and Chairman of the Ban Ki-moon Foundation for a Better Future, H.E. Ban Ki-moon; APARC Director and Stanford's William J. Perry Professor of Contemporary Korea, Professor Gi-Wook Shin; Deputy State Secretary for Hungarian Communities Abroad of the Office of the Prime Minister of Hungary Péter Szilágyi; and Director of the Coordination Office of the G20 Initiative on Land, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), Muralee Thummarukudy, who will also give a keynote speech. Other keynote speakers include Deputy Chairwoman of the State Great Hural (Parliament) of Mongolia Khurelbaatar Bulgantuya, Member of the State Great Hural (Parliament) of Mongolia and Minister of Foreign Affairs Batmunkh Battsetseg, and Environment and Green Development Policy Advisor to the President of Mongolia Nyam-Osor Batkhuu.

“Sustainability Dialogue 2025 – Climate Action: Billions of Trees” builds upon the ongoing Trans-Pacific Sustainability Dialogue initiative launched in 2022 by APARC and the Ban Ki-moon Foundation for a Better Future. This initiative includes the 2022 inaugural convening and the 2023 Dialogue on Energy Security (SDG 7) in Seoul, Republic of Korea; the 2024 Dialogue on Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure (SDG 9) at Stanford University; and two Trans-Altai Sustainability Dialogue sub-regional convenings in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, one focused on Advancing Gender Equity and Women’s Empowerment (SDG 5) in 2023 and the other on Promoting Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions (SDG 16) in 2024. Together, these convenings have played a critical role in generating impactful contributions to developing sustainable solutions that benefit Asia, the Altai region, and the global community.
 

• View the announcement by the Office of the President of Mongolia >
• View the conference agenda >

A Pivotal Moment for Climate Policy

In early May, Israel faced its second major wildfire in a month, as flames tore through the woodlands around Jerusalem, forcing the shutdown of the central region and the cancellation of Independence Day celebrations. Conference Chair, Professor Alon Tal, Visiting Fellow in Israel Studies and a leading environmental advocate, explained that once a rare occurrence, such fires have become far more frequent, reflecting a broader international pattern.

“In the past, fires of this magnitude maybe happened once a decade,” Tal noted. “But like California, Israel’s fire service now reports a tripling of high-risk fire days — ultra-dry conditions paired with high winds. This is an international phenomenon. This past year, Canadian fires destroyed 45 million acres of woodlands — seven times the annual average. Israel has received a wake-up call about the impacts of the climate crisis.”

Across two days of programming, the conference will bring together 25 Israeli experts to discuss potential solutions alongside colleagues from Los Angeles and California. “This is not just a policy conversation. This is about how we prepare our communities for an uncertain future,” Tal said. “Both Los Angeles and Tel Aviv are confronting real environmental risks, but they also have the innovation ecosystems and civic infrastructure needed to respond creatively. We have a lot to learn from studying them side by side.”

Comparing Los Angeles and Tel Aviv offers scholars and policymakers unique insights, Tal believes. “These are two of the most creative cities in the world. They both have thriving tech sectors and liberal city governments with resources and professional expertise. At the same time, they face comparable challenges: they are both dryland cities on rising coastlines, where heat waves are becoming more treacherous. Bringing their top experts together at Stanford has tremendous merit.”

Rethinking Climate Governance at the City Level

Tal emphasized that local governments are increasingly bearing the burden of climate adaptation, especially in societies marked by inequality and demographic complexity. “The changing climate brings new challenges that cities need to be ready for. And they aren’t,” he said. “Most people live in cities — they need the tools (and the budget) to reduce new risks. The LA fires have left enormous human suffering in their wake, just like the climate-driven floods in New Orleans, Houston, and New York City did. So, the question is: what steps should cities take proactively to avert disasters and maintain stability?”

While Tal emphasized the immediate environmental threats, Larry Diamond, Mosbacher Senior Fellow in Global Democracy at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI) and director of the Visiting Fellows in Israel Studies program, framed the discussion within a broader governance context. “It is often said that ‘all politics is local,’ and there is a policy corollary to that. While we need national policies and international coordination to reduce fossil fuel emissions and accelerate the transition to renewable energy, the challenges of climate adaptation and resilience are also deeply local and must be met at that level. This is a great opportunity for all of us to learn from two cities on the front lines of the challenge in our respective countries — Tel Aviv and Los Angeles.”
 

A Vision for Collaborative Learning

The event also reflects the broader goals of Stanford’s Visiting Fellows in Israel Studies program, launched in 2023 to foster cross-disciplinary analysis of Israel and its unique position as a regional influence and geopolitical actor. The program appoints an Israel-based scholar to serve as a visiting fellow at FSI for a recurring three-year term. The fellow will teach courses related to some aspect of Israel’s politics, society, economy, modern history, technological development, and/or regional or international relations, as well as advise students and collaborate with faculty interested in Israel and the Middle East.

Diamond emphasized the significance of the conference in fulfilling the program’s mission. “One of our key goals in the Israel Studies Program is to engage scholars, policymakers, and civil society leaders in Israel, not only individually but collectively based on their expertise. And we seek to promote functional and scholarly interaction and mutual learning. This conference is a historic opportunity to advance this mission in the realm of climate resilience.”

Tal also highlighted the significance of hosting the conference at Stanford. “Stanford has become the world’s leading academic center for researching critical ecological problems like biodiversity and climate change. The Doerr School of Sustainability and the involvement of Nobel laureate Steven Chu as a keynote speaker make this an unparalleled opportunity for collaboration.”

Building a Lasting Impact

Tal hopes the conference will catalyze new approaches to addressing climate impacts. “It’s clear that new environmental conditions require new strategies and technologies. Seeing practical solutions firsthand is crucial, but they don’t matter without policies that enable cities to step up their climate mitigation game. Success stories need to be shared.”

The conference outcomes will be documented in a special issue of the academic journal Sustainability, ensuring that insights resonate beyond the event itself. “By focusing on urban policies and highlighting both successes and failures, we aim to chart pathways for cities to live with global warming while mitigating emissions to address the root causes,” Tal said.

Diamond further expressed his hopes for the conference’s impact. “We hope participants will not only take away specific ideas and strategies from the two cities and countries but also connections that can be of mutual practical value going forward. We want to underscore that Israel and California, with their similar climates and start-up cultures, have a particularly rich set of possibilities for collaboration and mutual learning.”

Community members and members of the public are invited to participate in this pivotal conversation. To view the full agenda and register, visit the conference website.

The Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center (APARC) at Stanford University and the Ban Ki-moon Foundation for a Better Future announced today the third annual Trans-Pacific Sustainability Dialogue (TPSD), set to take place at Stanford University on October 10-11, 2024. This year's dialogue focuses on promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization, fostering innovation, and building resilient infrastructure — the vision encompassed in Sustainable Development Goal 9 (SDG 9). Registration for the conference is now open.

APARC and the Ban Ki-moon Foundation launched the TPSD initiative in 2022 to fast-track the United Nations-adopted 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its underlying 17 Global Goals. By gathering social science researchers and scientists from Stanford University and across the Asia-Pacific region alongside government officials, experts from the private and public sectors, and emerging leaders, the dialogue initiative aims to spur transnational research and policy collaborations to expedite the implementation of the SDGs.

This year’s event follows the momentum generated in previous dialogue gatherings held in Asia, most recently the 2023 TPSD on energy security (SDG 7) and its last sub-regional dialogue on peace and justice (SDG 16). Convening this year for the first time at Stanford University, the two-day event is made possible thanks to the active co-organization of multiple partners: the Asian Development Bank, Ewha Womans University, Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission, Korea Environment Institute, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea, and the Natural Capital Project of Stanford University.

With just six years remaining, progress on the 2030 Agenda is severely lagging worldwide. According to the 2024 Sustainable Development Goals Report, only 17 percent of the SDG targets are on track, nearly half are showing minimal or moderate progress, and progress on over one-third has stalled since 2020 or even regressed below the 2015 baseline levels. Against this backdrop, this year’s TPSD will center on SDG 9 and its foundational role in the Global Goals framework. The vision at the core of SDG 9 — namely, industrial development that makes opportunities accessible to all and is grounded in technological innovation and resilient infrastructure — is pivotal for achieving economic resilience, social development, and the green transition toward a decarbonized future.

"The 2024 TPSD will offer a unique platform for cross-sector leaders to highlight where interventions are most urgently needed to close disparities in achieving SDG 9 and assess best practices to expedite progress,” said Stanford sociologist Gi-Wook Shin, the William J. Perry Professor of Contemporary Korea and director of APARC. “With Stanford’s innovation ecosystem, industry collaboration, and commitment to accelerating interdisciplinary solutions to global challenges, there is no better place to pursue this work."

Day One of the dialogue will open with a plenary focused on the role of world leaders in advancing higher education and sustainable innovation, featuring Ban Ki-moon, the 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations; Zandanshatar Gombojav, Chairman of the 7th and 8th State Great Hural (Parliament) of Mongolia; Eun Mee Kim, President of Ewha Womans University; and Francis Fukuyama, Olivier Nomellini Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and Director of the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy. The following plenary sessions will examine practical pathways and policies for catalyzing climate change diplomacy across sectors, sustainable industrialization in the Indo-Pacific, and financing for resilient infrastructure in the region.

"With only six years left to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, we are facing increasing instability and uncertainty due to serious global challenges: the worsening climate crisis, the exacerbation of regional conflicts, and the deepening of economic inequality,” notes Mr. Ban. “Under these challenging circumstances, the significance of this 2024 Dialogue lies in accelerating multilateral cooperation among Asia-Pacific countries to share experiences and knowledge to narrow the gap in achieving the goal of building resilient infrastructure, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and fostering innovation."

On Day Two, expert sessions will discuss strategies for leveraging investments, cooperation, and ecopreneurship for resilient infrastructure and social change. The day will also include a policy roundtable on integrating the value of the environment into policy and decision-making for sustainable development and two parallel workshops with young scholars and entrepreneurs, highlighting the role of emerging leaders in shaping the future of sustainable industry. They will present their work on design thinking for developing sustainable technology and equitable infrastructure and strengthening labor force participation and development for inclusive industries.

The 2024 TPSD reflects the commitment of APARC, the Ban Ki-moon Foundation, and our partners to advance stronger and more effective international cooperation to create a surge in the implementation of the SDGs. We invite scholars, policymakers, industry leaders, civil society experts, and all interested stakeholders to join us in this effort.

To register for the conference and access the full program, visit the 2024 TPSD webpage.

About the Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center
The Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center (Shorenstein APARC) is Stanford University's esteemed institute dedicated to addressing critical issues impacting Asia and its relations with the United States. Through interdisciplinary research, education, and dialogue, APARC seeks to shape innovative policy solutions and enhance collaboration among countries in the Asia-Pacific region. For more information, visit aparc.stanford.edu.

About the Ban Ki-moon Foundation For a Better Future
The Ban Ki-moon Foundation For a Better Future upholds the legacy and vision of Ban Ki-moon, the 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations. Guided by the principles of unification, communication, co-existence, and dedication, the Foundation works tirelessly towards achieving peace, security, development, and human rights. Collaborating with international organizations and stakeholders, the Foundation actively supports the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and the 2050 carbon net-zero target set by the Paris Climate Accord. For more information, visit eng.bf4bf.or.kr.

Contact

For further information on the Trans-Pacific Sustainability Dialogue, contact Cheryll Alipio, Shorenstein APARC’s Associate Director for Program and Policy at calipio@stanford.edu.