EP 302 Is There A Difference Between Fighting Poverty and Promoting Prosperity Around the Globe?

Starving children on street corners,  Slums without adequate clean water and sanitation.  A sense of hopelessness in the air that is almost palpable. We, Americans, are moved by these scenes and should be.  The question is whether traditional anti-poverty programs and foreign aid can really ameliorate these conditions over the long term.  Or whether they provide a band-aid, with the donor feeling good, but the effects short-term for the recipient.  (Let alone how much gets siphoned off by corrupt regimes).  Along comes Clayton Christensen, the disruptive innovation guru at Harvard and two of his associates, Efosa Ojomo and our guest Karen Dillon, putting their thoughts about long lasting prosperity, the type that America gained over a long stretch of time ,into the book, ‘The Prosperity Paradox: How Innovation Can Lift Nations Out of Poverty’. Co-author, Dillon, says that instead of fixing the visible signs of poverty, we would be better off creating lasting prosperity through market creating innovations.  She points to examples around the world and describes what results from innovation in places you might not imagine. It’s a way of considering the daunting problem of poverty through a different lens.  It’s a different approach to economic development and nation building from a team that has virtually redefined ways of building success in so many areas of business and service delivery.  Could this work? Listen in. 

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