Group members:
- Poppy Harris
- Sachi Alexander-Annan
- Joseph O’Brien
- Robert Boyle
- Luca Pancaldi
- Fritzi Furstenburg
How is the work being split?
So far we have decided that each week we will all go and research the same topic individually, consolidating it together when we meet (usually on Monday late afternoons and Wednesday afternoons, as well as after the lecture if we see fit). This will give each member of the group a more thorough understanding of the topic rather than if we just took one element each. We have also decided that those who are better at the technical aspects of finance (i.e. Rob, Fritzi Luca and Joe) will be better at focussing on this aspect, whereas Poppy and Sachi are confident in the more qualitative element; i.e. the executive summary, background and conclusion, and piecing together the brief.
We have put together some sources for the background element of the project which are in a list on a joint Google document which everyone has editing access to.
Research tasks
Each group member will take a small part of each section, as we go through the policy brief. For example, at the moment we are focussing on the background aspect of the policy report, but we will split this between us based on a smaller chunks which we will then consolidate into one piece. We are aiming to have the background section around 1200 words. We will attempt to make our research around 300 words for each section, as having too much is better than having too little.
- Poppy: the prosperous ‘20s, but the hidden factors that was ignored by economists that led to smaller recessions (such as 1927); interwar lending to EU countries and the implications for the US after the WWI
- Sachi: changes in tactics of financial houses (aggressive lending through recruitment); agriculture
- Luca: smaller banks; cultural changes
- Fritzi: wall street crash; collapse of European banks; deflation
- Rob: gold standard; housing
- Joe: Woodrow Wilson protectionist measures
A good start but this is a very wide ranging and comprehensive account of the great depression. As I told Poppy in office hours: (1) pick one central aspect of the Great Depression. I suggest linking it to one major development to come out of it, for example, the SEC or Glass-Stegall act (and work backwards). (2) Remember this is a 'brief' so it needs to be concise and well researched with a clear 'angle' or take on the most relevant aspect of the crisis to policy.
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