Agora Wrapped: Girls for Econ, new articles, guest writers and more exciting things to come!

12/09/2026

Welcome to the first edition of The Agora Paper’s newsletter! Lots has been going on behind the scenes: apart from the publication of six articles and two explainers in these past two weeks, we’ve got an exciting new partnership, as well as a few special articles lined up!

We are excited to announce our new partnership with Girls for Econ, a youth-led organization empowering girls to pursue economics through free and accessible economics education! With a mission that aligns greatly with ours, of increasing women and girls’ involvement in economics, we are looking forward to working together in countless initiatives.

Stay tuned for future joint speaker sessions and panel events! 

Now, what articles have been released in the past two weeks?

From the Ideas Lab

What happens when “temporary” drags on for years, if not decades? This is a reality for many displaced in refugee camps, from Bangladesh to Kenya, and Rose Sarkar explains the tensions between integrating refugees into society and the political and financial cost of doing so. 

Permanently Temporary: Refugee Camps and the Politics of Postponement

A refugee camp is supposed to be an intermission: a place of safety between flight and return, resettlement or a new home. Yet for millions, that intermission is extending into a lifetime. UNHCR estimates that 70 per cent of refugees now live in “protracted” situations, meaning displacement lasting five years

The Agora PapersRose Sarkar

From the Forum

Four years on from Dobbs vs Jackson, which restricted or outlawed abortion in 13 US states, its impacts are apparent in college enrollment and birthrate statistics. Lauren Berwick delves into the cultural, economic, and human impacts of this landmark decision. 

Dobbs vs Jackson - What has it actually done to the USA?

In 2022, the uprising surrounding the overturning of Roe vs Wade remains a cultural phenomenon which has defined legal and cultural shifts in American history. On June 24th, 2022, the Supreme Court dismantled a key law which was part of the fundamental basis of women’s safety, health and their

The Agora PapersLauren Berwick

From the Market

While a crash in the stock market is typically associated with an economy that is performing poorly, does this always hold true? Dia Abdul-Rahim argues that the relationship between the stock market and the economy is more complex than a perfect correlation. 

When stocks lie: why stock market performance isn’t economic performance

The largest single-day percentage drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average was not due to one particular historical event. It did not follow the announcement of either World War, the 1929 Wall Street Crash, or the bombing of Pearl Harbour in 1941. Nor did it occur at the trough

The Agora PapersDia Abdul-Rahim

From Beyond the West

What causes a country to shift from a dictatorship to a democracy? Macy Ng argues that agentic and structural factors are complementary, with both factors being essential for a country to successfully transition to a democratic system. 

From Dictatorship to Democracy - What causes Democratisation?

Around half the countries around the world are democracies. It is hard to pin down a specific number; Freedom House places it at 44%, Polity at 57%, and The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index places it at 45% (DeSilver, 2019). These numbers show that democracy are commonplace, if not

The Agora PapersMacy Ng

From the Perspective

With some car manufacturers starting to pivot towards the electric vehicle market, with Ferrari notably doing so recently, are electric vehicles on their way to becoming the mainstream option? Isabelle Borg argues that the answer may be more nuanced than it may first seem.

What does Ferrari’s $40 million fully electric vehicle say about the rest of the EV market?

After nearly eight decades of dominating the racing scene and luxury car industry, Ferrari has finally made their first fully electric vehicle. The very first “tailor made” Luce was sold at a charity auction for a staggering $40 million, breaking records in the market of auctioned new cars, despite its

The Agora PapersIsabelle Borg

While social media spreads information quicker than traditional media and has increased participation, has it improved democracy? Freya Brolly highlights the stumbling block that prevents social media from helping us achieve democratic objectives. 

Is a successful democracy compatible with social media?

A system of government in which it is the people that rule, democracy strikes a delicate balance with ochlocracy, more commonly referred to as mob rule. A successful democracy draws this distinction, but to do so it must meet the following criteria (Dahl, 1998): effective participation, voting equality, enlightened understanding,

The Agora PapersFreya Brolly

Explainers

We have been hearing a lot about government bonds in the news recently, but what are they actually about and why are they so important? Dia Abdul-Rahim explains government bonds and the “bond vigilantes” that ultimately contributed to the end of Liz Truss’ premiership in 2022. 

Explainer - Debunking government bonds...a deep dive

What actually ended Liz Truss’ brief time in office? Why are bond markets having such an effect on UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s premiership? And what on earth are bond vigilantes - and why do they hold so much power? Government Expenditure When the government wants to spend money, whether

The Agora PapersDia Abdul-Rahim

Where do British political parties get their money from? (Spoiler alert: it’s not Elon Musk.) Aimen Azeem explains the system for political donations in the UK, with different sources of income for political parties. 

Explainer - Who pays for politics? How UK parties are funded

100 million dollars. 200 million dollars. 45 million dollars. These are all purported figures on the sum of Elon Musk’s extravagant financial investment to his America First super PAC, and the American political system as a whole. However, it is unlikely that newspapers will report of hearing Musk donating

The Agora PapersAimen Azeem

Coming soon…

Our writers Rose Sarkar and Dia Abdul-Rahim had a valuable opportunity to speak with Mediha, a Yazidi activist, whose experiences and courage in the face of genocide against the Yazidi people are beyond inspiring. Rose’s account of the interview is to be published next week – in the meantime, you can read about Mediha’s story here.

Our first ever guest piece is also coming out soon: Piya Sachdeva will be sharing some useful insights for newcomers in the world of investing! Piya has years of investing experience, both from working at a hedge fund and running her own initiative ‘Incoming by Piya’, which advocates for investing education. Her experience will certainly be a valuable read!

More good news...The Agora Papers is officially going global! An article written by US-based Adithi Yegonni, who is also part of Girls for Econ, will be released next week! Hopefully the first of many international pieces – thank you Adithi for starting us off on a high!

We're always looking for new writers, ideas, and feedback, and we'd love to hear from you! Feel free to write to us at theagorapapers.contact@gmail.com.

We would also be super grateful if you could follow us on our socials! Stay up to date with The Agora Papers via our LinkedIn and Instagram.

That's all from us this week. We hope you enjoyed this edition, and we'll catch you in the next one in two weeks' time!

Until then.

~ Macy and Aimen