The D.C. Policy Center, an independent research organization focused on data research and policy proposals in Washington, D.C., named their new initiative on economic growth, equity and development in urban areas for the late Alice M. Rivlin, a renowned economist who taught at Georgetown University from 2003 to 2016.
Rivlin taught classes on the political economies of cities and national economic development for over a decade at the McCourt School of Public Policy. Throughout her career, she served as the founding director of the Congressional Budget Office, an advisor at the D.C. Policy Institute, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget and the vice chair of the Federal Reserve Board.
Rivlin will be the namesake of the new initiative, titled the “Alice M. Rivlin Initiative for Economic Policy & Competitiveness,” which will conduct the first in-depth assessment of the competitive role of D.C. as an urban center.
Rivlin’s work framed the research that the policy center will do through this new initiative, according to Bailey McConnell, the Rivlin Initiative’s research director.
“We hope that our work honors Dr. Rivlin’s original vision for the city and carries it forward in these times of great uncertainty,” McConnell wrote in an email to The Hoya. “We think that her emphasis on economic growth as a prerequisite for strong government services rings true today, and we continued to be inspired by her approach to policy, which prioritized facts over ideology.”
Krista Ruffini, a McCourt School of Public Policy professor, will serve as one of seven members of the initiative’s advisory committee and looks forward to guiding the team’s research about the District.
“I look forward to advising the initiative on critical issues that affect the local economy,” Ruffini wrote in an email to The Hoya. “Already, the Initiative has laid out an ambitious agenda for the next two years that ranges from business location decisions to commuting activity to workplace dynamics and I’m eager to engage with all of these topics.”
One of the initiative’s first plans is to consider the most recent trends in economic growth for D.C. in order to predict future trends, according to McConnell.
“Our immediate goal is to provide new knowledge and tools that can contribute to the District’s recovery from the pandemic’s impact and lift our economic growth trajectory,” McConnell wrote. “In the long-term, we hope that our analyses, and the resulting policy suggestions, make the city welcoming to all residents, workers, and businesses. We think it is crucial to the city’s long term success that it offers opportunities for everyone and is able to attract and retain diverse groups of people and businesses.”
In the first two years, the team’s research will focus on regional economic dynamics that have influenced D.C.’s competitive advantage relative to other nearby urban areas, according to McConnell.
The first major report will focus on remote work and its impact on the District through a region-wide survey on business location trends, according to McConnell. Research surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic will influence the approach that the team takes, she added.
“I think the work coming from this initiative is particularly urgent now because the pandemic has changed how people interact with cities, weakening the ties between where people live and where people work,” McConnell wrote. “With the rise of remote work, workers in D.C. can live anywhere in the region, even more easily than before, and a resident of D.C. might be able to take a remote job across the country. We think this initiative will create new knowledge on these challenges and help ensure that D.C. can remain competitive in a post-pandemic environment.”
Rivlin and her past work in urban economics will inspire the D.C. Policy Center’s work, according to Ruffini.
“Dr. Rivlin was a trailblazer in many respects, and the initiative honors her career as an esteemed public servant and champion for the District,” Ruffini wrote.
