In a recent article posted by the Atlantic Council, BWC Member Martin Mühleisen discusses the influence of population aging on the global increase in political polarization. He explains how population aging and political polarization together result in a deficit bias, causing governments to lose ability to absorb major shocks and soften cycles. Mühleisen states that demographics influence political polarization through public spending, generational wealth, and electoral mechanics. According to him, the most efficient way for governments to combat this reality is by making the situation clearer to electorates, ensuring its intergenerational effects are more equitably governed, and encouraging polarized coalitions to continue collaborating for a better outcome for each country as a whole. 

To read the full article, click here.

All views expressed by members are their own and not reflective of the views of the Bretton Woods Committee.