Building Communities of Upward Mobility

Abstract

Around 3.5 billion people, 44 percent of the global population, remain poor (below $6.85 per day) (World Bank, 2022). Alleviaitng poverty requires finding ways of upward mobility. I study 3 such ways. The first and main paper in my dissertation found that uniting teachers, parents and principals around the protection of children's rights is a powerful way of fostering a loving environment for more than 200 000 children from low-income backgrounds to thrive. The second paper in my dissertation suggests that fostering connections between high- and low-income individuals is essential for lower-income individuals' upward mobility, potentially through higher income individuals acting as role models, information sources, and providers of job referrals to lower income individuals. The third paper in my dissertation suggests that hiring passionate young graduates as teachers in shcools in low-income rural areas can give access to a decent education to low-income children who might not have one otherwise.