Reality Check with Élena
Podcast Description
Our new podcast explores the realities that lead to informality: a notion represented by reduction of the middle class, and spread of insecurity, through a series of dynamic on-the-ground interviews in Europe, the US, and the Global south. You will hear what informality is really like, from people who have lived in it all their lives; from those who have escaped it and risen to middle class; and others who have fallen into it. We invite global intellectuals, along with journalists, policy makers, and investors to share their views on what is informality and why we must tackle it now.
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
Explores the complexities of informality, focusing on themes such as the shrinking middle class, economic insecurity, and social dynamics across episodes that include guest insights on topics like the effect of informality on elections and the housing crisis.
Our new podcast explores the realities that lead to informality: a notion represented by reduction of the middle class, and spread of insecurity, through a series of dynamic on-the-ground interviews in Europe, the US, and the Global south. You will hear what informality is really like, from people who have lived in it all their lives; from those who have escaped it and risen to middle class; and others who have fallen into it. We invite global intellectuals, along with journalists, policy makers, and investors to share their views on what is informality and why we must tackle it now.
In Episode 6 of Reality Check with Élena, Élena sits down with legendary investor and Guggenheim Partners co-founder Todd Morley to explore one of the most overlooked forces shaping the global economy: informality. With nearly 70% of the world’s workforce operating outside formal systems, Todd explains why this is not just a humanitarian challenge but the largest untapped economic opportunity on the planet, breaking down how informal markets suppress global GDP, destabilize democracies, and trap billions in poverty. He reveals how data-driven, impact-focused investment models can formalize work, unlock capital, and create measurable, scalable, and profitable growth, offering a bold blueprint for building an economy that works for everyone.
-Time Stamps-
0:00 – Why Informality Is the World’s Biggest Untapped Economic Opportunity
1:26 – How Todd Discovered the Power of Property Rights and Informality
3:10 – Why Governments Can Fix Poverty Faster Than They Think
4:50 – The Guggenheim Bilbao Effect & Economic Transformation
6:29 – From $12 Shacks to Thriving Cities in Peru
8:36 – Why Some Governments Don’t Want People to Escape Poverty
9:26 – How Property Rights Built the American Middle Class
11:18 – Why Fintech and Microloans Aren’t Enough
11:44 – Private Capital, Public Power & Real Economic Growth
13:27 – How the Reality Check Analysis (RCA) Works
15:16 – The “Bilbao Effect” for Entire Countries
16:36 – The $12 Home That Became Worth $500,000
18:09 – Why ESG Is Failing and What Actually Creates Impact
19:25 – How Property Rights Reduced Child Labor by 27%
20:37 – Why Ignoring Informality Threatens the Global Middle Class
21:40 – Final Thoughts & Call to Action
Learn more, donate, and join our movement at t4action.org
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