This is Planet Money from NPR.

We tend to talk about the Federal Reserve a lot on this show, and usually when we're

talking about it, we're talking about one person, the chair.

But the Fed is governed by a seven person board, and together they create the monetary policy

of the United States.

Now last week, President Biden announced nominees for three of those positions.

Philip Jefferson, whose work has focused on the economics of poverty.

There's Sarah Bloom-Raskin, who has pushed for bank regulators to consider the financial

risks posed by climate change, and the third nominee announced Is Lisa Cook.

We've talked to Dr. Cook several times on this show, including for an episode that we

first ran in 2020 when racial justice protests were happening all over the country.

We're sharing this episode again today for people who want to better understand her,

and her work.

Here's that episode.

In the mid-90s, there was this big new economic theory that was all the rage.

It was an idea for how countries can produce unlimited economic growth, which is kind

of the whole point of economics.

You know, growth means less poverty, more prosperity.

For decades, economists had said they're basically just two ways to make an economy

grow, invest in capital or in labor.

And tangible, mundane things like factories and workers, which means growth is ultimately

limited, because there are just so many people you can hire or factories you can build.

...