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17This is Echora’s new podcast series, ”Global Echo”, We’ll invite scholars in the humanities for half-academic, half-casual conversations—packed with pro insights but never hard to follow—hoping to bring the charm of the humanities to more people.
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🌟Echora Host
Adella @Adella GuGu
- Translator of
（Chinese version） - First Prize of the CUHK Literary Award（全球华文青年文学奖）
🌟Global Guest
Mark Robbins
- Fudan Chair Professor at Fudan University’s Institute of Global Public Policy
- Emeritus Professor in the School of Public Policy at the University of Connecticut
Robbins’ research is principally focused in two areas; state and local government finance and citizen preferences for taxing and spending. His research includes studies of state and local government debt, state budgets and tax preferences.
🌟Global Content
In this episode, we sit down with Mark Robbins, a public finance professor at Fudan University’s Institute for Global Public Policy. He doesn’t talk like a typical economist. He started in psychology — so he’s obsessed with one question: Why do we hate paying taxes, but love what taxes can buy?
We get real about:
🧋 Milk tea & invisible taxes – Is your bubble tea more expensive because of a consumption tax? And who really pays for it?
🏠 Rent & commuting – Why “living far from work” isn’t just your choice. It’s written into the city’s budget.
👵 Pension panic – You pay for today’s elderly. Will anyone pay for you? And what does “intergenerational fairness” even mean?
🧠 The “framing effect” – Why “building a school for your child” sounds great, but “raising your property tax” sounds awful — even though they’re the same thing.
🌆 City vibes vs. survival – Do you choose a city for nightlife, parks, or just affordable housing? And how does public spending shape that choice?
This isn’t a lecture on fiscal policy. It’s a raw, honest conversation about the invisible architecture that shapes your rent, your anxiety, your future — and what you can actually do about it.
🌟Echo Colonnade
🌟Timestamps
01:55 From Psychology to Finance
04:29 Tax Aversion: Why one word makes us reject good policies
06:36 Fiscal Illusion: The disconnect between the taxes we pay and reality
08:38 Intergenerational Equity: Who really wins and losses in the policy game?
12:57 Why wouldn't a free year of kindergarten change your mind about having kids？
18:16 The "Abandoned" Generation: Why young people leave our parents to grow up
25:11 Preschool services vs. one-time baby bonus
30:20 Can our social insurance system survive when people all live way too long
35:07 Who really pays for your pricier milk tea when taxes go up
40:11 From Infrastructure Gaps to Young People's Tax Preferences
45:40 How Young People Choose a City: Salary, Housing, Nightlife
55:47 Should Future Generations Pay for Today's High-Speed Rail?
01:00:06 Give Yourself Permission to Pause
01:06:37 Please ask Better Questions, and measure What Truly Matters
01:13:30 Q&A How to Balance Tax for AI Industry vs. Social Welfare?
01:18:46 Q&A Facing AI Uncertainty: Save Money or Take Stressful Jobs?
01:22:19 Q&A Will US Dollar Collapse Under Mounting Federal Debt?
01:25:55 Q&A How Will China's Fiscal Model Evolve After Land Sales Peak?
🌟About Echora
Echora is a community for cultural resonance initiated by veteran humanities creators—translators, freelance writers, literary editors, and more. It dedicates itself to exploring an ecology of humanities and social sciences content that carries intellectual depth yet remains accessible, profound without being obscure.
We regularly craft fluid conversational gatherings in urban humanities spaces, where through diverse perspectives we perceive, unpack, and confront the plights of real life. May the contours of growth become threads weaving through each other’s lives; may we find, within this spiritual aura, the courage to face life head-on.
🌟About THE PRESS
Shun Pao Building was established in 1918.It was the newspaper office of Shun Pao, the longest-running and most influential newspaper in modern China. Standing here for more than a century, this magnificent historical building has witnessed the prosperity and decay of Shun Pao, the relaunch of Jiefang Daily. Nowadays, after a complete renovation, it has become the foundation for Shanghai catering industry, cultural development and creative brands.THE PRESS is one of them.
On April 30, 2015, sponsored by several Fudan alumni,THE PRESS's first innovative restaurant opened here. Stepping into THE PRESS, the well-preserved carved dome in the lobby, together with a whole wall of documentary photos of Shun Pao tell the world its glory and stories.
🌟Teams members
🌟Music
- Rootless tree – Damien Rice
- Jets – Blur
🌟Contact Us
- Email：zengyingsheng@pictrip.com.cn easoneng@163.com
- Wechat：sunmerineason
I’ve learned a valuable lesson：Learn to pause, and come to terms with life’s pressures.