Transition economies have an initial condition of high human capital relative to living standards. I explore the possible implications of this key fact by surveying and adapting literature on growth and inequality. I focus especially on the long run and policy options

We analyze the interaction between human capital and growth in Russia, where there are substantial human capital reserves but an education system seriously out of sync with the world economy. We define a rule for the timing of educational restructuring, and show that this time is pareto optimal...