Goldin attended Pretoria Boys High School and Rondebosch Boys' High School, Cape Town.^[7] He subsequently obtained a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Cape Town, a Master of Science from the London School of Economics, and a Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Oxford.^[8]

In 1999 he has completed INSEAD's Advanced Management Programme.^[9]

Prior to 1996 Goldin was principal economist at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)^[10] in London, and program director at the OECD^[11] in Paris, where he directed the Development Centre's Programs on Trade, Environment and Sustainable Development.

From 1996 to 2001, Goldin was chief executive and managing director of the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA)^[12][13] and served as an adviser to President Nelson Mandela.^[14] He transitioned the Bank from an apartheid-era institution to a major agent for development in the 14 countries of Southern Africa.^[15] During this period, Goldin was finance director for South Africa's Olympic Games bid.^{[citation needed]}

Goldin was director of development policy at the World Bank^[16] (2001–2003) and then vice president of the World Bank (2003–2006). He served on the Bank's senior management team, and was directly responsible for its relationship with the UK and all other European, North American and developed countries. Goldin led the Bank's collaboration with the United Nations and other partners. As Director of Development Policy, Goldin worked on the research and strategy agenda of the Bank, with the Chief Economist, Lord Nicholas Stern, under the leadership of James Wolfensohn. During this period, Goldin was special representative at the United Nations and served on the chief executive board of the UN and the UN Reform Task Force.^{[citation needed]}

In 2006, Goldin became founding director of the Oxford Martin School.^[2] The school established 45 programmes of research, with over 500 academics from over 100 disciplines.^[17] He remained the School's director until September 2016 when Achim Steiner followed him in this position. He is now Director of three research programmes at the department: Technological and Economic Change, Future of Work and Future of Development.^[2]

Goldin initiated and was vice-chair of the Oxford Martin Commission for Future Generations,^[18] which brought together international leaders from government, business, academia, media and civil society to discuss a long-term perspective in international negotiations. Chaired by Pascal Lamy, the Commission published its findings in October 2013.^[19]

Goldin is also a founding Director and acting Treasurer of the International Center for Future Generations, a think tank that is dedicated to ensuring that future decision-makers and equipped and emerging technologies are harnessed to best serve the interests of humanity.

Goldin has been a distinguished visiting professor at Sciences Po, Paris^[20] and served on the Advisory Committee of ETH-Zurich^[21] and the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations, Paris. He is an honorary trustee of Comic Relief and is chair of the trustees of the Core-Econ initiative to reform the economics curriculum and the teaching of economics.^{[citation needed]} He is the writer and presenter of the BBC series 'After the Crash', 'The Pandemic that Changed the World', and documentary: 'Will AI Kill Development?'^{[citation needed]}

Goldin is the author of over 23 books and over 60 journal articles.^[15] He is one of the co-authors of "Exceptional People: How migration shaped our world and will define our future".^[22]

Goldin's latest book, The Shortest History of Migration is set to be released in Summer 2024, by Old Street Publishing.

Goldin has been awarded:

• France: "Chevalier de l'Ordre national du Mérite". (Awarded for Services to Development, 2000).^[23]
• National Productivity Institute: Gold Award. (Awarded for Management, 1999).^{[citation needed]}
• World Economic Forum: Global Leader for Tomorrow. (Achievements in Development, 1998).^{[citation needed]}
• Honorary Doctorate from the National School of Political and Administrative Studies SNSPA in Bucharest, Romania.^[24]

Goldin has published 24 books and over 60 articles, including:

• "The Shortest History of Migration", Old Street, 2024 [Forthcoming]
• "Age of the City: Why our Future will be Won or Lost Together", with Tom Lee-Devlin, Bloomsbury, 2023
• "Rescue: From Global Crisis to a Better World", Hodder Hachette, 2021
• "Terra Incognita: 100 Maps to Survive the Next 100 Years", with Robert Muggah, Penguin, 2020
• "The Productivity Paradox: Reconciling Rapid Technological Change and Stagnating Productivity" Oxford Martin Programme on Technological and Economic Change, 2019
• "Migration and the Economy: Economic Realities, Social Impacts and Political Choices", Citi GPS: Global Perspectives and Solutions, 2018
• "Development: A Very Short Introduction", Oxford University Press, 2018^[25]
• "Age of Discovery: Navigating the Storms of Our New Renaissance", with Dr Chris Kutarna, Bloomsbury, 2017^[26]
• "The Pursuit of Development: Economic Growth, Social Change and Ideas", OUP, 2016^[27][28]
• "The Butterfly Defect: How globalization creates systemic risk and what to do about it", Princeton University Press, 2014^[29]
• "Is the Planet Full?", Oxford University Press, 2014^[30]
• "Divided Nations: Why global governance is failing and what we can do about it", Oxford University Press, 2013.^[31]
• "Globalization for Development: Meeting New Challenges", (with Kenneth Reinert), Oxford University Press, 2012^[32]
• "Exceptional People: How Migration Shaped Our World and Will Define Our Future", (with Geoffrey Cameron and Meera Balarajan), Princeton University Press, 2011.^[33]
• "Globalization for Development: Trade, Finance, Aid, Migration, and Policy", (with Kenneth Reinert), World Bank and Palgrave Macmillan, Washington and Basingstoke, 2006, reprinted in 2007.^[34]
• "The Case For Aid", (with Nicholas Stern and F. Halsey Rogers), World Bank, Washington, 2002
• "The Economics of Sustainable Development" (edited with Alan Winters), Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1995.
• Global Governance and Systemic Risk in the 21st Century (with Tiffany Vogel), Global Policy, 1(1), January 2010.
• Globalisation and Risks for Business, 360 Risk Insight Report, Lloyds, London, 2010.

• Official website
• Professor Ian Goldin Biography from Oxford Martin School