The Ascent of Money | PBS

Stream the video segments below, or scroll to the bottom of the page to find downloadable QuickTime versions of the videos. These videos are also used in the lesson plan How Insurance Has Shaped Our World (grades 9-12).

Who Bears The Risk?
A primer on to the three basic approaches to insurance: private, public, and charitable.

The Birth of Insurance
How and why the world’s first life insurance fund was created in 18th century Scotland.

From the Cradle to the Grave
Japan’s nationalized insurance policy—from its imperial, militaristic origins to the first modern welfare state.

Trickle Down Economics
The crisis of the Chilean welfare state and its replacement by a more conservative, capitalistic system.

Downloadable QuickTime versions of the video segments:
(Note: To download a video, right-click on the video title and click “Save Link As…” or “Save Target As…” On a Mac, press the CTRL key and simultaneously click the mouse, then save the link.)

Clip 1: Who Bears The Risk?

Clip 4: Trickle Down Economics

Lesson plans for THE ASCENT OF MONEY were created by the LAB@Thirteen, Thirteen’s Community and Educational Outreach Department.