ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳

News 2018-2019


ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Department of Economics alumnus awarded the Deutscher Studienpreis 2019


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Congratulations to ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Department of Economics alumnus Kilian Huber who has been awarded the . This award is given by the Körber Foundation and honours excellent dissertations with particularly high social relevance.

The title of Kilian’s competition entry was: How harmful are banking crises? Is breaking up big banks a dangerous reaction to bank crises? Only few German banks were hit directly by the 2008 financial crisis and reduced their loans. Kilian demonstrated that not only the companies linked directly to the affected banks were forced to postpone investments and lay off employees but that employment also declined at other companies, who continued to receive loans from healthier banks.

Kilian completed his BSc, MSc and PhD in the ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Department of Economics. He is now Assistant Professor of Economics, Booth School of Business, University of Chicago.

Head of Department, Professor Steve Pischke, shared his congratulations: 

“Congratulations to Kilian for his excellent work, which has improved our understanding of the macroeconomic effects of banking crises and how these effects come about.”

July 2019

Economics alumnus Daron Acemoglu becomes Institute Professor at MIT

We are very proud to congratulate former PhD student  on being named  at  (MIT), the most prestigious title at the institution. Having gained his MSc at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳, Daron continued his research studies with us and was awarded his PhD in 1992. He subsequently stayed as a Lecturer in Economics at the School before moving on to MIT.

Daron’s principal interests are political economy, development economics, economic growth, economic theory, technology, income and wage inequality, human capital and training, and labour economics. His research work has produced far-ranging and influential studies.

Head of Department, Professor Steve Pischke, said “Congratulations, Daron. He has made remarkable contributions to economics in research, teaching, and training PhDs alike. Having worked with him, Daron’s success comes as absolutely no surprise to me. He combines curiosity, creativity, and ingenuity in a rare fashion.” 

Daron’s award highlights our exceptionally talented students who become part of the economics community at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ and beyond.     

July 2019

Charoo Anand wins the CERGE-EI New Economic Talent competition 2019

'The organisers, students and faculty at CERGE-EI were so incredibly welcoming. I’m very lucky to have had this opportunity to present my work and to hang out with smart people from so many different countries.' - Charoo Anand, BSc EME 2018 and current pre-doctoral student at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳

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Congratulations to Charoo Anand who has won the. Organised by the , the final round took place on 31 May 2019.


Four finalists presented their papers to the CERGE-EI evaluation committee. Charoo's winning paper, which she wrote for her bachelor’s dissertation, studies discrimination against African Americans by mortgage lenders in Chicago: ‘Do mortgage lenders discriminate against African American areas? An instrumental variable approach.’

Upon hearing the news, Dr Judith Shapiro said:

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‘Charoo’s outstanding research on racial discrimination is, in our best traditions, both policy-relevant and econometrically sophisticated. Our Tuesday evening Sen Club was entranced to hear her present the paper in Lent Term and I hope it will inspire successors. Coming after last year’s NET prize to classmate, Sitong Ding, it shows the rich vein of undergraduate research we continue to develop.’

, BSc EME 2018, won the competition in 2018, for his paper "Bounded Rationality in Rules of Price Adjustment and the Phillips Curve".

, Head of Department, shares his congratulations:

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'Congratulations to Charoo for this well-deserved recognition. She continues the very strong record our BSc EME students have winning this and other international competitions.'


June 2019

ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ comes fourth in Tilburg University Economics Ranking!

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ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ is ranked number four in the Tilburg University Top 100 Worldwide Economics Schools Research Ranking, based on research contribution from 2014-2018. In addition, ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ is the only non-US department in the top 10. See the rankings .

The Tilburg University Economics Ranking provides a standard Top 100 of Economics schools, based on a subset of journals in their database, over a 5-year period. Their  covers publications in 74 leading economics journals, among which features the departmental journal Economica.

For further information, please visit the Tilburg University Economics Ranking .

May 2019

Professor Tim Besley joins the panel of the IFS Deaton Review

Tim Besley

Tim Besley, School Professor of Economics and Political Science & W. Arthur Lewis Professor of Development Economics, has joined the panel of the . Launched by the  on Tuesday 14 May 2019, the review is a five year study, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, to explore inequalities in many dimensions; both their causes and consequences.

 is led by Nobel Laureate Professor Sir Angus Deaton, and includes world-leading experts in sociology, epidemiology, political science, philosophy and economics. The project will also draw on contributions from dozens more experts with diverse areas of expertise and perspectives.

The review has two phases. From 2019-2020 the panel will commission studies and commentaries on a large number of key themes. Once complete, these will be brought together in a published volume, forming the core evidence of the review.

In the second phase, the panel will bring together the insights from the evidence volume to build a comprehensive and coherent narrative around the key questions that motivated the project in the first place: which inequalities matter, why do they matter, how are they related, what causes them, and what can be done about them. A particular focus will be on providing comprehensive and practical policy guidance. The findings will be published as a short book, comprising the second and final volume of the review.

Find out more about the IFS Deaton Review .

May 2019

Basil Yamey at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳: A Birthday Tribute

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The Department of Economics and many colleagues and friends at the School, wish Happy Birthday to Basil Yamey, who is turning 100 on 4 May 2019. Basil was a member of the Department’s academic staff from 1947 until his retirement in 1984, with a one year hiatus at McGill. 

In celebration of Basil's birthday, colleagues and friends, Richard Jackman, Richard Layard, David Metcalf, Steve Nickell, Steve Pischke, Christopher Pissarides and John Sutton, share their birthday wishes and memories of Basil here.

May 2019

ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳SU Teaching Excellence Awards 2019

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The Students' Union has announced the winners of the . We’re thrilled to share the news that members of the Department of Economics have won in three of the seven individual categories! We’re also delighted to announce the Department of Economics was the runner up for the Departmental Excellence Award.

Congratulations to Kasia Krajniewska (Undergraduate Tutor to 2nd year students) who has won the award for Excellent Feedback and CommunicationJunius Olivier (Undergraduate Tutor to 1st year students) on winning the award for Excellent Welfare and Pastoral Support; and Izabela Wnuk (Graduate Teaching Assistant, EC102 Economics B) for the award for Sharing Subject Knowledge

Additionally, there were three runners up from the Department. Huge congratulations to: Rahul Chauhan (Graduate Teaching Assistant, EC210) runner up for the award for Excellent Feedback and Communication; Dr Rachel Ngai (EC100; EC301; EC539) runner up for the award for Inspirational Teaching; and Professor Ronny Razin (EC102; EC302), runner up for the Innovative Teaching award. 

Four members of the Department were highly commended for awards: Dr Judith Shapiro (Senior Lecturer in Practice) for Mentoring and Personal DevelopmentChiara Sotis (EC201 Course Manager) for Excellent Welfare and Pastoral SupportDerek Pillay (EC210 Course Manager) and Jack Shannon (Graduate Teaching Assistant, EC201) for Inspirational Teaching. Congratulations to all!

Professor Steve Pischke, Head of Department of Economics, shares his congratulations:

'It’s great to see so many colleagues in the Department being recognised by the student-led awards, as well as the overall effort at the Departmental level. Congratulations to all the winners.'

April 2019

Professor Oriana Bandiera and Professor Imran Rasul jointly awarded the 2019 Yrjö Jahnsson Award in Economics

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The Department is delighted to announce that Professor Oriana Bandiera and  have been jointly awarded the 2019 . 

Oriana Bandiera is Professor of Economics and Sir Anthony Atkinson Chair in Economics at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳,  and . 

Imran Rasul is ,  and . Imran is an ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Department of Economics alumnus: BSc Economics (1995); PhD Economics (2003).

In 1993 the Finnish  established a biennial award, called the Yrjö Jahnsson Award in Economics, for a European economist no older than 45 years old who has made a contribution in theoretical and applied research that is significant to economics in Europe.  cooperates with the Yrjö Jahnsson Foundation in the selection of the award winners. 

Oriana Bandiera and Imran Rasul are applied microeconomists. Their work on the role of social relationships in economics, advanced through pioneering field experiments in the workplace and social networks, has provided salient contributions to economics, especially to the fields of personnel economics and development. Read more .

Professor Steve Pischke, Head of Department of Economics, shares his congratulations:

"Congratulations from the Department of Economics and the entire Economics community at the ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ to Oriana and Imran for this prestigious award. Their pioneering work on the interaction of social relations in the workplace with economic incentives has generated an active literature and changed the way economists think about employment relations. Most deserved."

April 2019

Students take over @lse.economics on Instagram

From 25 February 2019-1 March 2019, five students took over  on Instagram. One MSc and four BSc students shared pictures and videos of their life as an ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ student, everyday life in the Department and living in London! 

Do you follow  on Instagram? You can watch all the student takeovers on our Instagram highlight reel. Enjoy!

Meet our takeover students: 

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Wye Yew How, BSc Economics

‘My name’s Wye Yew and I’m a First Year BSc Economics student. Catch me on Economics Department’s Insta Story as I bring you into my life as a busy Economics student, venturing into my role in the  and the outside options you can take in the course!’

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Eniola Ladapo, BSc Economics

‘My name’s Eniola and I’m a First Year BSc Economics student. When I took over the ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Economics Department’s Instagram account, I ran a Q&A session. I aimed to represent the life of an ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ student and answer questions that I had as a prospective student and offer holder!’ 

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Ciaran Marshall, BSc Economics

‘University has been fantastic so far. The opportunities within ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ and London are immense! My experience has allowed me to live life ‘to its fullest.’’

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Rohan Ramesh, BSc Economics

‘Don’t forget to make the most of your time in London! Being in this city, with its breathtaking sights, and having a campus situated right in the centre of all the action is definitely a highlight of the ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ experience’. 

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Andrea Sisko, MSc Economics Two Year Programme

‘Hi, I’m Andrea and I am in my second year of a two year MSc in Economics. During my takeover, I showed you my daily life at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳.’ 

Search #lseeconstudenttakeover for updates. 

March 2019

MRes/PhD Economics students receive UniCredit Masters scholarships

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Congratulations to Bernardo Mottironi (MRes/PhD Economics) and Edoardo Leonardi (MRes/PhD Economics) who have received UniCredit Masters scholarships.

On Thursday 7 March 2019, they attended the annual Donors and Scholars reception at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳. Here, they are photographed with Annalisa Aleati and Giannantonio De Roni from UniCredit.

Left to right: Annalisa Aleati; Bernardo Mottironi; Edoardo Leonardi; Giannantonio De Roni

March 2019

 

Happy Birthday to Professor Lord Richard Layard!

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Happy Birthday to  who is turning 85 on Friday 15 March! Richard Layard is Emeritus Professor of Economics at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳, and Wellbeing Programme Director at CEP. 

Richard has been with the Department since 1965, first as an MSc Economics student and then as a Lecturer in Economics; Reader in the Economics of Labour; Professor of Economics; and Emeritus Professor of Economics.  He has also been the founding Director of the Centre for Economic Performance.

Richard’s research focuses on wellbeing, labour, unemployment, educational policy and happiness. He is a member of the House of Lords and has been involved heavily in public policy over the years.

March 2019

 

Undergraduate Open Day 3 April

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Meet ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ students and academics, explore the campus, and experience being #partofÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳. Find out more and book a place .  

March 2019

 

Dr Xavier Jaravel awarded an ESRC New Investigator Award

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Dr Xavier Jaravel, Assistant Professor of Economics at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ and STICERD associate, has been awarded an Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) New Investigator Award to undertake research on the distributional effects of prices. 

The project has three objectives: (1) to advance our understanding of the impact of price changes over time and across countries on inequality and standards of living; (2) to advance our understanding of the price effects of specific policies (namely: redistribution policies; trade policies; and monetary policy); (3) to enable researchers, policymakers and the general public to access new data on prices so that they are able to conduct their own analyses on prices, policies, inequality, and standards of living.

 is part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), a new organisation that brings together the UK’s seven research councils, Innovate UK and Research England to maximise the contribution of each council and create the best environment for research and innovation to flourish. Find out more .

January 2019

 

Professor Tim Besley to give keynote talk at celebration of Sir W. Arthur Lewis' life

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From 23-25 January 2019, the  will be celebrating the life of , former member of the ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Department of Economics, and Nobel Laureate (1979), who was born 100 years ago this week.  

As part of the festivities, Professor Tim Besley (School Professor of Economics and W Arthur Lewis Chair of Development Economics) will be giving the keynote talk on “State Capacity and Economic Development”, on Friday 25 January at 19:00 at the University Inn and Conference Centre. For more details, please see .

January 2019

 

ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Director Minouche Shafik shares memories of friend and ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Economics classmate, Lord Jeremy Heywood

 

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Minouche Shafik shares her memories of friend and ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ classmate, Lord Jeremy Heywood, in this .

Minouche and Jeremy met as students at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ while doing an MSc in Economics in 1985. In this tribute, Minouche says Jeremy ‘was a true servant of the people and a loyal and loving friend to those of us who had the privilege of knowing him.’

You can read Minouche's words .

(Photo credit: Steve Back)

December 2018

Department of Economics Faculty receive ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Excellence in Education Awards

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We’re thrilled to share the news that nine Department of Economics faculty members have received this year’s ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Excellence in Education Awards: congratulations to Professor Nava AshrafDr Margaret BrayProfessor Francesco CaselliProfessor Wouter Den HaanProfessor Erik EysterDr Greg FischerDr Francesco Nava, Dr Rachel Ngai and Professor Ricardo Reis, for their contributions to education in the Department.

The  support the School’s aspiration of creating ‘a culture where excellence in teaching is valued and rewarded on a level with excellence in research’ (ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Strategy 2020). The awards are made on the recommendations of Heads of Department, to staff who have ‘demonstrated outstanding teaching contribution and educational leadership in their departments’. You can find the full list of this year’s winners . 

November 2018

Professor Daniel Sturm to become President of the Urban Economics Association

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Daniel Sturm will become President of the  in 2020.

The UEA seeks to promote participation and excellence in academic research in urban and regional economics.

 

The Association hosts annual meetings in North America and Europe, with keynote lectures and contributed papers focused on the economics of cities, housing, real estate, local public good provision, and the distribution of economic activity in space. For more information, please see the . 

Daniel Sturm is Professor of Economics at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳, Executive MPA and MPP Co-Director, and an Associate at CEP and STICERD. Daniel is currently Vice President of the Urban Economics Association. 

November 2018

Professor Silvana Tenreyro elected President of the European Economic Association

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Congratulations to Silvana Tenreyro on being elected President of the European Economic Association (EEA). Silvana will serve as the President of the Association in 2021 after being Vice-President (2019) and President-Elect (2020).

The  is an international scientific body, with membership open to anyone involved or interested in economics. The Association aims to: ‘contribute to the development and application of economics as a science in Europe; improve communication and exchange between teachers, researchers and students in economics in the different European countries; develop and sponsor co-operation between teaching institutions of university level and research institutions in Europe.' The EEA aims can be found .

Silvana Tenreyro is Professor of Economics; Programme Leader at CFM- Shifts in the World Economy and their Consequences Programme; and Programme Director at IGC- Macroeconomics Research Programme. 

October 2018

Professor Nava Ashraf and Professor Ricardo Reis elected to the EEA Council

Ricardo Reis and Nava Ashraf have been elected to the European Economic Association (EEA) Council.

Nava Ashraf

Nava Ashraf is Professor of Economics; Research Director at Marshall Institute; Associate at IGC- Lead Academic for IGC Zambia; and Programme Co-Director at STICERD- Psychology and Economics Programme.

Ricardo Reis

Ricardo Reis is the A W Phillips Professor of Economics and a CFM Associate. 

The  is an international scientific body, open to anyone involved or interested in Economics. You can read the Association's aims .

October 2018

Economics PhD Student Wins Young Economist Prize

The Department of Economics offers its warmest congratulations to Giulia Bovini, PhD student, on winning the young economist award at the annual conference of the Italian Society of Labour Economists.  Giulia was awarded the Tarantelli Young Economist Prize for her paper “Prime-age labour supply responses to the transition from DB to NDC public pension system: evidence from Italy”. 

October 2018

Welcome to our new staff

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We are delighted to welcome to the Department our new faculty members.

Dr Dimitra Petropoulou, Associate Professorial Lecturer, joined the Department in September. Dimitra is the Deputy Undergraduate Programme Director, helping us with class teaching, GTA training and supervision, and the recruitment of more ECT colleagues in the future. Dimitra completed her BSc, MSc and PhD within the Department of Economics and we’re thrilled to have Dimitra back with us.

Dr Zarak Mirza and Dr Rafayal Ahmed arrived in September and join us as ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ Fellows for 2018-19.

Zarak holds a PhD from the University of Kent and studies the economics of charitable giving. He will help us with our undergraduate class teaching in the forthcoming year.

Rafayal holds a PhD from Northwestern and is a contract theorist. He will teach EC487 as well as classes.
 
Our two new Undergraduate Tutors joined the Department at the end of August. Junius Olivier (1st Year Tutor) and Katarzyna Krajniewska (2nd Year Tutor) will provide support and advice to our many undergraduate students.

October 2018

Professor Steve Pischke wins the Fama Prize for Outstanding Contributions to Doctoral Education

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Congratulations to  (Head of Department) and Joshua Angrist (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), who have been awarded the , for their book .

Awarded every three years, the Fama Prize honours Nobel Laureate . Fama is best known for his work analysing markets and securities prices, pioneering research closely followed by academics and financial services professional alike. Fama received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 2013.

The Fama Prize is intended to ‘encourage the development and diffusion of innovative approaches to doctoral education and the publication and wide distribution of exceptional educational materials’.

Pietro Veronesi, chair of the selection committee, spoke about the decision to select Mostly Harmless Econometrics: ‘The book draws on readers’ interests and empirical curiosity to motivate the analysis, training future generations of applied researchers who can push forward our understanding of economics and finance. The Committee ultimately selected this book, as we believe it best represents the aspirations and the objectives of the Fama Prize.’

When awarded the prize, Steve Pischke said: ‘It’s a great honor to receive this prize, as Eugene Fama is such a giant in the profession. What creates a particular connection for us is the close parallels between the empirical methods we discuss in the book, and Fama’s 1969 paper with Fisher, Jensen, and Roll. That paper is considered the template for modern event studies in finance, a close cousin of the difference-in-differences methodology used in other fields.’

October 2018

Visiting Professor Benjamin Moll awarded the 2017 Bernácer Prize

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Visiting Professor  has been awarded the prestigious 2017 Bernácer Prize "for his path-breaking contributions to incorporate consumer and firm heterogeneity into macroeconomic models and use such models to study rich interactions between inequality and the macroeconomy".

Established in 2001, the Bernácer Prize is awarded annually to European economists under the age of 40, who have made outstanding contributions in the fields of macroeconomics and finance.

 

Ben Moll, who is visiting the Department of Economics (ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳) during Michaelmas Term, is Associate Professor of Economics and International Affairs at Princeton University. He gained his PhD from the University of Chicago and his Bachelor’s degree from University College London. His research has two elements: the first addresses ‘Why are some countries so much poorer than others?’ with the second looking to understand how the enormous heterogeneity is observed at micro level affects outcomes at the macro level.

Head of Economics, Professor Steve Pischke commented: “This is a wonderful choice for the prize and greatly deserved.  We are lucky to have Ben around at the department this term and are looking forward to tapping into his knowledge and many stimulating discussions.”

For further information please visit the Bernácer Prize .

October 2018

Professor Camille Landais and Dr Johannes Spinnewijn's research features in Belgian Media


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Camille Landais (pictured top) and Johannes Spinnewijn’s (pictured below) research- - has been featured in the Belgian media.  

Published in the American Economic Review, Camille and Johannes’ research with Jonas Kolsrud and Peter Nilsson explores the optimal timing of unemployment benefits using evidence from Sweden.

Their paper provides a simple, yet robust framework to evaluate the time profile of benefits paid during an unemployment spell. You can read the news items in the links below:

Le Soir, 24/09/2018:  and  

Related Publication

September 2018

Professor Silvana Tenreyro awarded the Carl Menger Prize

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Congratulations to  who has been awarded the  for Economics. 

The German Economic Assosication (Verein für Socialpolitik) awards the Carl Menger Prize every two years for innovative, international research in the fields of monetary macroeconomics and monetary policy.

Named after the Austrian economist and co-founder of the Austrian School, the prize has been awarded jointly by the Deutsche Bundesbank, the Oesterreichische Nationalbank and the Swiss National Bank since 2014. In sponsoring this prize, the three central banks aim to foster research on monetary economics.

Achim Wambach, Chairman of the Verein für Socialpolitik, presented Silvana with the award at the association’s annual meeting in Freiburg. Mr Wambach highlighted Silvana’s particular expertise in the fields of international economics and monetary macroeconomics, adding that her work on the theory and empirical analysis of optimal currency areas and on econometrics have attracted worldwide interest. He also drew special attention to her work on the housing market. For further information, please see this .

Silvana is Professor of Economics at ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ and also sits on the Monetary Policy Committee at the Bank of England. 

September 2018

Assistant Professor of Economics Daniel Reck wins the IIPF Young Economists Award


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Congratulations to  (pictured) and Jacob Goldin, who have been awarded the for their paper ‘Optimal Defaults with Normative Ambiguity’. 

The Award was established in 2008, with the aim of encouraging young scholars (authors must be under 40 years old) who present their papers at the IIPF Annual Congress.  


An award committee, headed by the Scientific Chair of the respective congress and including further members, selects those papers that stand out for their scientific quality, creativity and relevance. Up to two of these papers are chosen to be distinguished with this award.  

The  is the world organization of Public Finance economists.

August 2018

 

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