ACES Political Economy Summer School: The End of "the End of History"

July 6, 7, 8, 2022

The Association for Comparative Economic Studies, joint with the International Growth Center (IGC), is pleased to launch its first summer school in July 2022 in London.  In this historical moment, when the post-Cold War order seems to be on the wane, and with it the "End of History" triumph of liberal democracy that such order seemed to portend, many questions and opportunities arise for research in the field of Political Economy. This summer school will span 2.5 days and dive into these issues, featuring scholars in the fields of political economy, economic history, and development economics, and offering students a unique opportunity to interact with mentors.   A .pdf version of this announcement is available here.

Please see below for slides and materials from the summer school as well as the original agenda.  

Wednesday, July 6

Morning collective discussion (9am-12pm): Understanding Authoritarian Resilience

Motivation: Democracy was perceived to be a global norm after the end of the Cold War. Yet, democracy seems to be in retreat and autocracies (e.g. China) are seen as more effective than many thought. What are the sources of effectiveness?

● Filipe Campante, Ruixue Jia, and Noam Yuchtman, discuss their own research and comment on each other’s work (slides here)

● Discussion of future directions and answers to questions on the research process

Afternoon small group meetings (2pm - 5 pm):  3-4 students meet with one or more mentors, to talk about the students' own research.

Thursday, July 7

Morning collective discussion (9am - 12pm): The Challenges of State Building

Motivation: Despite their efforts, the recent record of major powers at state building in the developing world is decidedly mixed. What are the main challenges?

● Mike Callen, Sandra Sequiera, and Stefano Fiorin discuss their own research and comment on each other’s work

● Discussion of future directions and answers to questions on the research process

Afternoon small group meetings (2pm - 5 pm):  3-4 students meet with one or more mentors, to talk about the students' own research.

Friday, July 8

Keynote speech: Hans-Joachim Voth, University of Zurich

10:00 am – 12:00 pm: 90-minute speech followed by 30 minutes of Q&A

Student applications

ACES is currently recruiting applications from PhD students interested in political economy, economic history and development economics.  The Association aims to have a 20-student cohort, and encourages those from developing countries to attend in-person or virtually.  ACES is pleased to pay for meals and accommodation for students selected to participate in the summer school.  

To apply, please submit a one-page research outline to Brian Deutsch, Coordinator of Membership Services, at briandeutsch@pitt.edu.  Applications received by May 15, 2022 will receive priority.