The School of Business, Economics and Law in Gothenburg is hosting the annual Nordic Conference in Development Economics, the 21st in a row. For Måns Söderbom, professor of economics, the conference is a meeting place for presentation and discussion of new research result.
What is the Nordic Conference in Development Economics?
– The conference offers development economists in the Nordics and the rest of the world a meeting place for presentation and discussion of new research results. The majority of these will eventually be published in reputable research journals, and several studies presented will certainly also have some impact on policy. The conference is an important forum for quality development and dissemination of research that relates to problems and challenges in low-income countries. We are very happy to be able to contribute by organizing it.
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The School of Business, Economics and Law at the University of Gothenburg.
What does it mean for the participants to be at the conference?
–It is always valuable for researchers to be able to present their latest research. The researchers will receive questions, suggestions, and sometimes criticism, which in the long run will lead to higher quality in the research. In addition, the meetings that arise at the conference can lead to new collaborations in research, and the conference is therefore also an opportunity for researchers to "network" and broaden their knowledge of ongoing research on development economics.
The meetings that arise at the conference can lead to new collaborations in research, and the conference is therefore also an opportunity for researchers to 'network'"
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Meetings during the conference can lead to new collaborations.
Photo: Jessica Oscarsson
What are you looking forward to during the conference?
– To be able to take part in research within all areas of development economics, but also to meet many interesting people whose research interests fully or partially coincide with my own interests.
How did you choose who are the keynote speakers?
–The organising committe, that consists of me,Joseph Vecci, Dick Durevall, Heather Congdon, Annika Lindskog, and Ann-Sofie Isaksson, has chosen three keynote speakers who will give speeches on three very current themes in development economics: conflict, health, and climate. All three are top researchers in their respective fields and have published in the very best journals in economics. We are very pleased that these three researchers accepted our invitation to give a keynote address at the conference.
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Keynote speakers Martina Björkman Nyqvist, E. Somanathan and Chris Blattman.
After the conference, I will try to develop ongoing projects in the light of everything that has been said
What happens after the conference?
– After the conference, I, and probably many with me, will reflect on the discussions that we had at the conference, and then try to develop ongoing projects in the light of everything that has been said. And eventually we will start looking forward to the next Nordic conference, which will be organized in Copenhagen 17–18 June 2024.
