Protectionism Discussed at Henry George Lecture

“Should We Embrace Protectionism? The Evidence Behind the Case for Free Trade” will be discussed at The University of Scranton’s 33rd Henry George Lecture on Friday, Nov. 2. The lecture, presented by Dave Donaldson, Ph.D., professor of economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the McIlhenny Ballroom of the DeNaples Center.

The lecture is free of charge and open to the public.

Dr. Donaldson’s research examines the welfare and other effects of market integration, the impact of improvements in transportation infrastructure, how trade might mediate the effects of climate change, and how trade affects food security and famine. He received the 2017 John Bates Clark Medal, which is given by the American Economic Association to the U.S.-based economist “under the age of forty who is judged to have made the most significant contribution to economic thought and knowledge.”

His publications include: “Nonparametric Counterfactual Predictions in Neoclassical Models of International Trade” in the American Economic Review; “The View from Above: Applications of Satellite Data in Economics” in the Journal of Economic Perspectives; and “Evolving Comparative Advantage and the Impact of Climate Change in Agricultural Markets: Evidence from 1.7 Million Fields Around the World” in the Journal of Political Economy. His research has been supported by an Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship and several grants from the National Science Foundation.

Dr. Donaldson serves as a co-editor at the American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, as an editorial board member of the Journal of Economic Literature and the Journal of International Economics, and as a program director for trade at the International Growth Centre.

Dr. Donaldson earned his undergraduate degree in physics from Oxford University and his master’s and Ph.D. degrees in economics from the London School of Economics.

Considered the preeminent public lecture series on economics in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Henry George Lecture Series is presented by the University’s Economics and Finance Department and the campus chapter of Omicron Delta Epsilon, an international honor society for economics. Among the distinguished list of speakers who have spoken at previous lectures are 10 winners of the Nobel Prize in Economics: Paul Romer (2018), Robert Shiller (2013), Tom Sargent (2011), Peter Diamond (2010), Paul Krugman (2008), Joseph Stiglitz (2001), George Akerlof (2001), Amartya Sen (1998), Robert Lucas (1995) and Robert Solow (1987). The lecture series is named in honor of the 19th century American economist and social reformer and is supported financially by a grant from the Robert Schalkenbach Foundation.

For more information about the Henry George Lecture, call 570-941-4048 or email janice.mecadon@scranton.edu.