Economist Luigi Zingales to discuss ‘A Capitalism for the People’ at April 3 Pope Lecture
Author and economist Luigi Zingales is presenting the 2013 John W. Pope Lecture at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 3, at North Carolina State University.
The lecture will be held at NC State’s Poole College of Management, in 3400 Nelson Hall, 2801 Founders Drive in Raleigh, N.C. This event is open to the public at no charge. A brief reception will follow the lecture, in the Commons area on the second floor of Nelson Hall.
A prolific contributor to the academic literature of economics and finance, Zingales also writes for broader audiences. His Pope Lecture presentation will be based on his 2012 book, “A Capitalism for the People: Recapturing the Lost Genius of American Prosperity,” in which he applauds America’s personal freedoms and economic achievements, but warns of developing problems.
“In his book, he observes that the U.S. economy risks deteriorating into a crony-capitalist system like the one he has witnessed in Italy—pro-business rather than pro-market policies, largely serving the interests of politicians and their connected allies in the private sector,” said Dr. Stephen Margolis, professor of economics at Poole College and coordinator of this year’s Pope Lecture presentation. “From that perspective, he identifies problems in the U.S. economy that include cronyism, regulatory capture, compromised academic practices, and repeated recourse to bailouts. He also proposes specific institutional changes that can address these problems and help recapture the sources of our prosperity,” he said.
Zingales is the Robert C. McCormack Professor of Entrepreneurship and Finance at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. His research interests include corporate governance, financial development, political economy and the economic effects of culture. He is a faculty research fellow for the National Bureau of Economic Research, a research fellow for the Center for Economic Policy Research, and a fellow of the European Governance Institute. He serves on the Committee on Capital Markets Regulation, which monitors the legislative, regulatory, and legal issues that affect capital formation and business conduct.
Zingales received a bachelor's degree in economics summa cum laude from Università Bocconi in Italy in 1987 and a Ph.D. in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1992.
