European Winter Meeting, the Debut into Society for 200 Economists

For two days the European Winter Meeting of the Econometric Society will bring together junior and senior economists. The 2015 edition will be hosted by Bocconi University and IGIER (Innocenzo Gasparini Institute for Economic Research) on 15-16 December 2015. Young scholars will present their works during the conference organized by one of the most important international societies in the field of economic theory. It has a long history too: the Econometric Society's first meeting was in fact held in 1930. "The Society organizes many scientific conferences", says Massimo Marinacci, IGIER Fellow and Local Chair, "but only the European Winter Meeting is aimed specifically at young researchers, a rare if not unique opportunity in the field of economic studies".

Over two days more than 200 PhD students and young assistant professors will discuss with senior chairs in the Velodromo rooms. A wide range of topics will be discussed: political economy and conflict, microcredit, monetary policy, the political economy of migration, intergenerational mobility, to name a few. The debate will be open to other juniors in the same session. As Marinacci says, "they are promising young talents selected from a wide audience. The conference traditionally represents the debut into society, so to speak, of many European economists".

The Winter Meeting can look back upon a half-century of history. An open call for submissions without any regional stratification was recently introduced. The first Meeting in the new format took place in Madrid, Spain, in December 2014. More than 700 applications were submitted to be part of this year's edition. Junior researchers will come to Milan from dozens of universities, from the London School of Economics and Political Science to the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Bocconi University's Dmitriy Sergeyev will talk about his paper Government Spending Multipliers under Zero Lower Bound: Evidence from Japan during one of the first sessions. Each day will end with a plenary session: these two lectures will be given by Orazio Attanasio (University College London, 15 December) and Alberto Alesina (Harvard University, IGIER, 16 December).

"Our University is proud to host a high level scientific conference in which promising young researchers present their scientific achievements to their peers and to distinguished senior researchers", wrote Andrea Sironi, Rector of Bocconi University, in the welcome message to the participants. The Local Committee boasts three Italian Econometric Society Fellows teaching at Bocconi University, Pierpaolo Battigalli, Massimo Marinacci, and Guido Tabellini. "The simple fact that the Meeting will be held at Bocconi is further proof of the importance of our university in the field of economics", Marinacci says.