3. Vienna Seminar of Nobel Laureates

Economics

The third Vienna Seminar of Nobel Laureates opened on October 2, 2008, with a ceremony / Wiener Vorlesung at the University of Vienna. Nobel laureates Eric Maskin, Robert Mundell, and Joseph Stiglitz delivered lectures on “Economics and Peace Studies”.

On October 3, 2008, the seminar continued with specialized lectures by the Nobel laureates at the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration. The seminar concluded with the “Economic Talks” hosted by the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber.

Nobel Laureates 2008

Eric S. Maskin

Eric S. Maskin was born in New York in 1950 and was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2007 for his contributions to the optimal design of market mechanisms, incentive contracts, and institutions.

He completed his doctoral studies in applied mathematics at Harvard and then became a Research Fellow at Cambridge University. He later taught as a professor at MIT and then at Harvard. Currently, he works at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Econometric Society, and the European Economic Association, as well as a Corresponding Fellow of the British Academy. In 2003, he served as the President of the Econometric Society.

Maskin is particularly known for his work on understanding the conditions under which certain market mechanisms (especially auctions) and contract structures lead to efficient allocation of private goods. His contributions to dynamic game theory have also garnered significant attention.

Robert A. Mundell

Robert A. Mundell was born in Kingston, Canada, in 1932. In 1999, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics for his contributions to the field of monetary economics and international trade.

After completing his doctoral studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), he taught at the University of Chicago, Stanford University, and the John Hopkins Bologna Center of Advanced International Studies. In 1961, Mundell interrupted his purely academic career to join the research department of the International Monetary Fund. He returned to the University of Chicago five years later, and since 1974, Mundell has been a full professor of economics at Columbia University in New York.

Mundell was involved in the Currency Committee of the European Commission and advised the United Nations, the World Bank, the Federal Reserve, the U.S. Treasury, as well as Canadian and various Latin American governments. The focus of Robert Mundell's work lies in the areas of international economic relations and monetary policy (Mundell-Fleming model).

Joseph E. Stiglitz

Joseph E. Stiglitz was born in Gary, Indiana, in 1943. The renowned American economist was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2001 for his contributions to the study of markets with asymmetric information. He has also been honored with several other significant awards, including the John Bates Clark Medal. He is an honorary doctor of the Vienna University of Economics and Business.

Stiglitz completed his Ph.D. studies at MIT in 1967. He then went on to the University of Cambridge as a Fulbright Scholar, followed by positions as a professor at Yale, Duke, Stanford, Oxford, and Princeton universities. Today, Stiglitz teaches at Columbia University and serves as the editor of "The Economists' Voice" magazine. Under President Clinton, Stiglitz chaired the Council of Economic Advisors. He served as Vice President and Chief Economist of the World Bank.

Joseph Stiglitz's significant work on information asymmetries also laid the foundation for the development of the efficiency wage model by Shapiro/Stiglitz (Shapiro-Stiglitz model). Stiglitz is known for his pointed criticism of prevailing globalization practices and his critical examination of the effects that free markets and the activities of institutions like the IMF and World Bank have.

Commissioned composition

Gabriele Proy

Born in 1965 in Vienna, Austria; a certified composer, sound artist, and instrumental educator for guitar; her compositions have been successfully performed in Europe, Australia, Japan, Canada, Latin America, and the USA. Since 2001, she has been the President of the European Forum Soundscapes FKL; currently resides in Vienna.

As part of the event, the world premiere of "KIGEN" took place. The piece was created as a commissioned work for the Vienna Seminar of Nobel Laureates.

Performers:
Manon-Liu Winter, Piano