CEHD Year in Review 2019

In 2019, the Center for the Economics of Human Developed continued to foster a comprehensive research program devoted to understanding human flourishing. We are pleased to share a snapshot of the work we did over the previous year.

The Center had a prolific year in publications, with CEHD Director James Heckman and his team of researchers publishing seven papers. “The Perry Preschoolers at Late Midlife: A Study in Design-Specific Inference,” a paper by Professor Heckman and CEHD Predoctoral Fellow Ganesh Karapakula, was named NBER’s Paper of the Day on August 14. CEHD’s HCEO initiative published 84 working papers, which were accessed over 12,000 times on RePEc.

On social media, CEHD reached an audience of nearly 3 million, and garnered over 135,000 unique web visitors. Professor Heckman and his team presented their research at over 37 events, reaching an audience of both academics and policymakers.

In 2019, CEHD launched the University of Chicago Policy Forum, along with Professor Lars Peter Hansen and the Macro Finance Research Program. The series aims to nurture the rich vitality of the Chicago tradition by engaging elite scholars on and off campus and raise the level of discussion of economic policy based on credible statements of existing knowledge. Over 500 people attended forum events last year.

The Center continued to strengthen ongoing collaborations and pursued new research opportunities with partners across the world, including. China, Brazil, Ireland, Jamaica, Denmark, Norway, and Germany. We also welcomed 11 visitors to the Center, which helped to broaden our research landscape and foster academic exchange.

In September, Professor Heckman received the Friendship Award, the highest honor issued by the Chinese government to foreign experts. Awardees are chosen for their outstanding contributions to China’s economic and social progress.

The Center looks forward to a productive 2020.