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Faculty support of Occupy Wall Street movement

UMass Amherst Economics Department faculty continue to participate in events and publish information on the Occupy Wall Street movement. The “Occupy” protests started on Wall Street and have spread internationally. Protests have been held locally in Amherst, Boston and Northampton.

UMass Amherst Economics Professor Arindrajit Dube, who is also a research fellow at the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) based in Bonn, discussed the Occupy Wall Street movement with his colleague Marta Murray-Close for the UMass Amherst Department of Economics Echoes alumni newsletter. (Echoes, 12/12/11)

In her Economix blog, Nancy Folbre, UMass Amherst economics professor, says concerns about growing economic inequality that spurred the rise of the Occupy Wall Street movement should be the focus of a wider discussion by economists about capitalism and its effects. (New York Times, 11/28/11)

Gerald Friedman participated in an Occupy Wall Street Teach-In at Smith College. His talk can be viewed here. (11/12/11)

More than 350 economists have added their name in support of the Occupy Wall Street movement. Read their statement and watch a video featuring UMass Amherst Professors James Boyce, Nancy Folbre and Mwangi wa Githinji.

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wa Githinji co-authors report on Kenya’s development blueprint, Vision 2030

Mwangi wa Githinji

A new report from the Society for International Development, co-authored by Mwangi wa Githinji, UMass Amherst economics professor, finds that while Kenya’s economy added jobs last year, the benefits of this growth were enjoyed only by a small fraction of the country’s population. The report found a widening inequality in incomes and a steady but inadequate job creation. (Business Daily, 7/13/10)

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UMass Economics wa Githinji

wa Githinji awarded Faculty Research Grant/Healy Endowment Grant

Mwangi wa Githinji

Mwangi wa Githinji, UMass Amherst economics professor, has been awarded the Faculty Research Grant/Healy Endowment Grant for the March 2010 award cycle.  Offered by the UMass Amherst Office of Research, the Faculty Research Grant/Healey Endowment Grant program encourages scholarly research and creative activities by members of the campus faculty; the program’s goal is to increase extramural sponsored research activity.

His research project, titled Industrialization by Destination:  The relationship between trade and industrialization in African countries, involves a two part study.  First, he will examine the level of sophistication of trade and its relation to industrialization in the country of origin, both historically and cross country in Africa.  Second, he will estimate what determines the sophistication of the exports. In particular, he is interested in seeing whether African countries that exported to less sophisticated markets (mostly other African countries) had more sophisticated exports than you would expect given their human capital, GDP, physical capital, institutions and land size.