Campus & Community

Harvard professor INET grant recipient

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The Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET) has selected James Robinson, David Florence Professor of Government at Harvard, and his research partner Steven Pincus of Yale University, to be awarded a project grant through the institute’s Inaugural Grant Program to research the events leading to the British Industrial Revolution.

“The British Industrial Revolution is the key event of modern economic history but the academic literature has completely missed the critical issues,” said Robinson. “Economists want to construct a history-free model of the world, and neither historians nor political scientists care about economics. Since INET is not constrained by arcane disciplinary boundaries its role is crucial in helping this type of research happen.”

“Robinson and Pincus revisit political as well as economic history to analyze the Industrial Revolution of Britain in a crucial, yet forgotten perspective,” said Robert Johnson, executive director of INET. “We are funding a fresh look at the underlying catalysts of historical events that fundamentally altered the world economy and society itself. This will give us a better understanding of how industrialization affects political and economic institutions.”

For more information on the institute and its programs, visit INET.