Barry Eichengreen American economist, holder of a professorship in economics and political science at the University of California at Berkeley. Country: USA

1. Biography of Barry Eichengreen
2. Early Life and Education
3. Career
4. Contributions to Economic Theory
5. Recent Work and Achievements

Biography of Barry Eichengreen

Barry Eichengreen is an American economist and holder of the named professorship in economics and political science at the University of California, Berkeley. His expertise lies in the history of economics and its modern principles, and few can compare to his knowledge of the Great Depression.

Early Life and Education

Barry Eichengreen's mother, Lucille Eichengreen, was a well-known writer and Holocaust survivor. Eichengreen received his education from the University of California, Santa Cruz and Yale University, earning a bachelor's degree and a doctorate in economics respectively.

Career

Throughout his career, Eichengreen focused on researching the international monetary and financial system, studying both their current state and their historical development. In 1997 and 1998, he served as a senior policy advisor at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), providing invaluable assistance and consultation. One of his most notable works is the book "Golden Fetters: The Gold Standard and the Great Depression," published in 1992. In this book, Eichengreen explores the causes of the Great Depression and its relationship with the gold standard.

Contributions to Economic Theory

Eichengreen's research, summarized by former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, argues that the main cause of the depression was an unsound and poorly managed system built on the international gold standard. The pursuit of gold and the increase in gold reserves led to deflation, a decline in productivity, and a decrease in employment. Eichengreen suggests that effective international cooperation could have prevented the crisis, but the aftermath of World War I and the accumulation of problems made such cooperation difficult. Eichengreen believes that countries that abandoned the gold standard in a timely manner fared better during the crisis.

Recent Work and Achievements

Barry Eichengreen continues to publish actively and has authored several significant works, including "Global Imbalances and the Lessons of Bretton Woods" in 2006, "The European Economy Since 1945: Co-ordinated Capitalism and Beyond" in 2007, and "Exorbitant Privilege: The Rise and Fall of the Dollar and the Future of the International Monetary System" in 2011. His most recent book, "Hall of Mirrors: The Great Depression, The Great Recession," was released in December 2014, further exploring the topic of the Great Depression. From 2010 to 2011, Eichengreen served as the president of the Economic History Association. Currently, his main focus is on research and teaching at the University of California, Berkeley, where he has been a faculty member since 1987.