IOG-BFI Conferences

The Institutions, Organizations, and Growth (IOG) Program, in collaboration with the Becker Friedman Institute for Economics at the University of Chicago, is dedicated to convening leading scholars and IOG members for a series of research conferences and academic exchanges. The IOG Program focuses on surpassing traditional economic frameworks to explore the reasons behind varying economic success among nations and the effectiveness of institutions across different cultures, locations, and historical contexts. Through its long-standing tradition of interdisciplinary collaboration, the IOG Program invites scholars from diverse social science perspectives to contribute to the understanding of economic growth and institutional development.The upcoming IOG-BFI conferences will take place in Chicago, Stanford, and back in Chicago again, specifically aimed at fostering a collaborative environment among invited scholars. These events are inspired by the work of Nobel Laureates Gary Becker and Milton Friedman, who advocated for economics as a tool for societal improvement. The IOG Program also features several initiatives and programs, including the Predoctoral Research in Economics Program (PREP), which acts as a bridge for students transitioning from college to graduate studies in empirical economics. Programs such as Expanding Discovery in Economics+ (EDE+) aim to enhance the research skills and technical competencies of early undergraduate students. Other noteworthy initiatives include the International Economics and Economic Geography Initiative and the Global Center for Economic Growth - Growth Academy. Among the prominent research topics being discussed are the dynamics of AI adoption in education, the analysis of test scores in educational settings, and the application of complexity theory to understand economic inequality. Scholars like Leonardo Bursztyn and Aaron Leonard are leading studies on the social forces that influence the adoption of AI-based learning tools, while others, such as Jesse Bruhn and Michael Gilraine, are examining the implications of aggregated educational data. The IOG-BFI conferences promise to provide a rich intellectual environment for discussing these urgent topics and more, as they bring together a diverse group of scholars committed to the pursuit of knowledge that can drive real-world impact.