US duo William Nordhaus and Paul Romer win Nobel Economics Prize

Two men who have found a way to bring climate change into economic analysis have won the Nobel Economics Prize.

William Nordhaus, left, and Paul Romer have been awarded this year's Nobel Economics Prize.

William Nordhaus, left, and Paul Romer have been awarded this year's Nobel Economics Prize. Source: AAP

US economists William Nordhaus and Paul Romer on Monday shared the 2018 Nobel Economics Prize for integrating innovation and climate with economic growth, the jury said.

Nordhaus, a professor at Yale University, and Romer, a former World Bank chief economist now at New York University's Stern School of Business, have addressed "some of our time's most basic and pressing questions about how we create long-term sustained and sustainable growth," the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said in a statement.

The press conference where the winners of the Economics Nobel Prize were announced.
The press conference where the winners of the Economics Nobel Prize were announced. Source: AAP
 

It said the pair have "significantly broadened the scope of economic analysis by constructing models that explain how the market economy interacts with nature and knowledge."

Nordhaus, 77, was specifically honoured for "integrating climate change into long-run macroeconomic analysis."

The 62-year-old Romer meanwhile won for "integrating technological innovations into long-run macroeconomic analysis."

Both have been tipped as frontrunners for the Nobel in recent years.

The pair will share the nine million Swedish kronor (about $1.01 million or 860,000-euro) prize.



Last year, the honour went to US economist Richard Thaler, a co-founder of the so-called "nudge" theory, which demonstrates how people can be persuaded to make decisions that leave them healthier and happier.

Unlike the other Nobel prizes which were created in Swedish inventor and philanthropist Alfred Nobel's last will and testament and first awarded in 1901, the economics prize was created by the Swedish central bank, the Riksbank,in 1968 to mark its tricentenary. It was first awarded in 1969.

The Nobel, which also consists of a diploma and a gold medal, will be presented at a formal ceremony in Stockholm on December 10.



The Nobel economics prize wraps up the 2018 awards season, notable this year for the lack of a literature prize, postponed by a year for the first time in 70 years over a rape scandal that came to light as part of the #MeToo movement.

Last week, after the prizes for medicine, physics and chemistry were announced, the most highly-anticipated Nobel, that for peace, went to Yazidi women's campaigner Nadia Murad and Congolese doctor Denis Mukwege for their work in fighting sexual violence in conflicts around the world.



 


Share
2 min read

Published

Updated

Source: AFP, SBS

Tags

Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world