TGU Masterclass in Economics 2026: The Past and Future of Economic Growth and Poverty
Over the past century, the share of the world’s population living in extreme poverty has fallen dramatically. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, however, progress has slowed markedly, raising fundamental questions about whether these gains can be sustained. In his lecture, Prof. Jesús Crespo Cuaresma presents econometric frameworks to project future poverty trends and assesses the potential of countries and regions to eliminate extreme poverty under realistic demographic scenarios.
Jesús Crespo Cuaresma is Professor of Economics at WU Vienna. His research focuses on applied econometrics, macroeconomics, economic growth, human capital, and economic policy. He has published widely in leading international journals, including Science, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Nature Communications, Nature Climate Change, Demography, the European Economic Review, and the Journal of Applied Econometrics.
Following the lecture, Prof. Crespo Cuaresma will be interviewed by Guido Neidhöfer, Professor of Economics at Türk-Alman Üniversitesi and Senior Researcher at ZEW – Leibniz-Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung. The discussion will address current challenges in research on growth, poverty, and inequality, and reflect on what these challenges imply for students of economics in a world shaped by geopolitical change and global uncertainty.
Thursday, 12.02.2026, 13:30–15:00
Venue: Foreign Language Center Conference Room
Program
13:30 Welcome and introduction by Prof. Elif Nuroğlu and Prof. Zaur Gasimov
13:45–14:30 The past and future of economic growth and poverty, Prof. Jesús Crespo Cuaresma
14:30–14:50 Interview with Jesús Crespo Cuaresma, conducted by Guido Neidhöfer
14:50–15:00 Q&A
