The Exchange

On December 14-15, 2015, the Bank of France will host a conference emphasizing the contribution of economic history to policy making. The meeting will take place at the Banque of France conference center, 31 rue Croix des Petits Champs, Paris. According to the organizers, The various works that will be presented illustrate how long-time series inform decision making. They also show how historical models and case studies help to improve our thinking about topical policy issues such as monetary policy in a world of high public debt, the impact of financial regulation on financial markets, and the policies stimulating innovation or favoring financial stability. The conference is organized by the Banque de France, Sciences Po, and the Université Libre de Bruxelles, and the Universities of Oxford, of Carlos III Madrid, of Humboldt zu Berlin, and the London School of Economics, and the Graduate Institute Geneva as member institutions of the European network Macrohist .   ...

The next gathering of the World Economic History Congress (WEHC) will convene July 29 – August 3, 2018 in Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Executive Committee of the IEHA welcomes proposals from all members of the international economic history community, whatever their institutional affiliation or status, as well as from scholars in related disciplines. The conveners state: We invite you to join us in Boston to consider the many ‘Waves of Globalization’ that have given rise to the varied and multi-directional connections that characterize the economic and social world we know today. While seeking proposals for sessions that explore facets of this broad theme, we also welcome submissions on the economic and social histories of all places and periods, on the exploration of varied sources and methods, and on the theory and the uses of economic history itself. Furthermore, we invite members to employ and analyze diverse strategies for representing the past.   ...

Douglass C. North, co-recipient (with Robert Fogel) of the 1993 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences and the Spencer T. Olin Professor Emeritus in Arts and Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, died Monday, November 23, 2015, at his summer home in Benzonia, Michigan. He was 95.      North examined the formation of political and economic institutions and the impact of those institutions on the performance of economies through time. In the words of his Nobel citation, he was honored “for having renewed research in economic history by applying economic theory and quantitative methods in order to explain economic and institutional change.”       North received his Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley; before moving to Washington University in 1983, he taught for many years at the University of Washington. His major works include The Economic Growth of the United States, 1790-1860 (1961), Institutional Change and Amer...

On November 20, the conference "Making Markets: Histories of Commodity Trading and Grading" took place under the auspices of the Center for Science, Technology, Medicine, and Society at the University of California at Berkeley. According to the organizers, Caitlin Rosenthal of Berkeley and Espen Storli of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Since 1750, social, political, and technological conditions have dramatically transformed the trading of commodity goods. Through advances in measurement and communication, previously differentiated products have been transformed into fungible commodities that can be traded on paper and at great distances. These products and the markets where they are exchanged have become terrain for speculation, risk management, and even political negotiation. . . . We believe that these practices of measurement and exchange are at the heart of the process of commoditization: it is the mathematics and measurement of grading and trad...

The Institute for Economic and Business History Research (EHFF) at the Stockholm School of Economics invites proposals for papers to be presented at a conference/symposium on Cold War Business History, to be held in Stockholm, Sweden, on March 11, 2016. The symposium will focus on the participation of businesses (outside the defense industry) in the defense effort (or in preparedness or contingency planning) during the Cold War. This includes, but is not limited to, war production (including preparations for war production), contingency storage of raw materials and foodstuffs, planning for evacuation or relocation, and participation in government planning and information services.     Proposals dealing with any of these aspects or related fields, regardless of country, are welcome. Proposals should include a one-page CV and an abstract not exceeding 250 words that addresses the research plan and the original contribution to historical knowledge the final product is ex...

The 2016 annual meeting of the Economic History Association will be held in Boulder, Colorado, on September 16-18; the theme is “Economic History and Economic Development.” According to the call for papers , The Program Committee welcomes submissions on all subjects in economic history, though some preference will be given to papers that specifically fit the theme. Papers should be submitted individually, but authors may suggest to the Committee that three particular papers fit well together in a panel. Papers should in all cases be works in progress rather than accepted or published work. Submitters should let the program committee know at the time of application if the paper they are proposing has already been submitted for publication. Individuals who presented or co-authored a paper given at the 2015 meeting are not eligible for inclusion in the 2016 program. Proposals must be submitted online; the deadline is January 31, 2016 . More information about the meeting theme,...

On May 27-28, 2016, the Association of Business Historians (ABH) and the German Business History Society (GUG) will hold a joint conference at the Humboldt University Berlin, Germany. The theme will be "Creativity and Entrepreneurship in the Global Economy." The program committee consists of: Hartmut Berghoff (GHI Washington), Lucy Newton (Henley Business School), Alexaner Nützenadel (Humboldt-University), Teresa da Silva Lopes (University of York), and Andrea Schneider (GUG).     The organizers welcome papers on any topic related to business history, even where it does not focus on the conference theme, and on any time period or country. Proposals are welcomed for either individual papers or entire sessions (each of normally one-and-a-half hours). Each paper proposal should include a one-page abstract, a list of 3 to 5 keywords, and a one-page CV. Proposals for sessions should also include a cover letter containing a title and a one-paragraph session description...