Center for Economic and Policy Research
Encyclopedia
The Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) is a progressive
economic policy
think-tank based in Washington, DC, founded in 1999. CEPR works on Social Security
, the US housing bubble, developing country
economies (particularly Latin America
), and gaps in the social policy
fabric of the US economy.
According to its own analysis, CEPR ranked first or second for cost-effectiveness
in 2004-2008 among the 25 most widely-cited think-tanks, in terms of media citations and web traffic per dollar of budget. On its 2006 budget of $1.3m, CEPR achieved 197 media citations. In 2008 CEPR had the maximum four-star efficiency rating from Charity Navigator
.
In spite of the similarity in their names, this think tank is not affiliated with the London
-based Centre for Economic Policy Research
. The two organizations are not related in any way.
and Mark Weisbrot
in 1999. In addition to Baker and Weisbrot, CEPR's economists are David Rosnick, Jose Antonio Cordero, and John Schmitt. The think tank's research fellows include Buenos Aires
-based economist Roberto Frenkel, UK
-based economist Ha-Joon Chang
, and U.S.-based economists Randy Albelda
, Marcellus Andrews, Niki Dickerson, William Spriggs
, and Ben Zipperer.
CEPR's Advisory Board of Economists includes Nobel Laureate economists Robert Solow
and Joseph Stiglitz; Richard B. Freeman
, Professor of Economics at Harvard University
; Eileen Appelbaum, Professor and Director of the Center for Women and Work at Rutgers University
; and Janet Gornick, Professor at the CUNY Graduate Center and Director of the Luxembourg Income Study
.
, for cancellation of multilateral debt for Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC's) such as Haiti
, for the International Monetary Fund
to cease making loans conditional on recipient countries’ adoption of austerity measures, for policies that would allow U.S. homeowners facing foreclosure to stay in their homes by breaking the contract with the mortgage company and paying a market-determined rent, for an end to the strong dollar policy
that makes U.S. exports artificially expensive, for a shorter work week to be included in current U.S. economic stimulus measures, and for the Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve to warn the public of the dangers of bubbles such as the recent U.S. housing bubble – the collapse of which led to the current economic downturn – among various other policies.
CEPR publishes reports and opinions on a number of issues. Its geographical focus outside the United States is primarily on Latin America
, and in particular on Argentina
, Bolivia
and Venezuela
. On a number of occasions and on a variety of topics, CEPR has contributed to Congressional hearings.
Social liberalism
Social liberalism is the belief that liberalism should include social justice. It differs from classical liberalism in that it believes the legitimate role of the state includes addressing economic and social issues such as unemployment, health care, and education while simultaneously expanding...
economic policy
Economic policy
Economic policy refers to the actions that governments take in the economic field. It covers the systems for setting interest rates and government budget as well as the labor market, national ownership, and many other areas of government interventions into the economy.Such policies are often...
think-tank based in Washington, DC, founded in 1999. CEPR works on Social Security
Social Security (United States)
In the United States, Social Security refers to the federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program.The original Social Security Act and the current version of the Act, as amended encompass several social welfare and social insurance programs...
, the US housing bubble, developing country
Developing country
A developing country, also known as a less-developed country, is a nation with a low level of material well-being. Since no single definition of the term developing country is recognized internationally, the levels of development may vary widely within so-called developing countries...
economies (particularly Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
), and gaps in the social policy
Social policy
Social policy primarily refers to guidelines, principles, legislation and activities that affect the living conditions conducive to human welfare. Thus, social policy is that part of public policy that has to do with social issues...
fabric of the US economy.
According to its own analysis, CEPR ranked first or second for cost-effectiveness
Cost-effectiveness
Cost-effectiveness analysis is a form of economic analysis that compares the relative costs and outcomes of two or more courses of action. Cost-effectiveness analysis is distinct from cost-benefit analysis, which assigns a monetary value to the measure of effect...
in 2004-2008 among the 25 most widely-cited think-tanks, in terms of media citations and web traffic per dollar of budget. On its 2006 budget of $1.3m, CEPR achieved 197 media citations. In 2008 CEPR had the maximum four-star efficiency rating from Charity Navigator
Charity Navigator
Charity Navigator is an independent, non-profit organization that evaluates American charities. Its stated goal is "to advance a more efficient and responsive philanthropic marketplace by evaluating the financial health of America's largest charities."-About:...
.
In spite of the similarity in their names, this think tank is not affiliated with the London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
-based Centre for Economic Policy Research
Centre for Economic Policy Research
The Centre for Economic Policy Research , a registered charity founded in 1983 by Richard Portes , FBA, CBE, is a network of over 700 researchers based mainly in universities throughout Europe, who collaborate through the centre in research and its dissemination...
. The two organizations are not related in any way.
Key people
CEPR was founded by economists and current co-directors Dean BakerDean Baker
Dean Baker is an American macroeconomist and co-founder of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, with Mark Weisbrot. He previously was a senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute and an assistant professor of economics at Bucknell University. He has a Ph.D...
and Mark Weisbrot
Mark Weisbrot
Mark Weisbrot is an American economist, columnist and co-director, with Dean Baker, of the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, D.C. As a commentator, he contributes to publications such as New York Times, the UK's The Guardian, and Brazil's largest newspaper, Folha de S...
in 1999. In addition to Baker and Weisbrot, CEPR's economists are David Rosnick, Jose Antonio Cordero, and John Schmitt. The think tank's research fellows include Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
-based economist Roberto Frenkel, UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
-based economist Ha-Joon Chang
Ha-Joon Chang
Ha-Joon Chang is one of the leading heterodox economists and institutional economists specialising in development economics...
, and U.S.-based economists Randy Albelda
Randy Albelda
Randy Pearl Albelda is an American feminist economist, an activist for women and children, an author, and an academic. She is a leading specialist on poverty and gender issues and holds a Ph.D. in Economics...
, Marcellus Andrews, Niki Dickerson, William Spriggs
William Spriggs
William Spriggs has been Assistant Secretary for Policy at the Department of Labor since June 2009.-Background:Spriggs graduated with a B.A. from Williams College in 1977. He received his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1984. From 1988 until 2004, Spriggs served as...
, and Ben Zipperer.
CEPR's Advisory Board of Economists includes Nobel Laureate economists Robert Solow
Robert Solow
Robert Merton Solow is an American economist particularly known for his work on the theory of economic growth that culminated in the exogenous growth model named after him...
and Joseph Stiglitz; Richard B. Freeman
Richard B. Freeman
Richard B. Freeman is one of the leading labor economists in North America. The Herbert Ascherman Professor of Economics at Harvard University, and Co-Director of the Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School, Freeman is also Senior Research Fellow on Labour Markets at the Centre for...
, Professor of Economics at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
; Eileen Appelbaum, Professor and Director of the Center for Women and Work at Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
; and Janet Gornick, Professor at the CUNY Graduate Center and Director of the Luxembourg Income Study
Luxembourg Income Study
The Luxembourg Income Study, asbl is a non-profit project which produces a cross-national database of micro-economic income data for social science research. The project started in 1983 and is headquartered in Luxembourg. In 2006 the database included data from 30 countries on four continents,...
.
Mission statement
According to CEPR's website,The Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) was established in 1999 to promote democratic debate on the most important economic and social issues that affect people's lives. In order for citizens to effectively exercise their voices in a democracy, it is necessary that they be informed about the problems and choices that they face. CEPR is committed to presenting issues in an accurate and understandable manner, so that the public is better prepared to choose among the various policy options.
Toward this end, CEPR conducts both professional research and public education. The professional research is oriented towards filling important gaps in the understanding of particular economic and social problems, or the impact of specific policies. The public education portion of CEPR's mission is to present the findings of professional research, both by CEPR and others, in a manner that allows broad segments of the public to know exactly what is at stake in major policy debates. An informed public should be able to choose policies that lead to an improving quality of life, both for people within the United States and around the world.
Research and advocacy
CEPR spokespersons have advocated for progressive positions, such as continuation of funding for the Survey of Income and Program ParticipationSurvey of Income and Program Participation
The Survey of Income and Program Participation is a statistical survey conducted by the United States Census Bureau. The main objective of the SIPP is to provide accurate and comprehensive information about the income of American individuals and households and the participation of these people in...
, for cancellation of multilateral debt for Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC's) such as Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
, for the International Monetary Fund
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
to cease making loans conditional on recipient countries’ adoption of austerity measures, for policies that would allow U.S. homeowners facing foreclosure to stay in their homes by breaking the contract with the mortgage company and paying a market-determined rent, for an end to the strong dollar policy
Strong dollar policy
The strong dollar policy is the United States economic policy based on the assumption that a strong exchange rate of the United States dollar is in the interests of the United States and the whole world. It is said to be also driven by a desire to encourage foreign bondholders to buy more Treasury...
that makes U.S. exports artificially expensive, for a shorter work week to be included in current U.S. economic stimulus measures, and for the Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve to warn the public of the dangers of bubbles such as the recent U.S. housing bubble – the collapse of which led to the current economic downturn – among various other policies.
CEPR publishes reports and opinions on a number of issues. Its geographical focus outside the United States is primarily on Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
, and in particular on Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
and Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
. On a number of occasions and on a variety of topics, CEPR has contributed to Congressional hearings.
External links
- CEPR website
- CEPR channel on YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....