LEADERSHIP TEAM: CO-DIRECTORS
Ufuk Akcigit
Arnold C. Harberger Professor in Economics and the College, The Kenneth C. Griffin Department of Economics
Director, Global Center for Economic Growth; Co-Director, Growth Academy
Ufuk Akcigit is the Arnold C. Harberger Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago. He is an elected Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, the Center for Economic Policy Research, and the Center for Economic Studies.
He earned a BA in economics at Koc University in 2003 and a Ph.D. in economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2009.As a macroeconomist, Akcigit’s research focuses on economic growth, technological creativity, innovation, entrepreneurship, productivity, and firm dynamics. His work has been consistently published in top economics journals, cited in numerous policy reports, and featured in popular media. In his recent book, “The Economics of Creative Destruction,” co-edited with John Van Reenen, he explores how technological innovation can drive growth and address challenges ranging from inequality to climate change. He is also the lead academic for the World Development Report 2024 published by the World Bank.
The contributions of Akcigit’s research have been acknowledged by the National Science Foundation with the CAREER Grant (one of NSF’s most prestigious awards supporting early-career faculty), the Kaufmann Foundation’s Junior Faculty Grant, and the Kiel Institute Excellence Award, among many other institutions. In 2019, Akcigit was honored as the recipient of the Max Plank-Humboldt Research Award. In 2021, he was awarded the prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship and was named a Fellow of the Econometric Society. In 2022, he received the Sakip Sabanci International Research Award and Kiel Institute’s Global Economy Prize.
Somik Lall
Senior Advisor to the Chief Economist of the World Bank Group
Co-Director, Growth Academy
Dr. Somik Lall directed the World Bank’s 2024 World Development Report, “The Middle Income Trap,” which examines how middle-income countries can break into the ranks of the world’s wealthiest economies.
Previously, he led the climate economics and policy team within the World Bank’s Equitable Growth, Finance, and Institutions vice presidency, where he developed and oversaw research programs on resilience, economic development, the macroeconomic impacts of climate change, and low-carbon innovations.
Lall has also served as the Global Lead for territorial development and as Lead Economist for the World Bank’s Cities Practice, where he introduced a novel data-driven approach enabling mayors to protect citizens during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Listen to his podcast, Monocle, for more insights.)
Widely published in both academic and policy journals, Lall is the author of the 2021 book Place, Productivity, and Prosperity, which provides an innovative framework for place-based policy. His 2017 book, Africa’s Cities: Opening Doors to the World, explores institutional and regulatory constraints to urbanization across Africa.
In addition to his policy work, Lall teaches at Johns Hopkins University and has been a Visiting Professor at the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy in New Delhi.
