Galbraith Prize in Economics

At the 2006 PEF annual general meeting, the members decided to seek the development of a new Prize in Economics in honour of John Kenneth Galbraith, the great Canadian economist who had just passed away. Mario Seccaracia sought and received the approval of the Galbraith family from Jamie Galbraith, and Jamie joined us at the 2007 CEA meetings to inaugurate the Prize and deliver the first lecture. The first John Kenneth Galbraith Prize in Economics was awarded in 2008 at the CEA meetings in Vancouver, to coincide with the tenth anniversary of the PEF. It will be awarded every two years.

2023 Prize Winner, Armine Yalnizyan, Atkinson Fellow on the Future of Workers

• Lecture: Walking with Giants, how economic thought and policy evolves

2021 Prize Winner, Mario Seccareccia, University of Ottawa

• Lecture: When Will the “Conventional Wisdom” of Establishment Marcoeconomics Catch Up with Reality? The Desperate Need for a Paradigm Shift

2018 Prize Winner, Jim Stanford, Centre for Future Work

• Lecture: What Does Progressive Trade Policy Look Like? A 10 Point Plan for Building a Better Global Order

2016 Prize Winner, Marjorie Griffin Cohen, Simon Fraser University

• Lecture: Structural Amnesia: The Appalling Masculinity of Economic Analysis

2014 Prize Winner, Lars Osberg, Dalhousie University

• Lecture: Canadian Inequality, Then and Now: Can Increasing Inequality be a Steady State?

2012 Prize Winner: Mike McCracken, Informetrica

• Lecture: The Search for Full Employment

2010 Prize Winner: John Loxley, University of Manitoba

• Lecture: Reflections on Change and Continuity at the IMF

2008 Prize Co-Winners: Mel Watkins, University of Toronto (emeritus) and Kari Polanyi Levitt, McGill University (emeritus)

• Mel Watkins’ Lecture: Re-imagining Trade: NAFTA and Beyond
• Kari Levitt’s Lecture: The Great Financialization

2007 Inaugural Lecture by James Galbraith:  The Abiding Economics of John Kenneth Galbraith

JKG Prize Terms of Reference

The PEF’s 2007 AGM set out a Terms of Reference for the Galbraith Prize:

a) The JKG Prize and Lecture will be awarded every two years, with the first award in 2008. It will be presented as part of the annual Canadian Economics Association meetings.

b) The recipient of the Prize must deliver the Lecture (no lecture, no prize).

c) The Prize will be awarded based on a demonstrated contribution combining economic analysis with a commitment to social justice, whose work exemplifies the goals and objectives of the PEF.

d) A five-person Selection Committee will be appointed by the PEF Steering Committee to bring forward nominations in the year before the prize is awarded. The Selection Committee will have at a minimum one academic, one labour member, and one member from a community/social justice/environmental organization.

e) PEF members will have an opportunity to nominate candidates, but the award will be determined by the Selection Committee.

f) The PEF will award a $2,000 honourarium for the Prize and Lecture, and will cover travel and accommodation expenses for the recipient.