Professor Juan-Carlos Echeverry, University of Los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia

Prof. Echeverry serves as Dean of Economics at Universidad de Los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia. From 2000-2002, Dr. Echeverry was Colombia’s cabinet-level Minister of Economic Planning, responsible for coordinating public investment on behalf of the government. Previously, he was Under Secretary and Director of Macroeconomic Analysis at the Ministry of National Planning. On behalf of the Colombian government, Dr. Echeverry has been a key participant in negotiations with multilateral and commercial banks, and with labor unions and peasant -strike coalitions. In addition, he was an advisor to the “Peace Negotiation” with the Colombian guerrilla. Dr. Echeverry holds a PhD in Economics from New York University, a B.A. in Economics from Universidad de Los Andes, and a philosophy degree from the Universidad Complutense in Madrid.

Professor Ravi Kanbur, Cornell University, NY, USA

Dr. Kanbur serves as the T.H. Lawrence Professor of World Affairs, International Professor of Applied Economics and Management, and Professor of Economics at Cornell University in New York, USA. His work in public economics and development economics spans conceptual, empirical, and policy analysis, and is particularly interested in bridging the worlds of rigorous analysis and practical policy making. His publications cover topics such as risk taking, inequality, poverty, structural adjustment, debt, agriculture, and political economy. Previously, Dr. Kanbur served as Principal Adviser to the Chief Economist and the Africa Region’s Chief Economist at the World Bank. He holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Oxford, and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Cambridge.

Professor Helen Milner, Princeton University, NJ, USA

Dr. Milner serves as the B.C. Forbes Professor of Politics and International Affairs and chair of the Politics Department at Princeton University, as well as director of the Center for Globalization and Governance at Princeton’s Woodrow Wilson School. She has written extensively on issues related to international trade, the connections between domestic politics and foreign policy, globalization and regionalism, and the relationship between democracy and trade policy.  She is currently working on issues related to globalization and development, such as the political economy of foreign aid, the “digital divide” and the global diffusion of the internet, and the relationship between globalization and environmental policy. Dr. Milner holds a Ph.D. in Government from Harvard University and an A.B. in International Relations from Stanford University.

Marcelo Selowsky, Independent Evaluation Office (IEO), International Monetary Fund, USA

Dr. Selowsky serves as Assistant Director at the IMF’s Independent Evauation Office. He has been lead author of multiple publications at IEO, including Fiscal Adjustment in IMF-Supported Programs and The Public Sector and the Latin American Crises. He has deep expertise both in macroeconomics and economic policy generally, and specifically with Middle Income clients, previously serving as Chief Economist of both the Europe and Central Asia and Latin America and Caribbean Regions at the World Bank. Dr. Selowsky holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Chicago.

Marc Stephens, London Development Agency, UK.

Dr. Stephens serves as an Executive Director at the London Development Agency, on e of the UK’s most important development bodies. He is an expert in urban and regional economic development, a topic of growing importance for many Middle Income Countries. He has also worked as an economic adviser in the Bank of England, informing the work of the UK’s Monetary Policy Committee. Previously, Dr. Stephens worked as an economist in the World Bank during the mid-1990s, and as a fluent Arabic speaker has spent time working in the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from New York University.