Chetty received his Ph.D. from Harvard in 2003 at the age of 23 and is one of the youngest tenured professors in the university's history. He has been named one of the top economists in the world by the New York Times and the Economist magazine. He was awarded a MacArthur "Genius" Fellowship in 2012. In 2013, Chetty became one of the youngest recipients of the John Bates Clark medal, given by the American Economic Association to the best American economist under age 40.
The Development Economics Vice Presidency (DEC) launched its lecture series in April 2005 to bring distinguished academics to the Bank to present and discuss new knowledge on development. The purpose of the Lecture Series is to introduce ideas on cutting edge research, challenge and contribute to the Bank's intellectual climate, and reexamine current development theories and practices. The Lectures revisit issues of long-standing concern and explore emerging issues that promise to be central to future development discourse. The Lecture Series reflects DEC’s commitment to intellectual leadership and openness in embracing future challenges to reduce poverty.
The DEC Lecture Series is chaired by Kaushik Basu, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist, and includes a presentation and floor discussion.
