Emmanuel Saez

Emmanuel Saez is a French-born economist renowned for his pioneering empirical research on wealth inequality and taxation. He is a professor of economics at the University of California, Berkeley and the director of the Center for Equitable Growth at the institution. His collaborative work, particularly with fellow economist Thomas Piketty, has fundamentally reshaped the modern understanding of income distribution and informed major policy debates worldwide.

Early life and education

Born in Madrid to French parents, he spent his formative years in France. He pursued his higher education at the prestigious École Normale Supérieure in Paris, where he initially focused on mathematics. His academic interests shifted towards economics, leading him to complete a DEA degree at the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales. He then earned a Ph.D. in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1999 under the supervision of James M. Poterba.

Academic career

After completing his doctorate, he joined the Department of Economics at Harvard University as an assistant professor. In 2002, he moved to the University of California, Berkeley, where he has remained a central figure. At Berkeley, he holds a distinguished professorship and has served as the director of the Center for Equitable Growth. He has also been a visiting professor at institutions like the Paris School of Economics and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Research and contributions

His most influential research, conducted extensively with Thomas Piketty, involves constructing historical tax data series to analyze income inequality. Their work, notably presented in the book Capital in the Twenty-First Century, demonstrated a dramatic rise in income share held by the top earners, especially in the United States. He has made significant contributions to optimal tax theory, advocating for more progressive taxation on top incomes, as outlined in papers like "The Case for a Progressive Tax." His research has directly influenced policy discussions, including proposals like the Warren wealth tax and informed the agenda of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Awards and recognition

In 2009, he was awarded the John Bates Clark Medal, one of the most prestigious honors in economics, for his work on income inequality. The following year, he received a MacArthur Fellowship, commonly known as the "Genius Grant." His research has earned him numerous other accolades, including the American Economic Association's Rosenberg Prize and the Banque de France's Best Young Economist Award. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Econometric Society.

Personal life

He is married to Gabriel Zucman, a fellow economist and professor at the University of California, Berkeley, with whom he frequently collaborates on research concerning tax evasion and global wealth. He became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 2019. Outside of academia, he has engaged with policymakers, providing testimony to bodies like the United States Congress and advising political figures on economic policy.

Category:1972 births Category:Living people Category:French economists Category:University of California, Berkeley faculty Category:John Bates Clark Medal winners Category:MacArthur Fellows