Diego Puga

Diego Puga
Name	Diego Puga
Nationality	Spanish
Occupation	Economist, Academic
Institutions	London School of Economics, University College London, Centre for Economic Policy Research, Queen Mary University of London
Alma mater	University of Barcelona, London School of Economics

Diego Puga is a Spanish urban and regional economist known for empirical and theoretical work on agglomeration, economic geography, and the spatial distribution of economic activity. He has held faculty and research positions at prominent universities and policy institutes, and his research has influenced scholars working on urbanization, trade, and labor markets. Puga's work bridges models of spatial economics with empirical analysis using data from Europe and beyond.

Early life and education

Puga completed undergraduate studies in economics at the University of Barcelona and pursued graduate training at the London School of Economics, where he earned a doctorate in economics. During his formative years he engaged with research communities at the Centre for Economic Policy Research and connected with scholars from institutions such as University College London, Oxford University, Cambridge University, and the London Business School. Influences during his education include prominent economists associated with the Royal Economic Society, European Economic Association, and research programs linked to the European Commission and the European Research Council.

Academic career

Puga has held academic appointments at institutions including Queen Mary University of London, the London School of Economics, and visiting positions at departments affiliated with University College London and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has been affiliated with research networks like the Centre for Economic Policy Research and contributed to seminars hosted by the Institute for International Economic Studies and the National Bureau of Economic Research. His teaching and supervision have connected graduate students with scholars from Harvard University, Stanford University, Yale University, Princeton University, and University of Chicago across topics in spatial economics and public policy. Puga has served on editorial boards of journals and on advisory panels for organizations such as the European Central Bank, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and national research councils.

Research and contributions

Puga's research develops and applies models of agglomeration and urban structure, integrating theoretical frameworks with empirical tests using data from regions and cities across Spain, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Germany, and broader European Union contexts. He has contributed to the literature on urban wages and rents by linking insights from the New Economic Geography, endogenous growth models from Paul Romer-style approaches, and trade frameworks influenced by Paul Krugman. His work analyzes how transportation infrastructure projects like high-speed rail and road networks—studied in the tradition of assessments by the European Investment Bank and policy evaluations by the World Bank—reshape commuting patterns, firm location choices, and regional productivity disparities.

Puga has examined migration responses to agglomeration forces, connecting to empirical traditions exemplified by studies from the National Bureau of Economic Research and policy research at the International Monetary Fund. He has contributed to debates on urban amenities and quality of life, drawing on methods similar to hedonic analyses used by scholars at Stanford University and Columbia University. His models address path dependence in city size distributions and the role of historical shocks—echoing research lines from scholars associated with the Centre for Economic Policy Research and the Economic History Association—to explain persistent regional inequality.

Interdisciplinary impacts of his work extend to urban planning bodies such as UN-Habitat, transport authorities like Transport for London, and regional development agencies within the European Commission. Puga's methodological contributions include calibration of spatial general equilibrium models and structural estimation techniques used in policy counterfactuals, with links to simulation practices at the Federal Reserve Board and empirical program evaluation at the World Bank.

Awards and honors

Puga's scholarship has been recognized by academic prizes and invitations to prestigious lecture series. He has received research grants and fellowships from European funding bodies such as the European Research Council and national science foundations, and has been elected or appointed to roles in professional organizations including the Royal Economic Society and the European Economic Association. His policy advice has led to consultancies or briefings for institutions like the European Central Bank, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and national ministries of finance and regional development.

Selected publications

- "The Rise and Fall of Regional Inequality" (co-authored), published in outlets alongside work by scholars from Harvard University and the Centre for Economic Policy Research, addressing long-run regional convergence and divergence. - "Agglomeration and Economic Geography" (chapter), appearing in handbooks alongside contributions from authors at London School of Economics, University of Chicago, and MIT on spatial models and urban outcomes. - Empirical studies on commuting and transport impacts, cited by research at the World Bank, European Investment Bank, and infrastructure analyses at Transport for London. - Papers on migration and labor reallocation in spatial contexts, contributing to literatures associated with the National Bureau of Economic Research and policy research at the International Monetary Fund.

Category:Spanish economists Category:Urban economists