Although economists agree that Gross National Product is not a measure of social welfare, they don’t agree on what broader measure to use. Professor Clair Brown will present an overview of the four major types of measures of economic performance, with the pros and cons of each. Then, with grad student Eli Lazarus, she will present their estimation of the Genuine Progress Indicator for California, 2010-2014 (paper submitted to Ecological Indicators).

This seminar is based on Chapter 6, Buddhist Economics: an enlightened approach to the dismal science (Bloomsbury Press, 2017).

IRLE Staff Research Presentations are open to UC Berkeley affiliates only. If you are a community member, we welcome you at our other events, including our IRLE Speaker Series.

Clair Brown is Professor Emeritus of Economics at UC Berkeley, where she is director of the Center for Work, Technology, and Society and an IRLE faculty affiliate. She is also a former director of IRLE.