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Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta, Frank Ramsey Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Cambridge, has been awarded the Tyler Prize – the premier award for work on environmental science, environmental health and energy.

The award recognises decades of research that has served society by “illuminating connections between poverty, sustainable development and environmental health”, as well as Dasgupta’s recent work with Pope Francis which culminated in the Pope’s celebrated encyclical on the environment. It is the first time that the Tyler Prize has been awarded to an economist.

Professor Dasgupta is the Frank Ramsey Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Cambridge as well as a Fellow of St John's College. He is recognised for having developed economic theories and tools which measure the relationships between human and environmental well-being, poverty, population, economic growth and the state of natural resources.

This has led to a re-evaluation of how governments and global organisations deal with poverty and measure wealth, in particular by taking account not just of measures of economic activity such as Gross Domestic Product (GDP), but also our use of and reliance on “natural capital” such as wildlife, forests, wetlands and fisheries.

The Tyler Prize was established in 1973 and has been awarded annually to individuals and organisations associated with world-class environmental accomplishments. The recipient is chosen by an international committee.

The Tyler Prize Executive Committee Chair, Julia Marton-Lefèvre, said: “Sir Partha Dasgupta’s contributions to economics have driven fundamental and ongoing changes in the international conversation about sustainable and just development and the use of natural resources. His work has ensured that we keep in mind both people and the way we use our natural resources to benefit present and future generations.”

 

Date awarded

15 March 2016

Subjects

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Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta