Economist of the Day

Klaus Schwab

Born: March 30^th, 1938

Died: N.A.

Summary: A German economist and engineer. He received his degree in economics from the University of Fribourg. In 1971 he founded the World Economic Forum, and served as its chair. As chair, he organized the Forum to settle disputes between several nations, particularly between European and far eastern ones. In 1998 he and his wife founded the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. He has written that because technology is advancing at such a rapid pace, there will no longer be any need for capitalism (because technological advances will have created a post-scarcity society). He has also argued that until a post-scarcity society is achieved, the most innovative and imaginative people will be the driving forces behind economic growth, rather than whoever controls the most natural resources or capital. He created the Global Shapers Community, an organization meant to develop the leadership skills of 20 to 30 year olds through public service. He has argued that increasing global debt has caused the global economy to grow at a decreased rate. He believes that global economies will become less integrated in the future due to interests of various governments deviating more and more from each other. 

Notable Works: Overcoming Indifference: 10 Key Challenges in Today’s Changing World, The Asian Financial Crisis: Lessons for a Resilient Asia, The Power of Unreasonable People: How Social Entrepreneurs Create Markets That Change the World