Heather Boushey is at the forefront of a generation
of economists rethinking their discipline — just as the government deploys
trillions to address a once-in-a-century emergency
“For decades, economists have often sought to frame
their discipline as being at an arm’s length from politics. But Dr. Boushey and
her peers, many of them Generation X, have embraced the field’s social and
political roots. Informed by mistakes made during the 2008 recession, members
of this cohort — including academics like Emmanuel Saez and Raj Chetty, and
Jason Furman on the policy side — have turned their attention to the structural
consequences of deepening inequality. They have eagerly addressed topics that challenge
neoclassical economic theory, such as climate change, generational wealth and
opportunity disparities”.