Robert Hunter Wade is a

political economy Political economy is the study of how economic systems (e.g. markets and national economies) and political systems (e.g. law, institutions, government) are linked. Widely studied phenomena within the discipline are systems such as labour m ...

and development scholar. He has been Professor of Global Political Economy at the Department of International Development, London School of Economics since 1999.

Early life

He was born in Australia to New Zealand diplomat parents. He therefore attended numerous schools worldwide, living in

British Ceylon British Ceylon ( si, බ්‍රිතාන්‍ය ලංකාව, Britānya Laṃkāva; ta, பிரித்தானிய இலங்கை, Biritthāṉiya Ilaṅkai) was the British Crown colony of present-day Sri Lanka between 1 ...

at the age of 12. He attended university in Dunedin (BA with major in economics,

Otago University , image_name = University of Otago Registry Building2.jpg , image_size = , caption = University clock tower , motto = la, Sapere aude , mottoeng = Dare to be wise , established = 1869; 152 years ago , type = Public research collegiate u ...

, 1962-64),

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

(BA Hons, economics,

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of New Zealand Parliament, Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Z ...

, 1966), and

Sussex University , mottoeng = Be Still and Know , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £14.4 million (2020) , budget = £319.6 million (2019–20) , chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar , vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil , ...

(MPhil 1968, DPhil in social anthropology, Sussex University, 1971, thesis on irrigation systems in India).

Career

He has worked at the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), Sussex. On leave from IDS, he worked at the World Bank; the

Office of Technology Assessment The Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) was an office of the United States Congress that operated from 1974 to 1995. OTA's purpose was to provide congressional members and committees with objective and authoritative analysis of the complex scien ...

(US Congress) 1988;

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

(

Woodrow Wilson School The Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (formerly the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs) is a professional public policy school at Princeton University. The school provides an array of comprehensive course ...

) from 1989 to 1990; MIT ( Sloan School and Political Science) from 1990 to 1991. He was professor of political economy at

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Provide ...

( Watson Institute and Political Science) from 1996 to 1999 before joining the LSE in 2001. He held fellowships at the

Institute for Advanced Study The Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), located in Princeton, New Jersey, in the United States, is an independent center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It has served as the academic home of internationally preeminent schola ...

in Princeton, New Jersey 1992–1993,

Russell Sage Foundation The Russell Sage Foundation is an American non-profit organisation established by Margaret Olivia Sage in 1907 for “the improvement of social and living conditions in the United States.” It was named after her recently deceased husband, rai ...

, New York 1997–1998, and the Institute for Advanced Study, Berlin 2000–2001. In 2011 he was the Sanjaya Lall visiting professor at Oxford University. He also worked at the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inter ...

from 1984 to 1988. He has undertaken fieldwork in a range of countries including: Italy, India, Korea, Taiwan and

Pitcairn Island Pitcairn Island is the only inhabited island of the Pitcairn Islands, of which many inhabitants are descendants of mutineers of HMS ''Bounty''. Geography The island is of volcanic origin, with a rugged cliff coastline. Unlike many other ...

and inside the World Bank. In March 2022, Wad
proposed
a theory that said the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

was the result of

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

falling into a "trap" set by the US and NATO, which was described already in 2019 by the

Rand Corporation The RAND Corporation (from the phrase "research and development") is an American nonprofit global policy think tank created in 1948 by Douglas Aircraft Company to offer research and analysis to the United States Armed Forces. It is financed ...

's research report ''Extending Russia'' (RR 3063).

Key works

Robert Wade is author of many books and scholarly articles including: * Wade, Robert H. (1982), ''Irrigation and Politics in South Korea'' * Wade, Robert H. (1988, 1994), ''Village Republics: The Economic Conditions of Collective Action in India'' * Wade, Robert H. (1990, 2003), ''Governing the Market: Economic Theory and the Role of Government in East Asia's Industrialization'' (this won the

American Political Science Association The American Political Science Association (APSA) is a professional association of political science students and scholars in the United States. Founded in 1903 in the Tilton Memorial Library (now Tilton Hall) of Tulane University in New Orleans, ...

's award of Best Book or Article in Political Economy, 1992) * *

Awards

In 2008, Wade received (jointly with

José Antonio Ocampo José Antonio Ocampo Gaviria (born 20 December 1952) is a Colombian writer, economist and academic who was the professor of professional practice in international and public affairs and director of the Economic and Political Development Concentra ...

) the

Leontief Prize The Global Development And Environment Institute (GDAE, pronounced “gee-day”) is a research center at Tufts University founded in 1993. GDAE conducts research and develops teaching materials in economics and related areas that follow an interdi ...

in recognition of his outstanding contribution to economic theory that addresses contemporary realities and supports just and sustainable societies. In 1992 he received the American Political Science Association's award of Best Book or Article in Political Economy. When younger he competed regularly in 10 km running races and long distance swims, and plays the classical guitar.

References

External links

Robert Wade's staff page
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wade, Robert Academics of the London School of Economics Development economists Living people New Zealand academics 1944 births Brown University faculty