Kazimierz Łaski facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kazimierz Łaski
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Kazimierz Łaski, December 1990
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Kazimierz Łaski
December 15, 1921 Częstochowa, Poland
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| Died | October 20, 2015 (aged 93) |
| Nationality | Poland - Austria |
| Institution | The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies (wiiw) |
| School or tradition |
Post-Keynesian economics |
Kazimierz Łaski (born December 15, 1921 – died October 20, 2015) was an important economist from Poland and Austria. An economist is someone who studies how money, goods, and services are made, shared, and used.
During a difficult time in Poland in 1968, Kazimierz Łaski had to leave his home country. He moved to Austria, where he lived and worked for the rest of his life. He became very well known for his ideas in something called Post-Keynesian economics, which is a way of understanding how economies work.
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Kazimierz Łaski's Early Life
Kazimierz Łaski was born as Hendel Cygler in a Polish city called Częstochowa. During World War II, when Nazi Germany occupied Poland, he was Jewish. To stay safe in 1943, he got new identity papers with a Polish name, which he kept for the rest of his life.
During the war, Łaski joined a group called Gwardia Ludowa, which was a Polish communist resistance group. He was part of the secret underground movement fighting against the occupation. He was even hurt during the Warsaw Uprising, a big fight in the capital city.
Because of his involvement, he later joined the Polish People's Army. He then worked for the Ministry of Public Security. He was very talented, so he was soon chosen to study and become a professor.
Education and Teaching
Kazimierz Łaski started studying political economy in 1945. He earned his master's degree in 1948. He continued his studies and received his doctorate in 1954. His main topic was about how a country's wealth grows and how people use goods during the industrialization of Poland.
In 1949, Łaski began working at the University for Planning and Statistics (SGPiS) in Warsaw. He became an assistant professor in 1955 and then an associate professor in 1960. He helped guide research and teaching, and he invited Michał Kalecki, another famous Polish economist, to teach courses.
Łaski also taught at other universities. He held important leadership roles at the SGPiS, including being a deputy-dean and then dean of the Faculty of Economics. From 1961 to 1963, he was the deputy chancellor, helping to manage teaching and research for the whole university.
He also helped create a special course for economists from developing countries. He was the head of its scientific council and later the deputy head of the course from 1963 to 1968. From 1965 to 1968, he was the president of the Polish Economic Society in Warsaw.
International Work and Moving to Austria
Kazimierz Łaski also studied and taught in other countries. In 1960, he received a scholarship to study in Paris, France. In 1964, he was a visiting professor in Vienna, Austria. He also spent time teaching in Paris again in 1966-1967.
The "golden age" for Polish economists changed during the 1968 Polish political crisis. During this time, many people of Jewish background were pressured to leave Poland. Students and colleagues of Michał Kalecki, who Łaski worked with, faced strong political attacks.
In November 1968, Łaski left Poland and moved to Austria. He first worked as a researcher at the Austrian Institute of Economic Research from 1969 to 1971. He also taught as a visiting professor in Belgium in 1970. His work in Austria allowed him to collaborate with other important economists like Kurt W. Rothschild and Josef Steindl.
In 1971, Łaski became a full professor at the Johannes Kepler University of Linz in Austria. He also started working as a researcher at The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies (wiiw). In 1990, he even advised the Polish minister, Jerzy Osiatyński.
Kazimierz Łaski retired from the Johannes Kepler University in 1991 as a professor emeritus. He continued to be a research director at the wiiw until 1996. He also spent time as a fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in Berlin from 1994 to 1995. From 1996 until his death, he remained a research associate at the wiiw.
Later Years and Passing
Kazimierz Łaski passed away on October 20, 2015, in Vienna, Austria. He was 93 years old. He spent the last part of his life contributing to economics from Austria, where he was highly respected.
