Partha Dasgupta facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sir Partha Dasgupta
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Dasgupta in 2013
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| Born |
Partha Sarathi Dasgupta
17 November 1942 (age 82) |
| Nationality | British |
| Spouse(s) |
Carol Dasgupta
(m. 1968) |
| Institution | |
| Field | Ecological economics |
| Doctoral advisor |
James Mirrlees |
| Influences |
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| Awards |
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Sir Partha Sarathi Dasgupta (born 17 November 1942) is a famous Indian-British economist. He is a professor at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. He is known for his work on how the economy and the environment are connected.
Contents
About Partha Dasgupta
Partha Dasgupta was born in Dhaka and grew up mostly in Varanasi, India. His father, Amiya Kumar Dasgupta, was also a well-known economist. Partha Dasgupta is married to Carol Dasgupta, who is a psychotherapist. They have three children: Zubeida, Shamik, and Aisha. His father-in-law was James Meade, who won a Nobel Prize.
His Education Journey
Dasgupta went to Rajghat Besant School in Varanasi, India. He finished high school in 1958. He then studied Physics at Hans Raj College in Delhi, graduating in 1962. Later, he studied Mathematics at Trinity College, Cambridge and finished in 1965. He earned his PhD in economics from Cambridge in 1968. His PhD research looked at how population and growth affect the economy. His supervisor was James Mirrlees, another famous economist.
His Work as an Economist
What He Studies
Sir Partha Dasgupta's research covers many important topics. He studies how to improve people's lives and help countries grow economically. He also looks at how new technologies develop. A big part of his work focuses on population, the environment, and natural resources. He explores ideas like social capital, which means the value of relationships and networks in society. He also uses theory of games to understand how people make decisions. His work often involves complex math, and he has worked with many other smart economists.
Helping the Environment and Economy
Dasgupta has worked closely with Karl-Goran Maler, another economist. Together, they came up with the idea of 'inclusive wealth'. This idea helps measure how well humans are doing by including the value of natural resources. They also helped start the South Asian Network for Development and Environmental Economics (SANDEE). This group teaches young economists in South Asia about ecological economics. They also helped create a journal called Environment and Development Economics. This journal helps economists from different countries share their research.
Dasgupta has always been very interested in how the economy affects nature. His early work showed that the Earth's natural systems limit how much the economy can grow. His 1982 book, The Control of Resources, set a plan for studying population, how much we consume, and the environment. He has continued this research in many other books and articles.
The Dasgupta Review
In 2019, he led a big project for the UK government. This project resulted in a report called 'The Economics of Biodiversity: The Dasgupta Review', published in February 2021. A main goal of this report was to find a new way to value the natural world, which economists call 'natural capital'. This helps in making better decisions about investments and economic plans. The Review also explains that the human economy is part of nature, not separate from it. It explores what this important idea means for how we think about economic growth and poverty.
Where He Has Taught
Dasgupta taught at the London School of Economics from 1971 to 1984. In 1985, he moved to the University of Cambridge as a Professor of Economics. He also worked at Stanford University in the USA for a few years. In 1994, his position at Cambridge was named the Frank Ramsey Professorship of Economics.
Other Important Roles
Sir Partha Dasgupta has held many important roles. He was the Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board for the Beijer International Institute of Ecological Economics. He also helped start the South Asian Network for Development and Environmental Economics (SANDEE). He helped create the journal Environment and Development Economics to help scholars from poorer countries publish their research.
He was also a research fellow at the University of Manchester and a professor at Cornell University. He led the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists. He is a supporter of Population Matters, a charity focused on population issues. He also chaired a group that worked on 'Green National Accounting' for India. Today, he chairs the Management Committee of the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk at the University of Cambridge.
Awards and Recognition
Sir Partha Dasgupta has received many honours for his work. He is a member of many important academic groups, including the British Academy and the Royal Society. He was also made a Knight by the British Queen in 2002 for his contributions to economics. In 2023, he received an even higher honour, being appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE).
Prizes He Has Won
Dasgupta has won many prestigious prizes for his work on the environment and economics:
- The Volvo Environment Prize (2002)
- The Boulding Award (2004)
- The PEN/John Kenneth Galbraith Award (2007)
- The Zayed International Environment Prize (2011)
- The European Lifetime Achievement Award (2014)
- The Erik Kempe Award (2007)
- The Blue Planet Prize (2015)
- The Tyler Prize (2016)
- The Kew International Medal (2021)
- The Champions of the Earth award from the UNEP (2022)
- The BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award (2023)
He has also received honorary doctorates from several universities around the world.
His Books and Publications
Sir Partha Dasgupta has written many influential books and papers. Here are some of his selected works:
- Guidelines for Project Evaluation (1972)
- Economic Theory and Exhaustible Resources (1979)
- The Control of Resources (1982)
- An Inquiry into Well-Being and Destitution (1993)
- Social Capital: A Multifaceted Perspective (co-editor, 2000)
- Human Well-Being and the Natural Environment (2001, revised 2004)
- Economics: A Very Short Introduction (2007)
- Selected Papers of Partha Dasgupta (2010)
