Harvard Professor and Pioneering Economist to Explore How Mathematics Shapes Decision-Making, Institutions and Society Nov. 6
Nobel Prize-Winning Economist Eric Maskin to Deliver 26th Annual Memorial Lecture at Alabama A&M
Alabama A&M University will welcome Nobel Prize-winning economist and Harvard University professor Eric S. Maskin to campus Friday, Nov. 6, for the 26th Annual Putcha Venkateswarlu Memorial Nobel Laureate Lecture Series. The event will bring one of the world’s leading economic theorists to the Hill to explore how mathematics can help address complex challenges facing society.
Maskin, a co-recipient of the 2007 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, will present “An Introduction to Mechanism Design” at 3 p.m. in Dawson Auditorium in the Cooperative Extension Building. The event is free and open to the public.
Now in its 26th year, the Putcha Venkateswarlu Memorial Lecture Series honors the legacy of Putcha Venkateswarlu, a longtime Alabama A&M physics professor whose commitment to scientific excellence, scholarship and intellectual discovery continues to inspire generations of students and researchers. The annual event connects the university community with distinguished scholars and groundbreaking ideas.
Maskin’s lecture will explore mechanism design, a field of economics that examines how rules, incentives and institutions can be structured to achieve desired outcomes, even when individuals have competing interests or access to different information. Its principles have applications in public policy, voting systems, markets and resource allocation.
Maskin shared the 2007 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences with Leonid Hurwicz and Roger Myerson for their foundational contributions to mechanism design theory. He currently serves as the Adams University Professor and professor of economics and mathematics at Harvard University.
His influential research spans game theory, social choice, contract theory and voting systems, exploring how institutions can be designed to encourage cooperation, improve decision-making and achieve collective goals.
In addition to delivering the featured lecture, Maskin will engage directly with Alabama A&M students and faculty during two campus sessions. He will meet with graduate and undergraduate students from 10:10 to 11 a.m., followed by discussions with faculty members and students from 11 to 11:50 a.m. Both sessions will take place in Room 322 on the fourth floor of the V. Murray Chambers Building.
The sessions will offer students and faculty an opportunity to exchange ideas with a Nobel laureate, explore emerging research and gain insight into the academic experiences that have shaped his distinguished career.
The visit reflects Alabama A&M’s commitment to academic excellence, interdisciplinary learning and expanding opportunities for students to engage with internationally recognized scholars.
A public reception will follow the lecture from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in Room 233 of the Arthur J. Bond Engineering Building, providing an additional opportunity for attendees to connect with Maskin and members of the University community.
The event is presented by Alabama A&M University’s Department of Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics, with support from the College of Business and Public Affairs, Redstone Federal Credit Union, Dr. Mulk Arora and Mrs. Anjana Arora, American Chemical Society-North Alabama Local Section, and Metivo.