Polecon

Topics of Interest

Social capital, trust, and cultural norms, Human capital and education, Economic history and development, Media and public opinion, Conflicts and their resolution, Collective action and public goods, Political elites and governance, Comparative politics, Path-dependance and persistence, Economic policies and public well-being, Energy and Environmental Economics.

Conference Program

Download Full Program (PDF)

Important Dates

Feb 22

Submission Deadline

Full paper or abstract (250 words) + CV submission

Mar 31

Notification

Applicants will be informed about the selection results

May 17

Final Version

Submission of accepted full papers for the sessions

✨ Exclusive: There is NO conference fee for participants

Keynote Speakers

David Szakonyi

George Washington University

The Logic of Autocracy: How Modern Dictatorships are Getting Smarter

Modern dictatorships are getting smarter. As of 2020, one in four cabinet ministers across all authoritarian regimes had both studied at a Western university and finished a graduate degree, a nearly threefold increase over the past fifty years. This trend stands in sharp contrast not only to the popular image of dictators flanked by sycophantic cronies, but also to canonical work which has long held that autocrats favor loyalty over competence. Far from fearing expertise, modern dictators surround themselves with it, increasingly relying on elite, Western-educated technocrats to help them maintain legitimacy and social stability in a world of rising citizen expectations. The most striking case is Putin-era Russia, where technocrats have helped rescue the regime from the shocks of crushing sanctions and a disastrous war.

Moses Shayo

King's College London

The Political Economy of Social Identity

Social identity—the groups people identify with and draw self-worth from—shapes economic and political behavior across multiple domains. In this lecture I will use a conceptual framework that incorporates two core behavioral mechanisms: conformity to ingroup norms and ingroup favoritism. The framework also endogenizes identity itself, modeling which groups people identify with as a function of economic conditions including relative group status, the cost of adopting group-typical behaviors, and the salience of intergroup boundaries. Drawing on evidence from settings such as food consumption in India and media consumption during conflict, I examine both the effects of identification and how it responds to these forces. Critically, because individual choices aggregate into the social environment that shapes identities, feedback loops arise that can generate multiple equilibria and help explain persistent puzzles such as why low-income voters often oppose redistribution. The framework offers a tractable way to incorporate identity into political economy models while maintaining empirical discipline.

Program Committee

Alexis Belianin (Almaty Management University), Nargiz Kassenova (Harvard University), Denis Pascal de Crombrugghe (Narxoz University), Alexander Libman (Freie University Berlin), Ora John Reuter (University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee), Michael Rochlitz (University of Oxford), Sarah Wilson Sokhey (University of Colorado), Andrey Tkachenko (Nazarbayev University), Shlomo Weber (SMU and New University Uzbekistan), Andrei Yakovlev (Freie University Berlin and Harvard University)

Previous Conferences

1st Conference 'New Advances in the Political Economy of Development in Eurasia' (2023)

Keynote Speakers:
Ora John Reuter (University Wisconsin-Milwaukee)

2nd Conference 'New Advances in the Political Economy of Development in Eurasia' (2024)

Keynote Speakers:
Jennifer Pan (Stanford)
Alexander Libman (FU Berlin)

3rd Conference 'New Advances in the Political Economy of Development in Eurasia' (2025)

Keynote Speakers:
Jennifer Gandhi (Yale University)
Ruben Enikolopov (University Pompeu Fabra)

Important Information for Visitors

How to get to AlmaU?

Campus is located in Almaty: 227 Rozybakiyev Street

in Russian: "Алматы Менеджмент Университет, улица Розыбакиева 227"

Yandex taxi app and Google Maps may not display the location correctly, better to pin the destination manually

Almau on 2GIS Map: 2GIS Map
Almau on Google Maps: Google Maps
Almau on Yandex Maps: Yandex Maps

Short information about Almaty

The city of Almaty (old name Alma-Ata) literate translation from Kazakh as Father (ata) of Apples (alma). This is the former capital and largest city of Kazakhstan, with over 2 mln population. The city is known as a major cultural, business and economic hub in Central Asia, surrounded with beautiful mountains and natural skating resort of Medeu and apline ski resort of Chymbulak

Common languages in Almaty are Russian and Kazakh. Some people speak English and occasionally other languages

Time zone: GMT +5.00 (since March 1, 2024) Webpage: www.visitalmaty.kz
City code: ALA.
Area code: +7 727.
Postal code: 050000 - 050063.
Electricity: Type C, E, F.
Emergency no.: 101 Fire; 102 Police; 103 Ambulance; 104 Gas leaks; 112 Rescue.

Accomodation

There are many hotels in the city, some of which are conveniently located not far from AlmaU:

Sacvoyage Hotel
Jeppesen
Olympica/Alpen Ville (sports hotel)
Best Western Plus

Booking.com and AirBnB offer hundreds of other options

Currency

Currency in Kazakhstan is Tenge (KZT), current exchange rate is about 480KZT/1US$, 550KZT/1€ and 6.65KZT/1₽. Daily Official (market) Foreign Exchange Rates are available online at the National Bank of Kazakhstan

You may exchange currency in the Almaty Airport at the Arrivals hall, in any bank in the city during its working hours, in some hotels' lobby and in the 24/7 exchange points around the city, such as the MIG currency exchange offices

NB: Majority of payments could be done by card (Visa, Mastercard, Apple pay, Google pay)

You may exchange currency in the Almaty Airport at the Arrivals hall, in any bank in the city during its working hours, in some hotels' lobby and in the 24/7 exchange points around the city.

Transport information

TAXI is most convenient and quick transport. Economy ride within the city can vary between 2000 and 4000 KZT (about US$4.5-9.0), depending on demand, traffic and daytime. In rush hours, please allow for heavy traffic jams, especially to the airport. Most drivers speak Russian; for English-speaking drivers special tariffs may be required.

Yandex taxi app: Google Play Apple Store

Uber KZ app: Google Play Apple Store

BUSES and TROLLEYBUSES are most common types of public transportation. One-way ticket costs 150 KZT (cash only) / 120 KZT (with ONAY card)

ONAY card is a local public transportation card that can be purchased in small kiosks around the city or at the metro stations. Via ONAY app you may open a virtual card (app is available in Russian and Kazakh languages only).
ONAY app also contains city map with bus routes and live movement of busses and trolleybuses Google Play Apple Store

METRO has 9 stations across the city, but there is none around AlmaU. You may use the ONAY card or pay with cash (entry ticket is 120 KZT) and credit cards

CAR SHARING are available in many places, e.g. Sharing Anytime.
Google Play Apple Store

GETTING FROM/TO AIRPORT (Almaty International Airport Website; T.: +7727 222-15-51) is most convenient by taxi. The safe choice would be to take the official taxi services or get taxi service from the Yandex / UBER KZ. Cost of a ride to/from the city center may vary from 2500 to 5000KZT, depending on the time of the day (payment in cash in KZT). You can always book transfer from your hotel

Bus itineraries N№86 and N№92 are available from the airport to city center. There is also a night bus №3, but it is not a very reliable service

"New Advances in the Political Economy of Development in Eurasia"