Emily Chamlee-Wright, the Elbert H. Neese Professor of Economics at Beloit College, has been awarded the Hayek Prize by the Atlas Economic Research Foundation. The announcement of the prize, which is named for the late philosopher and political economist Friedrich A. Von Hayek, was made on April 8 by the foundation. “F.A. Hayek understood that markets are an essential feature of free and prosperous societies,” says Chamlee-Wright. “The Atlas Foundation has carried this message around the world. I feel profoundly honored to receive an award named for Hayek, whose scholarship has shaped my entire intellectual career.”
The 14th recipient of the Hayek Prize, Chamlee-Wright was cited for her work at the intersection of studies of entrepreneurship, philanthropy, civil society, and market activities. Her research has focused on female entrepreneurs in Zimbabwe and Ghana and also on disaster relief and reconstruction efforts following hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the United States. Chamlee-Wright is a principal investigator of the Crisis and Response in the Wake of Hurricane Katrina project for the Mercatus Center at George Mason University.
The author of two books, Chamlee-Wright is currently working on a third which is based on her work in post-Katrina New Orleans and will examine how communities deploy social capital resources in the face of poverty and devastation. She joined the Beloit College faculty in 1993 and in 1997 was awarded the James R. Underkofler Undergraduate Teaching Award for excellence in teaching. Her coursework covers a range of topics, including economic development, comparative economic systems, institutional economics and Austrian economics. Chamlee-Wright earned a Ph.D. degree in economics from George Mason University.
The Hayek Prize is supported by the Fund for the Study of Spontaneous Orders at the Atlas Economic Research Foundation and is awarded occasionally to scholars whose work takes them outside the normal fields of academic economics. The Atlas Economic Research Foundation is dedicated to supporting intellectual entrepreneurs who help advance its vision of “a society of free and responsible individuals.” Details can be found online at www.atlasusa.org.
For more information, contact the Beloit College Office of Public Affairs at 608-363-2625.