Keynote Speaker - James Robinson

James Robinson is a University Professor at the Harris School for Public Policy and Department of Political Science at the University of Chicago and recipient of the 2024 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel. He studied economics at the London School of Economics, the University of Warwick and Yale University and is co-author with Daron Acemoglu of Economic Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy, Why Nations Fail, (which has been translated into 51 languages including Amharic, Arabic, Dari, Farsi, Mongolian and Somali), and The Narrow Corridor. His next book, on Sub-Saharan Africa, entitled Wealth in People will be published in 2026. He is currently conducting research in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Nigeria where he is a Fellow at the Institute of African Studies at the University of Nigeria-Nsukka. He taught every summer for 28 years at the University of the Andes in Bogota and now teaches research design in the pan-African collaborative PhD program in economics run by the African Economic Research Consortium in Nairobi.

All presenters and participants are required to register to attend. Please register by Friday, March 6th. Registration is $175 for regular attendees and $50 for students. Please use either the form below or the QR code to register.

Hotel

We have secured a discounted rate at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Anaheim Orange, located at 400 N. State College Boulevard, Orange, CA 92868. To take advantage of this rate, please use the link below by February 27, 2026.