This collection of essays honors a remarkable man and his work. Erik
Thorbecke has made significant contributions to the microeconomic and
the macroeconomic analysis of poverty, inequality and development,
ranging from theory to empirics and policy. The essays in this volume
display the same range. As a collection they make the fundamental point
that deep understanding of these phenomena requires both the micro and
the macro perspectives together, utilizing the strengths of each but
also the special insights that come when the two are linked together.
After an overview section which contains the introductory chapter and a
chapter examining the historical roots of Erik Thorbecke's motivations,
the essays in this volume are grouped into four parts, each part
identifying a major strand of Erik's work--Measurement of Poverty and
Inequality, Micro Behavior and Market Failure, SAMs and CGEs, and
Institutions and Development. The range of topics covered in the essays,
written by leading authorities in their own areas, highlight the
extraordinary depth and breadth of Erik Thorbecke's influence in
research and policy on poverty, inequality and development.
Acknowledgements These papers were presented at a conference in honor of
Erik Thorbecke held at Cornell University on October 10-11, 2003. The
conference was supported by the funds of the H. E. Babcock Chair in
Food, Nutrition and Public Policy, and the T. H. Lee Chair in World
Affairs at Cornell University.