Why Inequalities Grow: Value and Distribution in the History of Economic Thought

21st STOREP Annual Conference. Università degli Studi di Milano, Dipartimento di Studi Storici, June 27-29, 2024 Website

Call for papers

The last few decades have witnessed an increase in inequalities on most accounts. Inequality within countries worldwide, with very few exceptions, remains persistently high. And in advanced economies, where it is typically lower, it is on the rise almost everywhere. Some recent studies have managed perhaps to soften the picture, but certainly not to overturn it. The 21st STOREP Conference, “Why Inequalities Grow: Value and Distribution in the History of Economic Thought”, will be held at the University of Milan, Department of Historical Studies, June 27-29, 2024. The Conference will be preceded by the Young Scholars Initiative (YSI) pre-conference events (June 26-27, 2024).

The Conference will investigate the many aspects and dimensions of inequality: income, wealth, opportunities, and access to basic goods or services, such as housing, water, healthcare, education, and technology. Inequality has many cleavages: it may be defined with respect to countries, regions, or individuals (vertical inequality) but also to ethnicity, religion, caste, gender, and sexuality (horizontal inequality). A peculiar form of inequality has gained prominence in recent years: the inequality between generations, particularly the impoverishment of future generations due to the depletion of natural resources and the increasing costs and risks associated with climate change.

As inequality has increased, so has the acceptance of inequality. Indeed, inequality has found a theoretical justification in neoclassical economics and practical support in neoliberal policies. A particularly striking evidence of how pervasively and persuasively inequality has been made to appear acceptable is provided by the failure of the Swiss “99% initiative”: a referendum proposing to increase taxes on the wealthiest 1% of the population was rejected by over 65% of the voters. In contrast, distribution and its inherent conflicts were once the primary concern of political economy, as stated by David Ricardo at the beginning of his Principles: “To determine the laws which regulate this distribution, is the principal problem in Political Economy”.

The distinction between classes and the one between different types of revenues is still relevant to understanding where inequalities come from and how they are to be addressed. With its history-of-economic-thought focus, the 21st STOREP Annual Conference aims to foster a debate on inequalities, where they come from, where they are going, and how they can be reduced. It welcomes historical, theoretical, and empirical sessions and research papers addressing the different ways in which causes, consequences, and possible remedies have been framed in the history of economic thought. Particularly, it is eager to include studies that can help to understand the impact of COVID-19 and the recent wars, with a special focus on youths, women, and ethnic minorities. Leading experts belonging to different fields of the social sciences domain will discuss:

· Macroeconomic policies and inequality

· Environmental equality

· Labor market, labor mobility, minimum wages, trade unions, industrial relations, and collective bargaining

· Universal basic income

· Welfare, health, and education

· Feminist economics, gender inequalities, and minority discrimination

· Industrial policies, public procurement, and innovation

· Technological change, digital capitalism, platform economy, artificial intelligence

· Monopoly capitalism, rentier capitalism

· Information, property rights, and transaction costs

· Development, migration, and territorial disparities

Paper proposals are welcome in all fields adopting historical and/or theoretical approaches from multiple perspectives. Empirical approaches (both quantitative and qualitative) are considered, provided that they are appropriately framed in a historical or theoretical perspective.

STOREP welcomes special sessions jointly organized with other scientific associations, NGOs, and policy-making institutions by inviting them to submit proposals. As in the past, the 21st STOREP Conference will jointly organize initiatives and special sessions with the Institute for New Economic Thinking, the “Young Scholars Initiative”, and with students and researchers of the international network Rethinking Economics.

Proposals, Registration, and Special Issues Abstract and session proposals must be uploaded on the submission website of the conference – i.e. via the web-based software “Conference maker” (instructions here). Abstract proposals (with keywords, JEL codes, and affiliation) must not exceed 400 words. Session proposals should include the abstract of the four scheduled papers. All participants must become STOREP members or renew their membership (instructions here).

The Review of Political Economy (ROPE) will consider publishing some papers presented at the STOREP Conference. Participants have to send their papers to ROPE within six months after the Conference, and papers will follow a normal submission procedure. Moreover, STOREP is pleased to announce the ongoing collaboration with other scientific journals that welcomes submissions of papers presented by STOREP members.

“Host/Guest Discipline”: History

In 2023, STOREP invited scholars from a “guest discipline”, a neighboring field of study, to discuss its relationships with economics in historical perspective, including the impact it currently has on economics itself, as well as the contribution it can make to creating a new transdisciplinary behavioral science in the future.

In 2024, the STOREP conference is hosted by a Department of Historical Studies. This offers the opportunity to change perspective and think of the history of political economy as part of a larger family encompassing all the various fields of historical research. Therefore, this year we shall not have a “guest”, but rather a “host discipline”, history.

STOREP 2024 welcomes abstract and session proposals from all areas of history, and particularly economic history, intellectual history and the history of political thought.

Important dates

· March 17, 2024: Deadline for abstracts and sessions submission

· April 14, 2024: Notification of accepted and rejected abstracts and sessions

· May 31, 2024: Deadline for submitting full papers and for becoming Members

· May 12, 2024: Deadline for early registration fee

· June 26, 2024: YSI pre-conference

· June 27-29, 2024: 21st STOREP Annual Conference

Important dates for young scholars: Scholarships and Awards

· March 31, 2024: Deadline for submission of Curriculum Vitae and an extended abstract

· April 28, 2024: Deadline for submitting the final papers for Scholarships

· May 10, 2024: Results of the evaluation process

· December 31, 2024: Deadline for submitting articles for Young STOREP Awards Visit the website for details about submissions and registration.

Young Scholars STOREP Awards

(1) STOREP provides two Awards of 1000€ each (so as to make it possible to reward both history-of-economic-thought articles and more policy-oriented papers) for the best articles presented at the Annual Conference by young scholars under 40 years of age. All applications, with CV and the final version of the papers, should be sent to [log in to unmask] no later than December, 31, 2024. Only papers co-authored by no more than 2 researchers, who both meet the requirements for belonging to the “Young” scholars, are eligible for the Award. Winning recipients of the award in one of the three preceding rounds cannot apply. Papers must neither have been published before nor be under review for publication in a scholarly journal at the time of the conference.

(2) Scholarships for young scholars (under 40 years of age, non-tenured). In order to be eligible, the applicant is required to submit a Curriculum Vitae and an extended abstract (2,000 words ca., both to be uploaded on the Submission website) on any topic relevant to the history of political economy, by March 31, 2024. The final version of the papers must be uploaded within April 28, 2024. Applicants will be informed about the result of the evaluation process no later than May 10, 2024. Winners will be awarded free STOREP Conference registration, including the association’s annual membership fee, as well as, if possible, a lump sum contribution to travel and staying expenses.

Organizing Committee

· Luca Fantacci (Università degli Studi di Milano; local organizer)

· Massimo Amato (Università Bocconi)

· Angela Ambrosino (STOREP Secretary, Università di Torino)

· Gianmaria Brunazzi (Università degli Studi di Milano)

· Mario Cedrini (Università di Torino)

· Jacopo Magurno (Università Bocconi)

· Germano Maifreda (Università degli Studi di Milano)

· Eleonora Sanfilippo (Università di Cassino)

Scientific Committee

· Angela Ambrosino (STOREP Secretary, Università di Torino)

· Enrico Bellino (STOREP President, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore)

· Mario Cedrini (Università di Torino)

· Luca Fantacci (Università degli Studi di Milano; local organizer)