Established in Barcelona in 2013, the Institute of Political Economy and Governance (IPEG) is a research center that focuses on the interaction between politics (political regimes and institutions, political order and conflict, the aggregation of preferences and interests) and economics (development, the economic cycle, redistribution and welfare), although the multidisciplinary perspective of IPEG extends to sociology, history, archeology, etc. The final objetive is to understand the ultimate causes of development and how to prevent conflict. We rely on an evidence based methodological approach using data science techniques applied to large datasets (satellite imagery, GPS events’ positioning, very detailed information on population spatial distribution, etc.).
Six researchers of IPEG enjoy currently the prestigious ERC Grants which is an indication of the level of excellence of their research.
IPEG, housed at the Ciutadella Campus, is the result of the joint collaboration of “La Caixa” Foundation, the Government of Catalonia and has received the institutional support of Universitat Pompeu Fabra and the Barcelona Graduate School of Economics.