Presentation of the new research institute Barcelona Economic Analysis Team (BEAT)
BEAT results as a response from the Faculty of Economics and Business of the UB to these times -in the field of research on economics-, which are marked by important investment cuts on R&D by public administrations and a tendency to create research groups able to respond the challenges of society, such as migrations, increase of obesity, sustainable economic growth, or the new business models in online economy.
“BEAT is an energetic response to the last progresses in the organization of scientific research, which is quickly advancing towards a growing demand of bigger teams, which are more flexible and integrated, able to attract projects and funding internationally”, says Santiago Sánchez Pagés, economist and director of BEAT.
BEAT, which comes willing to bring knowledge and experience fields other institutions did not have, is integrated by forty researchers from different departments of the Faculty of Economics and Business, who are members of seven consolidated research groups of Generalitat de Catalunya. The institute receives advice from a group of international researchers including academicians from the top universities in the United States and Europe such as Stanford, Princeton, Berkeley and Oxford, among others.
Santiago Sánchez regards BEAT as an integrating and transverse institute regarding its themes and research lines. Research will be carried out around three areas: (1) individual behaviour and markets; (2) macroeconomics, development and trade, and (3) environment, sustainability and wellbeing.
Research projects are very diverse. At the moment -to mention some of them- members of BEAT are studying how demographical transition affects the welfare sustainability; to what extent overeducation is due the sectorial composition of the Spanish economy, or the efficiency of voting systems in the European Parliament.
Its members admit there is a need to create a critical mass able to conduct a relevant and high quality research, as well as a need of more visibility, and get more funds from external and international sources, such as the European Research Council, and hire new talents in the international scene, which is getting more and more competitive.