David Gerard

I am an associate professor in the Department of Economics at Lawrence University, with teaching and research interests in the areas of risk regulation and public policy. I teach the core micro theory courses (intro and intermediate price theory), and a number of applied micro courses. To wit, I teach envionrmental economics every year, and the theory of the firm, industiral organization, public economics, and the political economy of regulation in alternating years. To fill out my schedule, I coordinate an Economics Read each term with Professor Galambos. (I have also taught Freshman Studies, but that might not happen again for a while).

My research is also applied micro, focusing on the implementation and enforcement of "non-economic" regulations. I have several papers on technology-forcing policies and several on enforcing regulations via performance bonds. I am continuing work on projects related to transportation fuels and on petroleum refineries, and I was recently added to a National Academy of Sciences panel looking at electronic vehicle controls and unintended vehicle acceleration.

I have been on the development teams of two interactive websites that allow users to explore various dimensions of fatality risks. The first, TrafficSTATS, provides users with a means to explore traffic fatality risks for various vehicle types, demographic characteristics, and other parameters. The second, Death Risk Rankings, allows users to see probability of dying by various causes in the United States and the European Union.

I contribute regularly (perhaps too regularly) to the Lawrence Economics Blog and I can typically be found at the Monday Econ Tea. I am a charter member of the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Reading Group, as well as the founder and champion of the first Schumptoberfest retreat at the Björklunden lodge and this past fall's Schumptoberfest conference (see here for some photo evidence). On a possibly related note, I am the faculty representative of the burgeoning Lawrence Scholars in Law program.

I came to Lawrence in 2009 after eight years at Carnegie Mellon University, where I was the executive director of the Center for the Study & Improvement of Regulation (CSIR) in the Department of Engineering & Public Policy.  I taught in the Engineering & Technology Innovation Management (ETIM) masters program and in the Department of Social & Decision Sciences.

I earned a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Illinois and a B.S. in American studies and economics from Grinnell College.