Robert H. Haveman

Obituary

In Remembrance of Robert H. Haveman

It is my sad duty to inform you that our friend and colleague Robert Haveman passed away on June 18, 2022, at age 85. Bob’s research covered a variety of areas of public finance but was especially focused on poverty and social mobility. He started his academic career with a PhD at Vanderbilt University and held positions at various universities and research institutions. In 1970 he moved to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he was Director of the Institute for Research on Poverty from 1971 to 1975, and Director of the La Follette School of Public Affairs from 1988 to 1991. Bob was a prodigiously productive and successful researcher, an award-winning teacher and a sought-after policy adviser. Among other things, he was co-editor of the American Economic Review from 1985 to 1991 and President of the International Institute of Public Finance from 1997 to 2000.

The ifo Institute is particularly indebted to him. His connection to ifo began in 1998. Together with his wife and colleague Barbara Wolfe, he spent the academic year 1998-1999 at the Center for Economic Studies (CES) in Munich. During his stay at CES, Hans-Werner Sinn, then Director of CES, was appointed as the new ifo president. One of the first things Hans-Werner Sinn did was to introduce a new research seminar at ifo, and Bob Haveman was the first speaker. In 2005 Bob became member and in 2008 chairman of ifo’s Scientific Advisory Council, a position he held until 2013. In this role, he made key contributions to ifo’s academic development and to its success in combining economic research with policy advice. Bob was a very active member of the CESifo Research Network for many years.

Bob will be sorely missed, but his outstanding academic work, his contributions to policy debate, his service to the profession and the support he gave to ifo will stay with us. Our deepest sympathy is with our dear friend and colleague, Bob’s wife Barbara.

Obituary written by Clemens Fuest, CESifo