History of CESifo

What does it take to turn a disparate group of economics scholars paying a scholarly visit to Munich, then a backwater in economics, into one of the world’s foremost research networks in the field? Two things: vision, and Hans-Werner Sinn. Long Germany’s most influential economist, HWS built up the network to now more than 2,000 prominent members spread around five continents, created the highly successful CESifo Working Paper series, with now some 11,000 papers published, and turned Munich into a hotbed of economic research, with more than 800 economics events so far.  And all of that in barely 25 years.

On our Silver Jubilee, we are proudly looking back and, under the steady hand of Clemens Fuest, HWS's hand-picked successor, also proudly looking ahead, to the next 25 years—and beyond.

25 years CESifo

25 years ago Hans-Werner Sinn had the visionary idea of combining a network of 230 guest researchers who had visited the Center for Economic Studies (CES) at the LMU Munich and the growing high quality CES working paper series with the concept of organizing research conferences in Munich and elsewhere. This led to the foundation of CESifo.

“Our aim is go beyond the content of the research and also offer opportunities for dialog on a personal level.”

Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Clemens Fuest, president of CESifo

The Future Holds More Excellence, More China, and More Digitalization

Interview with Clemens Fuest

The current CESifo president on the occasion of the society’s 20th anniversary

 

The CESifo Research Network is celebrating its 20th anniversary. What is your personal take on this milestone?

The CESifo network is a spectacular success. It was the brainchild of CESifo founder Hans-Werner Sinn. His vision was to combine the guest program of the Center for Economic Studies (CES) and the center’s Working Papers series with international economics conferences to create an international network of researchers. This fundamentally changed the landscape of scientific research in Europe and opened up new opportunities for many scientists. Having benefited from this myself as a young scientist, it is a great pleasure for me to personally develop CESifo further now. 

In what areas has CESifo taken the lead?

CESifo is certainly a leader in the fields of public finance, the economics of education, and behavioral economics. But the other research areas are also developing excellently. Moreover, CESifo’s European Economic Advisory Group has provided important impetus in recent years for the further development of Europe. This initiative is complemented by EconPol, a network of European research institutions, which ifo launched in 2016. 

What does it mean for Munich as a science location to have this network closely linked to the local ifo Institute?

It’s no longer possible to imagine what successful economic research would be like without international networking. Our aim is go beyond the content of the research and also offer opportunities for dialog on a personal level. CESifo makes Munich an economic research location with global appeal. Conferences and research opportunities bring hundreds of international scientists to the Bavarian capital every year, where they can exchange ideas with local researchers, especially junior economists. This is a huge advantage for the city. 

What goals have you set yourself for the future?

There are already four Nobel recipients among the network’s Distinguished Fellows. But we must not rest on these laurels. In my view, the most important goal is to push the network’s research excellence even higher. Both the economic and economic-policy challenges and the demands placed on economic research are changing more and more rapidly. CESifo will seize every opportunity that presents itself. For example, we recently established a new research area – the Economics of Digitalization – that serves a cross-sectional purpose. It is intended to generate insights into the consequences of new technologies on various dimensions of economic activity. At the same time, it is a center for research based on new methods and data that have been made accessible through digitalization. What’s more, some regions of the world are not yet strongly enough represented in our network. In the future, we will include more scientists from East Asia and Central and Eastern Europe. 

 

CESifo in Figures

818 CESifo events with 41144 participants since 1999

Live Networking 

Conferences and events taking place all over the world have always been at the core of CESifo's activities. At these occasions members can get in touch personally, discuss and exchange ideas.

80 books with MIT Press and 10894 CESifo Working Papers published since 1999

Knowledge with impact 

From the beginning CESifo working papers and books have been valuable formats for network members to present their research results and distribute them to the scientific community.

“Research thrives on international exchange but we couldn't always go to America to exchange ideas.”

Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. mult Hans-Werner Sinn, former president of CESifo

From Dream to Reality – With Continuity and Perseverance

Interview with Hans-Werner Sinn

Founding president of CESifo, to mark the 20th anniversary of the international network

 

The CESifo network of researchers is celebrating its 20th anniversary. What is your personal view of how it has turned out?

The network has developed brilliantly. We have succeeded in bringing together top researchers from all over the world. The CESifo area conferences, not least the Venice Summer Institute, enjoy a high profile. Perhaps more importantly, CESifo has given its economists an important voice in the European debate.  And Munich, as the hub of CESifo, has gained an important place on the map of top economists. 

What was the need for CESifo? 

Research thrives on international exchange. The idea was to establish a research network in Europe along the lines of America's NBER, because we couldn't always go to America to exchange ideas. The goal was for the network to become a platform where economists from across Europe and overseas could exchange their research in all fields of economics and also discuss the economic aspects of the European integration process. I didn't want to leave the debate about the new, integrated Europe that was emerging to policymakers alone. Of course, the network's headquarters could just as well have been set up in Madrid or Paris. But Munich is an attractive city, too, that is easily accessible from all over the world thanks to its large airport.

Please tell us how it all began... 

At LMU there was going to be a visitor program called CES established for economists from all over the world. I had been promised this in 1988 as part of the negotiations to encourage me to stay after I had been offered a post in Berne. At the beginning it was not clear when the money would come, though. In December 1990 I suddenly learned that it would start on January 1, 1991. The first guest researchers were invited. I was able to attract leading economists from all over the world to join the CES Advisory Council and give lectures in the Economics Faculty's new graduate program. At the same time, a series of working papers to be distributed worldwide was established. 

When did CES become CESifo?

It was when I took office as President of the ifo Institute in 1999 that we were supported by the Bavarian state government to connect and expand the CES network with the ifo Institute under the name of CESifo. The headquarters of the new network was installed within the ifo Institute's premises. We distributed the existing stock of previous visitors to CES among several specialist areas. Annual research conferences were held in Munich under the direction of renowned international economists. At the same time, we significantly expanded the guest researcher and lecture program. CESifo and its working paper series grew year after year. New English-language journals helped the network's researchers disseminate their research findings around the world in the form of CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo DICE Report, and CESifo Forum. CES had already begun recording the lectures of the visiting researchers and making them available in the media library. A valuable archive of economic research and teaching was thus created that is almost unparalleled in this form anywhere in the world. 

CESifo is today an institution firmly embedded in the international economic scene and is the embodiment of research and excellence. Would you ever have dreamed that it would come so far?

Yes, certainly, that was the plan. In the beginning there was the dream. But to turn a dream into reality, it takes years of persistent work in which many enthusiastic and hard-working employees and colleagues were involved. I want to emphasize in particular the role of Meinhard Knoche, my colleague in the Ifo board. Designing and reforming institutions is one thing. Keeping them alive and constantly developing them over decades is quite another. Continuity and perseverance are the recipe for success if you want to build up a reputation and anchor an institution firmly in the real lives of the people associated with it.

What event in the network's history do you consider to have been particularly important in retrospect?

The decision of the state government to provide funding for the network was crucial. The money had become available when the ifo Institute lost its status as a research institute after the failed evaluation in 1996. This was crucial for a fundamental turnaround in the history of the institute. When, some years later and after fundamental reforms, the ifo Institute returned to the ranks of research institutes and the state of Bavaria (paradoxically) had to bear a higher percentage of the costs of the ifo, there was once again a risk to the funding. However, the network had developed so fantastically in the meantime that the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs provided additional funds for long-term financing.  

How has the relationship with LMU developed over the years?

The LMU Senate's decision to turn the ifo Institute into an "institute at the university" was not only a noble title for the ifo itself, but it also enabled the network to set up the Venice Summer Institute within the framework of the Venice International University. It is an annual series of conferences consisting of five separate conferences, to which we regularly attract top scientists from all over the world. LMU Munich is one of the joint operators of Venice International University and was therefore able to grant us this opportunity. And it is very important that we managed to find an outstanding successor in the person of Clemens Fuest, who knows how important the network is and who has expanded it once more in an important dimension through the EconPol project.

Contact
Dr. Cornelia Geißler

Dr. Cornelia Geißler

Head of Communications
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Prof. Dr. Oliver Falck

Prof. Dr. Oliver Falck

Director of the ifo Center for Industrial Organization and New Technologies
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+49(0)89/9224-1460
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