Drawings of Water Lifting Devices by Leonardo da Vinci, 1480.
"To be an artist you have to be curious." Leonardo da Vinci.
Being curious about everything is the defining trait of Leonardo.
Who Am I:
I am an economist, with broad interests. Like the legendary polymath and genius Leonardo da Vinci, I am curious about everything.
I am one of the world's authorities on the subject of negotiations.
I was educated at the London School of Economics (LSE) and the University of Cambridge.
I have over 37 years of teaching and research experience, across several universities including Cambridge, the LSE, Harvard, Bristol, Warwick, Essex, Paris, Delhi and Mumbai.
I have been a full professor of economics for over 25 years. I have published extensively in top economics journals.
I have over 20 years of leadership and management experience - having been the Head of the Departments of Economics at the Universities of Essex and Warwick (spanning a period of 16 years), the Dean of Warwick in London for four years, and since May 2023 the Dean of the Meghnad Desai Academy of Economics.
I am a naturally gifted communicator and public speaker.
I am an institution builder, change agent and an academic entrepreneur.
I have over 30 years of policy experience having co-founded a policy lab (jointly with a senior ex-civil servant in the UK), and am a member of the Cross UK Parliamentary Party Youth Violence Commission, and a Fellow of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR).
I have many years of experience of commenting on various issues in the media and the press, such as on Brexit and Climate negotiations, the Budget, Higher Education, International Development and Public Policy.
I have an international mindset and broad perspective, having grown up in 7 cities across 4 countries (India, Brazil, England and Italy) and been to 9 different schools.
“Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.” Edward de Bono.
Me working with artists - economics meets the arts. A summary video of the Bank On It production:
My interview with Phil Upton from the BBC about the policy responses to the impact on livelihoods, unemployment and public finances resulting from the lockdowns due to Covid. The YouTube link is here.
Me with BBC's Steph McGovern, just before she interviewed me for BBC Breakfast the day after the Chancellor's Budget, on the factory floor of the Pretty Polly company, Nottingham, 2014:
What makes me tick:
I am an energetic, enthusiastic, dynamic, positive and passionate individual.
I like to "say yes" - Eric Schmidt, the one time CEO of Google, explains this notion of "saying yes" during his fascinating lecture at Stanford University.
I am a born networker.
I share Steve Job's view that one should "Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish." His Stanford University Commencement speech, where he mentions this, is simply mesmerizing - here is a YouTube link to it.
And similarly, in 2015, but this time on the floor of a farm shop, somewhere in South Staffordshire:
Me and the then UK Chancellor Alastair Darling MP, Coventry, 2010:
Me, Football and Negotiations. But first, this is important:
My article on the negotiations of Gareth Bale's record transfer of £100 million from Tottenham Hotspurs to Read Madrid is here.
Me playing for my school team, Brasilia 1978:
Me playing with my ex-students and friends, London 2019:
