The Largest Academic Event in Economics, Drawing Over 2,500 Participants from 62 Countries
Asia Hosts for the Third Time... Nobel Laureates and Leading Scholars in Attendance
The 2025 World Economists Conference (ESWC 2025) will be held at COEX in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, for five days from August 18 to 22. Organized by the Econometric Society, this is the world's largest academic conference in economics, held once every five years, and is often referred to as the "Olympics for Economists." This marks the first time the event is being held in Korea, and the third time in Asia, following Tokyo, Japan in 1995 and Shanghai, China in 2010.
This conference will cover the latest theoretical and policy research trends across all fields of economics. More than 2,500 participants from 62 countries are expected to attend, including Nobel laureate and author of "Why Nations Fail," Professor James Robinson of the University of Chicago. The event will bring together leading scholars, researchers, professors, graduate students, and policy analysts from all areas of economics, featuring approximately 1,800 academic presentations, exhibitions, invited lectures, and official networking events.
The previous conference was held online in 2020 at Bocconi University in Milan, Italy, where 1,288 papers were presented across a total of 334 sessions. This year's Seoul conference is an in-person event for the first time in a decade, which organizers say will provide greater academic and social significance by enabling direct discussions and networking among participants.
This conference will also feature special lunchtime sessions where participants can engage in direct discussions with leading global scholars. Nobel laureates, prominent economists, and key figures from major international organizations will discuss pressing social and economic issues in depth and hold Q&A sessions with the audience. Session topics will include: ▲Low birth rates and women's participation in the labor market ▲Conversations with Nobel laureates (Professor James Robinson) ▲Geopolitics and the global economy ▲Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC), and other subjects reflecting the latest developments in the global economy and policy.
Key sessions planned by the Korean Economic Association and the local organizing committee, focusing on topics closely related to the Korean economy, include: ▲Global insights on small and medium-sized enterprises as drivers of economic resilience and dynamism (August 18) ▲The North Korean economy and Korean Peninsula unification (August 18) ▲Macroeconomic policy challenges in a super-aged society (August 19) ▲Social safety net policies: Lessons from advanced and developing countries (August 20) ▲Population aging and the economy (August 21) ▲Cross-country comparisons of income dynamics using administrative data (August 21).
The Korean Economic Association, a co-organizer, stated, "This conference will not only serve as an opportunity to enhance the international standing of the Korean economics community, but also strengthen the foundation for international cooperation in both academic and policy fields through exchanges with Nobel laureates and distinguished economists, as well as economic leaders from around the world." The association added, "It will help foster the next generation of economists and contribute to raising public understanding and interest in economics."
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