Economic Outlook: In the Shadows of the Pandemic

ALUMNI SPEAKER SERIES

Economic Outlook: In the Shadows of the Pandemic

Our world faces a truly unprecedented combination of circumstances: global pandemic, a concurrently sharp economic contraction, war-scale government intervention, soaring debt levels, interest rates at 400-year lows, a stock market that had been priced for perfection, massive social disruption and the technology sector built on shifting sands. What does the immediate future hold?

See the legendary Professor Larry Smith deliver one of his famous addresses. You'll feel like a student all over again! Can't wait to hear Prof. Smith speak in September? Check out his outrageously popular TEDxUW talk, "Why you will fail to have a great career", which has over 6.7 million views.

The audience will have an opportunity to ask Larry questions.

This event will be broadcasted live on the Waterloo Engineering YouTube channel.

Speaker

Larry Smith (BA 1968, Economics; MA 1975, Economics)
Professor, Department of Economics

In elementary school, Larry Smith already knew he wanted to teach. By high school, he found himself fascinated with innovation, entrepreneurship and markets. Economics seemed to him to be the best choice to combine his interests. 

A student at the universities of Western Ontario and Guelph, Larry holds his BA and MA from the University of Waterloo, and an honorary degree from Conestoga College. Specializing in the economics of innovation and forecasting, he has worked with governments, financial institutions, professional associations and companies developing new markets or new products. 

An adjunct associate professor, Larry is the Founding Director of the Problem Lab, one of the few in the world devoted solely to finding and understanding important problems. He has happily taught ten percent of Waterloo’s alumni, and is a recipient of the University’s Distinguished Teacher Award.

For more information on the Alumni Speaker Series, see the Engineering event page.