David de la Croix

David de la Croix is a Professor of Economics at UCLouvain (Belgium) and a Research Fellow at the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR). He has held visiting teaching positions at UCLA, University of Copenhagen, Aix-Marseille University, University of Cape Town, and NYU Abu Dhabi, among others. David serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Demographic Economics and has been an associate editor for multiple economic journals.

Research Interests: David focuses on the intersection of human capital and economic growth through general equilibrium frameworks. His work examines how longevity, education-fertility dynamics, family structures, and knowledge institutions influence development. Recent projects include an ERC Advanced Grant on European universities' role in the West's economic take-off, using historical data analysis and quantitative modeling.

Scientific Contributions:

• Developed theories linking gender equality to demographic transitions
• Analyzed corruption's endogenous relationship with institutional quality and growth
• Explored financial market liberalization's dual effects on inequality and long-term growth
• Investigated apprenticeship institutions (guilds, clans) in pre-industrial economic progress

Honors:

• ERC Advanced Grant recipient
• CEPR Research Fellow

Academic Leadership: David has advised 26 doctoral dissertations and co-authored 63 research papers. His work appears in top journals like the American Economic Review and Quarterly Journal of Economics. He co-authored the treatise Economic Growth: Dynamics and Policy in Overlapping Generations with Philippe Michel and produced policy briefs on education, fertility, and institutional reform.