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91��ܽ’s Department of Economics is pleased to welcome Guillaume Blanc to the faculty as an assistant professor. Blanc’s research focuses on economic history and development, with a focus on political economy, demography, and cultural economics.

“I have always been interested in why some countries are rich while others are poor,” Blanc explains. “That is what led me to study economics and pursue research in these areas.”

Blanc earned his PhD in Economics from Brown University and spent three years as an assistant professor at the University of Manchester. He was drawn to SFU by the department’s research strengths across many fields and the broad interests of researchers in the department. “As a small department, discussion across fields is crucial, which makes it a stimulating place for research,” he says.  

He is also excited to call Vancouver home. Outside of work, he enjoys time with family and friends, good coffee, food, wine, music, and movies, as well as the outdoors and traveling.

His current research examines how culture and institutions shape long-run development, with work on the cultural origins of the first historical fertility transition and the role of mass education in linguistic homogenization and nation-building. His new projects use large-scale genealogies to study migration and cultural change, and investigate hope and resilience in the narratives of civil conflict victims to understand how communities rebuild trust, recover from violence, and sustain peace after conflict.

Welcome to the department Guillaume, we look forward to working with you!