In anticipation of the 100th anniversary of the Institute’s founding, which will be celebrated in 2027, the Institute is producing a series of videos celebrating its prestigious alumnae.i, professors, and friends. 

In this video, Professor Ugo Panizza, Head of the International Economics Department and Director of the International Centre for Monetary and Banking Studies, meets with Alexander Swoboda, Emeritus Professor of Economics and Founding Director of the International Center for Monetary and Banking Studies, who served as the Institute’s Director from 1990 to 1998. 

In their in-depth conversation, they revisit Alexander Swoboda’s rich history at the Institute, dating back to the 1960s. He recounts his academic journey from his beginnings as a Swiss student in economics at Yale University, under the mentorship of Nobel laureate James Tobin, to his visiting the Institute in pursuit of information on his thesis topic, the Euro-dollar market, a visit that eventually turned into a job offer.

Alexander Swoboda revisits the memory of his early days at the Institute, and shares valuable insights into the challenges the Institute economists faced in developing a rigorous graduate programme when few such programs existed in Switzerland and in Europe, as well as into efforts to integrate technical economics education in an interdisciplinary environment.

In his discussion with Ugo Panizza, Alexander Swoboda elaborates on the importance of balancing technical knowledge with real-world problem-solving in economics, an approach that shaped the Institute’s philosophy of “economic research that matters.” He highlights the importance of figures like Robert Mundell and Harry Johnson who contributed to the Institute’s intellectual environment. 

Alexander Swoboda also discusses his tenure as Director of the Institute, emphasizing his commitment to maintaining high academic standards, for instance by encouraging the formation of a focused political science department, but also by encouraging teaching and research in emerging fields such as humanitarian law within the disciplines traditionally taught at the Institute. With Ugo Panizza, he fondly reminisces over the old buildings of the Institute – the Villa Barton and the Pavillon Rigot – and the close-knit community of the Institute. 

To end the conversation, Alexander Swoboda offers advice to aspiring economists: to view economics not just as a technical tool but as a method for understanding the world, combining data-driven analysis with economic theory, and to maintain intellectual curiosity and respect for differing viewpoints. He warns against turning economics into advocacy without a foundational understanding and champions the values of academic freedom, rigorous debate, and interdisciplinary respect.