Joseph Stiglitz is an American economist and professor who won the 2001 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. He graduated from MIT in 1969 and has published for academic and broader audiences ever since. His work focuses on Georgism, the economic idea that value derived from nature (e.g., natural resources) belongs equally to all society. He chaired the Council of Economic Advisers during the Clinton administration and later served as senior vice president and chief economist at the World Bank.

Stiglitz is an outspoken critic of globalization, laissez-faire economics, and institutions like the International Monetary Fund. In 2002 he entered public debates about globalization, publishing a series of books aimed at debunking myths about globalization’s benefits. Time magazine named Stiglitz one of the most influential people in the world in 2011. His 2012 book The Price of Inequality continues his earlier academic and public sector work that investigates and offers solutions to market failure.