Daniel Trefler (born 1959) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this field there are ...

who is currently the J. Douglas and Ruth Grant Chair in Competitiveness and Prosperity at the

Rotman School of Management The Joseph L. Rotman School of Management (commonly known as the Rotman School of Management, the Rotman School or just Rotman) is the University of Toronto's graduate business school, located in Downtown Toronto. The University of Toronto has b ...

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...

. He is among the most influential and frequently cited economists worldwide.Top 10% Authors, as of December 2017
" IDEAS.

Background

Born and raised in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, Trefler graduated from the

in 1982 with a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...

and mathematics. He then attended

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

and

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

, receiving his

M.Phil. The Master of Philosophy (MPhil; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. In the United States, an MPhil typically includes a taught portion and a significant research portion, during which a thesis project is conducted under supervision. An MPhil ...

from the former (1983) and

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

from the latter (1989). Starting that year, he worked at the University of Toronto's Department of Economics. He spent the two years from 1994 to 1996 at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...

, before deciding to return home permanently to Toronto to serve as a professor at the Rotman School in the University of Toronto. In 2004, he was awarded the prestigious

Canada Research Chair Canada Research Chair (CRC) is a title given to certain Canadian university research professors by the Canada Research Chairs Program. Program goals The Canada Research Chair program was established in 2000 as a part of the Government of Canada ...

Career

Trefler's work has provided academics, policymakers, and business leaders with invaluable observations on economic issues facing Canada and nations worldwide. Some of his most recognized academic contributions include his "case of the missing trade", the impact of exporting on firm productivity, and the relationship between a country's

income Income is the consumption and saving opportunity gained by an entity within a specified timeframe, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. Income is difficult to define conceptually and the definition may be different across fields. Fo ...

and the products it

exports An export in international trade is a good produced in one country that is sold into another country or a service provided in one country for a national or resident of another country. The seller of such goods or the service provider is an ...

. His studies have brought deep insights into how

international trade International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories because there is a need or want of goods or services. (see: World economy) In most countries, such trade represents a significant ...

can fundamentally alter societal institutions: for example, how changes in the relative power of special interest groups can impact

innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a new or changed entit ...

, constitutional arrangements, worker rights, and the

distribution of wealth The distribution of wealth is a comparison of the wealth of various members or groups in a society. It shows one aspect of economic inequality or economic heterogeneity. The distribution of wealth differs from the income distribution in that ...

. Currently, he has been studying the impact of

artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech r ...

on trade. Trefler is renowned for his ground-breaking contributions to

public policy Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to solve or address relevant and real-world problems, guided by a conception and often implemented by programs. Public p ...

formation in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, and he has been given full scope to pursue his many policy initiatives, including in the

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

Task Force on Competitiveness, Productivity and Economic Progress, as well as in

Global Affairs Canada Global Affairs Canada (GAC; french: Affaires mondiales Canada; AMC)''Global Affairs Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (). is the department ...

. His research has been instrumental in the design of

trade agreements A trade agreement (also known as trade pact) is a wide-ranging taxes, tariff and trade treaty that often includes investment guarantees. It exists when two or more countries agree on terms that help them trade with each other. The most common tr ...

that promote

productivity Productivity is the efficiency of production of goods or services expressed by some measure. Measurements of productivity are often expressed as a ratio of an aggregate output to a single input or an aggregate input used in a production proces ...

, and investment while minimizing harmful effects on workers. In recent years, he helped frame the document that launched the Canada-EU trade agreement. In Canada, Trefler is a Senior

Research Fellow A research fellow is an academic research position at a university or a similar research institution, usually for academic staff or faculty members. A research fellow may act either as an independent investigator or under the supervision of a pr ...

at the Canadian Institute for Advanced Studies, a research fellow at the

C.D. Howe Institute The C. D. Howe Institute (french: Institut C. D. Howe) is a Canadian nonprofit policy research organization in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It aims to be distinguished by "research that is nonpartisan, evidence-based, and subject to definitive exper ...

, an advisor to the Institute for Competitiveness and Prosperity, and served as a member of the academic advisory board in the

Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Global Affairs Canada (GAC; french: Affaires mondiales Canada; AMC)''Global Affairs Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (). is the department ...

. Internationally, he is a research fellow at the

National Bureau of Economic Research The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) is an American private nonprofit research organization "committed to undertaking and disseminating unbiased economic research among public policymakers, business professionals, and the academic c ...

and the

Centre for Policy Research The Centre for Policy Research (CPR) is an Indian think tank focusing on public policy. Established in 1973 and located in New Delhi, it is one of the national social science research institutes recognized by the Indian Council of Social Scie ...

. He gives public lectures and seminars across the world, including at Harvard,

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the m ...

, Stanford,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

LSE LSE may refer to: Computing * LSE (programming language), a computer programming language * LSE, Latent sector error, a media assessment measure related to the hard disk drive storage technology * Language-Sensitive Editor, a text editor used ...

and Peking University. He makes frequent media appearances within Canada and abroad, including a term as an invited columnist at

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

. Trefler was a long-standing co-editor at the

Journal of International Economics The ''Journal of International Economics'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal in the field of economics. The journal publishes articles on both theoretical and empirical aspects of international economics. Various topics covered include trade pat ...

, the top-ranked journal in his field, and served on the

Editorial Board The editorial board is a group of experts, usually at a publication, who dictate the tone and direction the publication's editorial policy will take. Mass media At a newspaper, the editorial board usually consists of the editorial page editor, ...

of the American Economic Association's

Journal of Economic Literature The ''Journal of Economic Literature'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal, published by the American Economic Association, that surveys the academic literature in economics. It was established in 1963 as the ''Journal of Economic Abstracts'',

. He has received all three major awards of the

Canadian Economics Association The Canadian Economics Association (CEA) is the academic association of Canadian economists. Its object is to advance economic knowledge through study and research, and to encourage informed discussion of economic questions. The Association will no ...

: the Harry Johnson Prize, John Rae Prize, and the Innis Lecture, the latter of which is awarded in recognition of contributions to economics in the broadest sense. He was awarded Canada's Killam Prize in 2016. Dubbed Canada's Nobel, the Killam Prize is awarded annually to "academic titans" for "pushing the boundaries of their fields" His advocacy on behalf of children earned him the

Noni MacDonald Noni E. MacDonald is a Canadian physician. She is a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics and former Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Dalhousie University. In 2019, MacDonald was awarded the Order of Nova Scotia and Order of Canada. Earl ...

Award from the Canadian Paediatric Society. He is the recipient of the Bank of Canada Fellowship Award and was the 2011 Ohlin Lecture, the most internationally celebrated lecture in his core field of

international economics International economics is concerned with the effects upon economic activity from international differences in productive resources and consumer preferences and the international institutions that affect them. It seeks to explain the patterns and ...

Selected Articles for a General Audience

* "The Politics of Inequality." ''Rotman Magazine''. Fall 2017, pages 94–97. * "Canada Should Lead Development of Clean, Renewable Energy." ''Globe & Mail''. June 22, 2015. With Alan Bernstein and Ted Sargent. * "Canada: Oiled by Tar or Tarred by Oil." ''OpenCanada.org''. April 7, 2014. * "The One Percent in History." ''Rotman Magazine''. Fall 2013, pages 93–96. * "Loonacy of Parity: How a Strong Dollar Weakens Canada." ''Globe & Mail''. October 16, 2010, F9. * "A Time and Place for Free Trade." ''Harvard College Economic Review'', volume II, issue 2. Spring 2008. * "Think Globally, Invest Locally: Responding to the Rise of Offshoring." ''Rotman Magazine''. Fall 2005, pages 42–45. * "Treating Children Well Strengthens a Nation." ''The Ottawa Citizen''. September 4, 2004. * "Looking Back: How Childhood Experiences Impact a Nation’s Wealth." ''Rotman Magazine''. Spring/Summer 2004.

References

External links

Homepage at Rotman School of Management
{{DEFAULTSORT:Trefler, Daniel 1959 births Living people Alumni of the University of Cambridge International economists Innovation economists People from Toronto Trade economists University of California, Los Angeles alumni University of Toronto alumni Academic staff of the University of Toronto 20th-century Canadian economists 21st-century Canadian economists

Background

Career

Selected Articles for a General Audience

See also

References

External links