Javier Bianchi joins the Department of Economics as an assistant professor after spending a year as a visiting assistant professor at New York University. The Uruguay native is, not surprisingly, a huge soccer fan who still likes to play regularly (and he’s looking for a team to join in Madison if anyone has an opening).
Bianchi, who was hired with funding from the Madison Initiative for Undergraduates, obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Maryland in 2011, after graduating from the Universidad de Montevideo in 2003.
Welcome, Javier! Tell us about your research.
My field is international macroeconomics and macroeconomics. My research focuses on disruptions in financial markets with special emphases on the implications for policy. My interests on these issues come from the financial crisis that Uruguay experienced in 2002 and the more recent global financial crisis.
What courses do you teach?
International Macroeconomics for graduate students and Issues in International Finance and Intermediate Macroeconomics for undergraduates.
What can students expect in the classroom?
My view is that a solid formation in economics comes from the combination of the theoretical and practical work. What helps me keep this necessary balance is connecting with the students by making ongoing economic issues a starting point when introducing new contents from the syllabus. The European crisis will play a central role in my courses. Lots of research is currently being conducted to understand the connection between banking crises and sovereign default, the causes of the run-up to the crises and the implications for policy. These are excellent topics for thinking about dissertation topics for students.
Did you enjoy the 2010 World Cup, when Uruguay finished fourth?
It was a superb moment. I still remember every moment of the game against Ghana in which we ended up winning after penalty kicks.
What's the best book you've read recently?
Miracle in the Andes, by Fernando Parrado. It is a story of the Uruguayan rugby team who survived for three months in the Andes after their plane crashed while flying to Chile for a game in 1972. The author is one of the survivors of the tragedy and he narrates all the challenges of survival. It is a book about friendship and struggle. It's a tragedy and a miracle at the same time.