The Theory of Uneven Development

Erik Reinert

Professor of Technology Governance and Development Strategies at Tallinn University of Technology and Honorary Professor at UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose

Reinert’s work has taken him to more than 70 countries; as a teacher, consultant, or in business. Much of his work is dedicated to teaching and researching in the theory and history of uneven development, with particular attention to the History of Economic Policy as an under-researched area. This includes publishing on the Economic Bestsellers before 1850, on the nearly 100 economics books that were published in more than 10 editions by that date. This includes several once famous economists who are today virtually unknown, this creating an alternative lineage to the Physiocracy-Smith-Ricardo lineage. Reinert’s book How Rich Countries got Rich and why Poor Countries Stay Poor has been translated into 20 languages. 

Dr Craig Berry

Head of Policy and Associate Professor in Economic Policy at UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose

Dr Craig Berry is an experienced academic researcher and policy practitioner. He is a political economist with expertise in economic policy, including industrial policy, and welfare provision, principally pensions. He completed his PhD at the University of Sheffield in 2008, before joining HM Treasury as a policy advisor. He later worked for the International Longevity Centre, and the Trades Union Congress.

His academic career has included roles at the University of Sheffield (Deputy Director of the Sheffield Political Economy Research Institute) and Manchester Metropolitan University (Head of the Future Economies Research Centre). He has also taught at the University of Manchester and University of Warwick. In 2017 he was a member of the Industrial Strategy Commission, and he regularly advises local and national policy-makers on economic policy issues.

Craig has published a large number of articles in peer-reviewed journals, and his books include Pensions Imperilled (Oxford University Press, 2021), The Political Economy of Industrial Strategy in the UK (Agenda, 2021), Developing England's North (Palgrave, 2018), Austerity Politics and UK Economic Policy (Palgrave, 2016), and Globalisation and Ideology in Britain (Manchester University Press, 2011).