As the economic and societal impacts of the global financial crisis continue to unfold, experts at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are available to offer perspectives on a wide range of economic topics.
With news expanding from the banking and market collapses to the longer-term, Main Street implications of a struggling economy, this list includes experts in areas such as financing retirement, poverty and economic safety nets, agriculture and commodities, local and state government impacts, retail sales outlooks, Social Security, consumer credit and other topics.
Maria Cancian
Cancian can speak about welfare, poverty and the safety net in times of economic downturn.
Menzie Chinn
He can discuss international financial issues such as trade deficits and currency movements.
Mark Copelovitch
He can discuss the international political economy, with a focus on global financial governance, exchange rates and monetary institutions and the effects of global capital flows on national economic policies.
J. Michael Collins
Collins studies consumer decision-making in the financial marketplace, and can discuss the impact of the crisis on mainstream consumers.
Morris Davis
Davis worked at the Federal Reserve Board under Alan Greenspan for six years before joining the UW-Madison faculty. Davis can discuss macroeconomics, Federal Reserve policy, housing, home building, home prices and the interaction between housing and the macroeconomy.
Thomas DeLeire
He can speak on economic mobility, health insurance spending and the well-being of poor households.
Laura Dresser
She can discuss the Wisconsin economy, strategies for low-wage workers, the state of working Wisconsin, and labor, business and community partnerships.
Randy Fortenbery
He can discuss the impacts of declining commodities prices on state agriculture. In June, for example, corn was priced at nearly $8 a bushel, and today prices have fallen to half that level.
Carolyn Heinrich
She can speak on labor markets, workforce development programs, social welfare policies and government management of economic programs.
Pamela Herd
Herd can discuss Social Security, retirement issues and poverty.
Cynthia Jasper
She can speak about consumer behavior during a downturn and retail industry issues.
Karen Holden
She can speak about retirement, Social Security, personal savings and financial literacy.
Bruce Jones
His expertise is in farm credit and agricultural capital markets. Jones can address how the credit crunch is affecting the state's agricultural industries.
Michael M. Knetter
Knetter, a research associate for the National Bureau of Economic Research, can discuss macroeconomics, international finance and fiscal and monetary policy.
Stephen Malpezzi
His current work focuses on housing prices, regulatory issues, responses to the current financial crisis and the international economy.
Donald Moynihan
He can discuss government management and performance on economic initiatives.
Jerry O’Brien
O'Brien can speak to retail industry trends and the impact on consumers during the holiday season and beyond.
Mark Ready
Ready can discuss trading and prices of stocks and bonds.
Timothy Riddiough
He can discuss the sub-prime and financial market crisis, sub-prime mortgages, mortgage securitization, foreclosure policy and real estate pricing, as well as broader issues of credit risk, leverage, and liquidity in the financial system.
Andrew Reschovsky
He can discuss fiscal policy and local and state impacts of the market downturn.
Roberta Riportella
Riportella also directs Covering Kids and Families, a coalition of more than 65 organizations dedicated to informing qualifying Wisconsin residents about BadgerCare Plus, a state-funded medical insurance program. Riportella can speak to complicated health insurance issues connected to the economic crisis.
Joel Rogers
He can discuss regional economic development, novel strategies for workforce training and modernization, and promoting low-wage workers into family-supporting jobs.
James Seward
Seward can discuss mergers and acquisitions, bankruptcies, corporate finance and restructurings.
Timothy Smeeding
He can speak on the economics of public policy, national and cross-national comparisons of income and wealth inequality, and poverty.
Geoffrey Wallace
He can speak on labor economics, the economics of marriage and the family, and policy issues relating to poverty.
Barbara Wolfe
She can speak on poverty, health and education issues as they relate to economic hardship.