Conference organizer

Organizer of the Capitalism Evolving: Rethinking the Legitimacy of the Market Economy workshop (2024) in Great Barrington, MA, on September 12-15, in collaboration with the American Institute of Economic Research. The workshop is the basis for a forthcoming special issue in Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization.

Member of the organizing committee for the conference Resilience, Governance, and Institutional Performance: National and International Perspectives at the West University of Timisoara, Romania (April 2023), funded by the Romanian Ministry of Education and Research (via its Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation Funding).

Organizer of the Capitalism in Crisis? workshop (2020) at University of Arizona, online.

Member of the organizing committee for the 2020 Research Conference on Voluntary Governance, “Artisanship in Culture and Enterprise”, at Arizona State University (Nov. 5–7, 2020, Tempe, AZ).

Past talks and presentations

Invited

Keynote speaker at the “Ex Pluribus Unum: Articulating Res Publica in a Complex Society” conference at University of Navarra (Pamplona, Spain, October 20, 2023).

“Capitalism and its Crisis of Legitimacy”, PPE Summer School at University of San Diego (June 5-9, 2023, San Diego).

“The origins of democracy” lecture as part of the “Warrior-Scholar Project” organized by Veterans Education and Transition Services at University of Arizona (Tucson, AZ, July 19, 2023).

“Economic resilience: Conceptualisation and interpretation” at the Resilience, Governance, and Institutional Performance: National and International Perspectives conference at the West University of Timisoara (Timisoara, Romania, April 11-13, 2023).

“Constructing personal identities in markets, society, and politics” at the Humanomics Workshop at Troy University (Feb 23, 2023, Troy, AL).

Principal scholar in the foundations sequence of the Mercatus Center‘s 2022-23 Adam Smith Fellowship. “Liberty, Self-Governance & Polycentrism: Key Contributions of Institutional Economics” (April 28-May 1, 2022, Tucson; February 2-5, 2023, Tucson).

“Workshop on Alternative Governance”, organized by Universidad Francisco Marroquín and the American Institute for Economic Research (November 7-9, 2022, Guatemala City, Guatemala).

Keynote Speaker at the Humanomics Symposium at Creighton University, March 18-19th, 2022.

“The Allure of the Liberal Dictator”, Institute for Humane Studies, “Speak for a Sandwich” seminar, December 7th, 2021 (virtual seminar).

“Polycentricity”, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Economics Department brown bag seminar (October 13, 2021, virtual seminar).

“Varieties of Regulatory Regimes” presented at New York University, Department of Economics, Colloquium on Economic Institutions and Market Processes (September 13th, 2021, virtual seminar); Center for the Study of Economic Liberty at Arizona State University, PPE Research Seminar (September 24, 2021, virtual seminar); Entangled Political Economy Research Network (Oct 19, 2021, virtual seminar). Published version is titled “International Regulatory Diversity Over 50 Years” (in Public Choice).

“Capitalism in Crisis? Rethinking the Legitimacy of the Market Economy”, Institute for the Study of Economic Growth at Wichita State University (March 5th, 2021, Wichita, Kansas, virtual seminar).

Roundtable Celebrating the Bloomington School, The Ostrom Workshop at Indiana University (February 3rd, 2021, Bloomington, Indiana, virtual seminar).

“Simple Rules for a More Inclusive Economy”, at the conference “The Strengths and Weaknesses of Simple Rules” organized by the Classical Liberal Institute at New York University School of Law (February 27–29, 2020, New York).

“Capitalism in Crisis: Rethinking the Legitimacy of the Market Economy”, University of Arizona’s PPEL Club (October 23, 2019, Tucson, Arizona).

“Self-governance, robust political economy, and the reform of public administration”, Social Philosophy & Policy, “The Administrative State” conference at University of Arizona (December 5-7, 2019, Tucson, Arizona).

“Arbitrage, Minority Games, and the Discovery of Economic Equilibrium”, North Dakota State University, Economics Department and the Center for the Study of Public Choice and Private Enterprise (February 4th, 2019, Fargo, North Dakota).

“Arbitrage, Minority Games, and the Discovery of Economic Equilibrium”, Middle Tennessee State University, Economics Department and the Political Economy Research Institute (February 8th, 2019, Murfreesboro, Tennessee).

“Understanding the Post-Communist Transition in Eastern Europe”, Troy University, Sorrell College of Business and the Manuel H. Johnson Center for Political Economy (February 13th, 2019, Troy, Alabama).

“Is Institutional Design Possible? How Elinor Ostrom’s IAD Framework Copes with the Combinatorial Explosion in Institutional Complexity”, Tensions in Elinor Ostrom’s Political Economy Project, symposium hosted by Mercatus Center (July 31 — August 1st, 2018, Fairfax, Virginia).

“Self-governance and the reform of public administration” (talk), Reforming Our Institutions, seminar hosted by the Institute of Humane Studies and the State Policy Network (July 20–21, 2018, Chicago, Illinois).

“Ordoliberalism Revisited: A Tocquevillian Perspective on the Challenge of Institutional Design”, Applied Research in Political Economy, colloquium hosted by Mercatus Center (June 5–6, 2018, Fairfax, Virginia).

Mercatus Center book panel on Elinor Ostrom: An Intellectual Biography (January 25, 2018, Fairfax, Virginia)

“Neoliberalism and Regulatory Capitalism: Understanding the ‘Freer Markets More Rules’ Puzzle” at the Comparative Capitalism Conference at the University of Utah (Sept 28-29, 2017, Salt Lake City, Utah).

“Polycentricity: The potential and limits of the analogy between competitive governance and market competition” at the Polycentricity Workshop at Indiana University (December 14-17, 2015, Bloomington, Indiana).

“Co-Production, Polycentricity, and Public Value”, Creating Public Value in a Multi-Sector, Shared-Power World conference at the University of Minnesota, September 20-22, 2012.

“Romania: Impressive improvisation on the short run, dark structural clouds on the long run horizon”, The Uses of Austerity: Spending Cuts, Stimulus and Reform in the Economic Crisis authors meeting conference organized by the Centre for European Studies (June 21-22, 2012, Brussels, Belgium).

“Economic Performance, Social Safety, and Individual Happiness: A Comparative Approach to Communist and Post-Communist Romania” (with Paul Dragos Aligica) at the International Symposium “The First Years of Post-Communism: Transitions and Legacies” organized by the Institute for the Investigation of Communist Crimes and the Memory of the Romanian Exile (IICCMER) (November 26, 2010, Bucharest, Romania).

“The Costs of Drug Prohibition” at the conference A War without Winners: 50 Years of Drug Prohibition organized by the Romanian Harm Reduction Network (June 24, 2011, Bucharest, Romania).

Regular conferences

“Capitalism and the Search for a Meaningful Life”, Markets & Society conference, (October 21-3, 2023, Falls Church, VA)

“Role Models”, The Broadwell College of Business and Economics at Fayetteville State University (Oct 10, 2023, Fayetteville, NC).

“Kirzner at 50: Putting Competition back in ‘Competition and Entrepreneurship'” panel at the Academy of Management 83rd Annual Meeting (August 4-8, 2023).

“Social Norms, Personal Identity, and Rational Choice” at the 60th Annual Meetings of the Public Choice Society (March 2-4, 2023, Seattle).

“Patterns of Contestation: An empirical exploration of the tension between diversity and stability”, Markets & Society conference, (October 21-2, 2022, Falls Church, VA); Ostrom Workshop WOW6 Conference (June 18-21, 2019, Indiana University Bloomington).

“Polycentric Status Contests” presented at PPE Society conference (February 3-5, 2022, New Orleans); World Interdisciplinary Network for Institutional Research, Workshop on Firms, Markets and Polycentricity (8-9 December 2021, online); Southern Economic Association, 91st Annual Meeting (November 20-22, 2021, Houston, Texas).

“A social contract perspective on public administration”, Society for Institutional & Organizational Economics (June 1st, 2021, online)

“The Political Economy of Slippery Slopes: Hayek’s Road to Serfdom, Samuelson’s theory of capitalist fascism, and the origins of The Reason of Rules” (with Andrew Farrant), Winter Institute for the History of Economic Thought at Arizona State University (January 23-25, 2020, Tempe, Arizona).

“Self-governing solutions to behavioral economics problems” (with Tucker Quinn), at the Southern Economic Association, 88th Annual Meeting (November 18-20, 2018, Washington DC).

“Entrepreneurship, Minority Games, and the Discovery of Economic Equilibrium” (with Mengting Chao) at the Southern Economic Association, 87th Annual Meeting (November 17-19, 2017, Tampa, Florida).

“The Devil’s Fix: James M. Buchanan and the Pinochet Junta” (with Andrew Farrant) at the 54th Annual Meetings of the Public Choice Society (March 2-4, 2017, New Orleans, Louisiana).

“Contestation, Shared Community, and Development” at the 54th Annual
Meetings of the Public Choice Society (March 2-4, 2017, New Orleans,
Louisiana).

“Left Behind: Towards an Explanation of Communist Nostalgia” (with Olga
Nicoara), Southern Economic Association, 86th Annual Meeting (November
19-21, 2016, Washington, DC).

“Renegotiating Faustian Bargains: How Political Power Operates in a Rule
of Law System”, Southern Economic Association, 86th Annual Meeting
(November 19-21, 2016, Washington, DC).

“Polycentricity: What it is and why it matters?” (with Ion Sterpan) at
the 53rd Annual Meetings of the Public Choice Society (March 10-12,
2016, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida).

“The Evolution of Governance Structures in a Polycentric System” (with Edward McPhail) at the 53rd Annual Meetings of the Public Choice Society in the “Governance and public choice: Ostromian themes and interpretations” panel organized by Paul Dragos Aligica (March 10-12, 2016, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida).

“Economic Development in a Rent-seeking Society: The Vietnam Development
Model” (with Christine Ngo) at the Southern Economic Association
annual meeting (November 21-23, 2015, New Orleans, Louisiana)

“Polycentric Structure and Informal Norms: Competition and Coordination
within the Scientific Community” at the Southern Economic Association
annual meeting (November 21-23, 2015, New Orleans, Louisiana)

“Polycentric Stakeholder Analysis: Corporate Governance and Corporate
Social Responsibility under Value Heterogeneity” (with Paul Dragos
Aligica) at the Academy of Management 75th annual meeting (August
7-11, 2015, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada)

“Escape from Europe: A Calculus of Consent Model of the Origins of
Democracy in North America” (with Kyle O’Donnell) at the Association of Private Enterprise Education International Conference in the
“Contributions to Virginia Political Economy” panel organized by Peter
Boettke (April 12-14, 2015, Cancún, Mexico).

“The Economic Theory of a Compound Republic: A Calculus of Consent Model
of Self-Governance, Institutional Diversity, and Optimal Federalism” at
the 52nd Annual Meetings of the Public Choice Society in “Public Choice
and the Fiscal Constitution” panel organized by Georg Vanberg (March
12-15, 2015, San Antonio, Texas).

“Escape from Europe: A Calculus of Consent Model of the Origins of
Democracy in North America” (with Kyle O’Donnell) at the at the 52nd
Annual Meetings of the Public Choice Society (March 12-15, 2015, San
Antonio, Texas), finalist at the Ostrom Prize.

“Entrepreneurial Capitalism: The Microeconomics, Institutions, and
Ideology of Sustainable Disequilibrium” (with Paul Dragos Aligica) at
Southern Economic Association annual meeting, on the “The Political
Economy of Entrepreneurial Capitalism” panel organized by the Society for the Development of Austrian Economics (November 22-24, 2014,
Atlanta, Georgia).

“Polycentricity and the Meaning of Self-Governance: The Role of the
Calculus of Consent in Elinor Ostrom’s ‘Design Principles'” at the
Workshop on the Ostrom Workshop (WOW5) (June 18-21, 2014, Indiana
University Bloomington).

“Out-of-Control Capitalism? The Political Consequences of Creative
Destruction” at the Association of Private Enterprise Education Annual
Conference (April 13-15, 2014, Las Vegas, Nevada).

“A Structural Analysis of Regulatory Capitalism” (with Julia Norgaard
and Ryan Safner) at the Association of Private Enterprise Education
Annual Conference (April 13-15, 2014, Las Vegas, Nevada).

“Polycentricity and the Meaning of Self-Governance: The Role of the
Calculus of Consent in Elinor Ostrom’s ‘Design Principles'” at the The 51st Annual Public Choice Society Conference (March 6-9, 2014,
Charleston, South Carolina).

“Co-Production, Polycentricity and Value Heterogeneity: The Ostroms’
Public Choice Institutionalism Revisited” (with Paul Dragos Aligica),
Southern Economic Association annual meeting (November 23-25, 2013,
Tampa, Florida)

“Resilience and Market Failure”, Society for the Development of Austrian Economics at the Southern Economic Association annual
meeting (November 23-25, 2013, Tampa, Florida)

“The Emergence of Action Arenas: Searle and Ostrom on the Interplay
between Political Power and Institutional Evolution”, Institute for Humane Studies Fall Research Colloquium (November 15-17, 2013, Fairfax,
Virginia).

“Firm Internationalization in Transition Economies: A Romanian Case
Study through Public Choice Theoretical Lenses” (with Paul Dragos
Aligica), Academy of Management 73rd annual meeting, conference theme
“Capitalism in Question”, on the panel “Firm Internationalization in
Transition Economies” (August 9-13, 2013, Orlando, Florida)

“The Varieties of Liberty Ideals: Do Conservatives, Progressives and
Libertarians Understand Freedom Differently?” at the Symposium on
Scholarship & a Free Society organized by the Institute for Humane Studies (May 24 — 27, 2013, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA).

“Crony Capitalism: Rent-Seeking, Institutions, and Ideology” (with Paul
Dragos Aligica) at the Association of Private Enterprise Education
Annual Conference on the panel “Regulatory force: its nature and impact”
(April 14 – 16, 2013, Maui, Hawaii).

“Alternative Economic Systems and Institutional Resilience: Lessons from
Elinor Ostrom’s Work” (with Paul Dragos Aligica) at the Association of Private Enterprise Education Annual Conference on the panel “Lin Lives”
(April 14 – 16, 2013, Maui, Hawaii).

“Economic Systems, Stages Theory and the Political Economy of Regulatory
Capitalism” (with Paul Dragos Aligica) at the 82nd annual conference of
the Southern Economic Association (November 16-18, 2012, New Orleans,
LA).

“Regulatory Capitalism: Overview of the concept, implications of the
phenomenon” (with Paul Dragos Aligica), at the Association of Private Enterprise Education Annual Conference (April 1-3, 2012, Las Vegas,
Nevada). Conference theme: “Wither Leviathan? Changing Roles for the
State”. For the panel organized by Richard Williams, “From Regulatory
Capitalism to Regulatory Global Regimes”.

“Exploring State Capitalism: Theories and Models of Mercantilism,
Socialism, and Rent Seeking” (with Paul Dragos Aligica), at the
Association of Private Enterprise Education Annual Conference (April
1-3, 2012, Las Vegas, Nevada). Conference theme: “Wither Leviathan?
Changing Roles for the State”.