

Hayek Program Podcast
F.A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics
The Hayek Program Podcast includes audio from lectures, interviews, and discussions of scholars and visitors from the F. A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. The F. A. Hayek Program is devoted to the promotion of teaching and research on the institutional arrangements that are suitable for the support of free and prosperous societies. Implicit in this statement is the presumption that those arrangements are to some extent open to conscious selection, as well as the appreciation that the type of arrangements that are selected within a society can influence significantly the economic, political, and moral character of that society.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jun 12, 2024 • 1h 37min
"The Struggle for a Better World" Book Panel
On this episode, we’ll hear a book panel discussion on Peter Boettke’s book, The Struggle for a Better World (Mercatus Center at George Mason University, 2021). In his comments, Boettke provides an overview of his book, emphasizes the role that institutions play in human societies, and discusses his focus on improving the human condition by lifting up those who are least prosperous in our world. The panel is moderated by Stefanie Haeffele, and they are joined on the panel by:Emily Chamlee-Wright, President and CEO of the Institute for Humane Studies, and co-author of How We Came Back: Voices from Post-Katrina New Orleans (2015)Alain Marciano, Professor of Economics and Statistics at the University of Turin, distinguished affiliated fellow with the Hayek Program, and author of James Buchanan and Peaceful Cooperation: From Public Finance to a Theory of Collective Action (2024)Mark Pennington, Professor of Political Economy and Public Policy and Director of the Center for the Study of Governance and Society at King’s College London, and author of Robust Political Economy: Classical Liberalism and the Future of Public Policy (2011)View Emily Chamlee-Wright's "The Four Corners of Liberalism" graphic here.Peter Boettke is a Distinguished University Professor of Economics and Philosophy at George Mason University and Director of the F.A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics and Economics at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. He has published numerous books including Living Economics: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow (2012) and F. A. Hayek: Economics, Political Economy and Social Philosophy (2018).If you like the show, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and tell others about the show! We're available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and wherever you get your podcasts.Virtual Sentiments, our new podcast series from the Hayek Program is now streaming! Subscribe today and listen to seasons one and two!Follow the Hayek Program on Twitter: @HayekProgramLearn more about Academic & Student ProgramsFollow the Mercatus Center on Twitter: @mercatusCC Music: Twisterium

May 29, 2024 • 1h 8min
Entangled Political Economy — Richard Wagner on the Origins of EPE
This is the first episode of a three-part miniseries on entangled political economy (EPE), hosted by Mikayla Novak. Entangled political economy is a sub-discipline of political economy that explicitly views individuals and the private and public sectors as being intertwined in overlapping exchange relationships along competitive and collaborative dimensions.On this episode, Mikayla Novak interviews Richard Wagner on entangled political economy. Wagner discusses the framework’s origins, influenced by James Buchanan, and critiques governmental inefficiency, advocating for privately ordered governance. Wagner reflects on his teaching experiences which integrated anthropology, sociology, and other social sciences, and how these shaped his understanding of economics as a broad social science encompassing various forms of exchange and societal interactions. He highlights Vincent Ostrom's work on the limitations of government, and considers the future directions of EPE.Richard Wagner is Emeritus Professor of Economics at George Mason University and Distinguished Senior Fellow with the F.A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University.If you like the show, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and tell others about the show! We're available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and wherever you get your podcasts.Virtual Sentiments, our new podcast series from the Hayek Program is now streaming! Subscribe today and listen to seasons one and two!Follow the Hayek Program on Twitter: @HayekProgramLearn more about Academic & Student ProgramsFollow the Mercatus Center on Twitter: @mercatusCC Music: Twisterium

May 15, 2024 • 38min
"Living Better Together" — On Culture and Economics
Carolina Dalla Chiesa, an expert in cultural economics, and Crystal Dozier, an archaeologist, dive into the intricate dance between culture and economics. They discuss how interdisciplinary approaches illuminate economic exchanges, blending insights from economics, archaeology, and sociology. Highlights include the symbolic meanings of money and the dynamics of governance structures. The duo emphasizes the value of historical and cultural perspectives in understanding non-market societies and rethinking economic practices beyond conventional norms.

May 1, 2024 • 1h 28min
"Freedoms Delayed" Book Panel
On this episode, we’ll hear a book panel discussion on Timur Kuran’s book, Freedoms Delayed: Political Legacies of Islamic Law in the Middle East (Cambridge University Press, 2023). In his comments, Timur provides an overview of his book, highlighting the Middle East's struggle with repressiveness, the challenges of fostering a liberal civil society, and the historical role of Islamic legal institutions. The panel is moderated by Peter J. Boettke, and they are joined on the panel by:Mark Koyama,* Associate Professor of Economics at George Mason University, Senior Fellow with the F.A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at the Mercatus Center, and co-author of How the World Became Rich (2022) and Persecution and Toleration (2019).James Robinson, Professor of Political Science at the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago, The Reverend Dr. Richard L. Pearson Professor of Global Conflict Studies, Institute Director at the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts, and he has numerous books including The Narrow Corridor (2019) and Why Nations Fail (2013).Jennifer Brick Murtazashvili, Founding Director of the Center for Governance and Market and Professor at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, and co-author of Land, the State, and War: Property Institutions and Political Order in Afghanistan (2021).Timur Kuran is a Turkish-American economist and political scientist. He is a Professor of Economics and Political Science and the Gorter Family Professor of Islamic Studies at Duke University. He has published multiple books including The Long Divergence: How Islamic Law Held Back the Middle East (2011) and Private Truths, Public Lies: The Social Consequences of Preference Falsification (1997).*Mark Koyama's comments were recorded separatelyIf you like the show, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and tell others about the show! We're available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and wherever you get your podcasts.Virtual Sentiments, our new podcast series from the Hayek Program is now streaming! Subscribe today and listen to season two, now releasing!Follow the Hayek Program on Twitter: @HayekProgramLearn more about Academic & Student ProgramsFollow the Mercatus Center on Twitter: @mercatusCC Music: Twisterium

Apr 17, 2024 • 49min
"Living Better Together" — On Community Resilience
On this episode of the Hayek Program Podcast, we continue the Living Better Together miniseries, featuring select authors of Living Better Together: Social Relations and Economic Governance in the Work of Ostrom and Zelizer (Palgrave Macmillan, 2023) and hosted by its coeditor, Stefanie Haeffele.Joining us today are Anne Hobson and Laura Grube. Together they explore the complexities of institutional diversity, community recovery, and crisis resilience through the lenses of Ostrom and Zelizer. Laura’s chapter focuses on community recovery following Hurricane Katrina and Superstorm Sandy and emphasizes the importance of local, community-driven solutions following disasters. Anne’s chapter explores the role of remittances in Cuba and how these financial supports act as economic circuits that maintain and strengthen familial and social bonds across geographical distances. Both emphasize the importance of social relations in community resilience.Laura Grube is an Associate Professor of Economics at Beloit College. She is an alum of the Mercatus PhD Fellowship. Check out her chapter, "Institutional Diversity in Social Coordination Post-disaster."Anne Hobson earned her PhD in Economics from George Mason University and now works in public policy. She is an alum of the Mercatus MA Fellowship. Check out her chapter, "Beyond Relief: Understanding the Cuban Diaspora's Remittance-Sending Behavior."Recommended Works: Robert Wise’s “Learning from Strangers,” Barbara Czarniawska’s “Narratives in Social Science Research,” Jieun Baek’s “North Korea’s Hidden Revolution: How The Information Underground is Transforming a Closed Society,” Tom Gjelten’s “Bacardi and the Long Fight for Cuba,” and “Cuba and the Cameraman.”If you like the show, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and tell others about the show! We're available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and wherever you get your podcasts.Virtual Sentiments, our new podcast series from the Hayek Program is now streaming! Subscribe today and listen to season two, now releasing!Follow the Hayek Program on Twitter: @HayekProgramLearn more about Academic & Student ProgramsFollow the Mercatus Center on Twitter: @mercatusCC Music: Twisterium

Apr 3, 2024 • 60min
Peter Boettke & David Beito on the New Deal's War on the Bill of Rights
On this episode of the Hayek Program Podcast, Peter Boettke chats with David Beito on his latest book, The New Deal’s War on the Bill of Rights: The Untold Story of FDR’s Concentration Camps, Censorship, and Mass Surveillance (Independent Institute, 2023). Beito begins by recounting his early interests in classical liberalism, his association with then fellow student, Nancy MacLean, and his work on tax revolts and mutual aid societies. He then discusses FDR’s ideological motivations and his pragmatic approach to politics, critiques FDR’s encroachment on civil rights, including his approval of Japanese concentration camps, and explains the contrast between FDR’s legacy amongst historians and economists.David T. Beito is Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Alabama and a Senior Fellow at the Independent Institute in California. He is the author of five books including From Mutual Aid to the Welfare State: Fraternal Societies and Social Services, 1890-1967 (The University of North Carolina Press, 2000).If you like the show, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and tell others about the show! We're available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and wherever you get your podcasts.Virtual Sentiments, our new podcast series from the Hayek Program is now streaming! Subscribe today and listen to season two, now releasing!Follow the Hayek Program on Twitter: @HayekProgramLearn more about Academic & Student ProgramsFollow the Mercatus Center on Twitter: @mercatusCC Music: Twisterium

Mar 20, 2024 • 48min
"Living Better Together" — On Women and the Family
On this episode of the Hayek Program Podcast, we kickoff the Living Better Together miniseries, featuring select authors of Living Better Together: Social Relations and Economic Governance in the Work of Ostrom and Zelizer (Palgrave Macmillan, 2023) and hosted by its coeditor, Stefanie Haeffele.Joining us today are Bri Wolf and Jayme Lemke. Starting the discussion, they reflect on their path to joining the book project and elaborate on the insights they provide in their chapters. Together, they explore how Ostrom and Zelizer's approaches illuminate the complex relationships between societal norms, family dynamics, and broader social systems, advocating for a multidisciplinary and global perspective on these themes.Bri Wolf is an Assistant Professor of Political Theory at James Madison College at Michigan State University. She is an alum of the Mercatus Adam Smith Fellowship. Learn more about her experience as a fellow here, and check out her chapter, "Bringing the Family Back In: Political Economy and the Family in Liberal Theory."Jayme Lemke is Senior Research Fellow and a Senior Fellow with the F. A. Hayek Program for Advanced Study in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. She is an alum of the Mercatus PhD Fellowship. Check out her chapter, "Polycentric Institutions of Intimacy."Listen to the lecture that started it all, "'Why and How Do Social Relations Matter for Economic Lives?' with Viviana Zelizer"If you like the show, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and tell others about the show! We're available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and wherever you get your podcasts.Virtual Sentiments, our new podcast series from the Hayek Program is now streaming! Subscribe today and listen to season two, now releasing!Follow the Hayek Program on Twitter: @HayekProgramLearn more about Academic & Student ProgramsFollow the Mercatus Center on Twitter: @mercatusCC Music: Twisterium

Mar 6, 2024 • 1h 5min
Environmental Economics — Governing the Global Fisheries Commons
Welcome back to the Environmental Economics series, hosted by Jordan Lofthouse. On this episode, Jordan interviews Pablo Paniagua Prieto and Veeshan Rayamajhee on their co-authored work, "Governing the Global Fisheries Commons." On this episode and in their article, they address the challenges of overfishing and the depletion of global fisheries. They critique one-size-fits-all solutions, advocating for an approach that recognizes overfishing as a complex set of interconnected problems across various jurisdictions. Drawing from Elinor Ostrom's insights, they propose combining market-based strategies, such as individual transferable quotas, with government interventions like removing harmful subsidies, and highlight the importance of local knowledge, community participation, and multi-layered solutions to effectively govern the global fisheries commons.Pablo Paniagua Prieto is an economist and engineer from Politecnico di Milano and Professor of Political Economy at Universidad del Desarrollo in Santiago, Chile. Pablo is an alum of the Mercatus Adam Smith Fellowship.Veeshan Rayamajhee is an Assistant Professor of Economics in the Department of Agribusiness and Applied Economics at North Dakota State University and a faculty fellow at the Center for the Study of Public Choice and Private Enterprise. Veeshan is an alum of the Mercatus Adam Smith Fellowship.Check out Jordan Lofthouse's work.If you like the show, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and tell others about the show! We're available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and wherever you get your podcasts.Virtual Sentiments, our new podcast series from the Hayek Program is now streaming! Subscribe today and listen to season two, now releasing!Follow the Hayek Program on Twitter: @HayekProgramLearn more about Academic & Student ProgramsFollow the Mercatus Center on Twitter: @mercatusCC Music: Twisterium

Feb 21, 2024 • 1h 1min
"Better Money: Gold, Fiat, or Bitcoin?" Book Panel
Lawrence H. White discusses his book on Better Money, comparing gold, fiat, and Bitcoin standards. Panelists explore supply constraints, inflation, and potential monetary systems. Topics include historical commodity systems, global reserve currencies, Bitcoin's potential, and the debate on currency choices.

Feb 7, 2024 • 1h 4min
Mikayla Novak & Seth Kaplan on Fragile Neighborhoods
Mikayla Novak interviews author Seth Kaplan on his latest book, Fragile Neighborhoods: Repairing American Society, One Zip Code at a Time. In this book, he addresses the decline in American neighborhoods characterized by rising crime, school violence, family disintegration, addiction, alienation, and despair. Kaplan applies his insights to the American context, emphasizing the importance of relationships and social dynamics in building healthy societies. He advocates for neighborhood-based solutions, highlighting the role of 'community quarterbacks' or social entrepreneurs in organizing local improvements. In this conversation, Kaplan also touches on the impacts of migration, the importance of practical approaches, the characteristics of robust neighborhoods, and emphasizes the need for more intentional community-building efforts to improve societal health and individual well-being.Seth D. Kaplan is a leading expert on fragile states. He is a Professorial Lecturer in the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University, Senior Adviser for the Institute for Integrated Transitions, and consultant to multilateral organizations such as the World Bank, U.S. State Department, U.S. Agency for International Development, and OECD as well as developing country governments and NGOs. Kaplan is a former visiting fellow with the Mercatus Center’s Program on Pluralism and Civil Exchange.If you like the show, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and tell others about the show! We're available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and wherever you get your podcasts.Virtual Sentiments, our new podcast series from the Hayek Program is now streaming! Subscribe today and listen to season two, releasing now!Follow the Hayek Program on Twitter: @HayekProgramLearn more about Academic & Student ProgramsFollow the Mercatus Center on Twitter: @mercatusCC Music: Twisterium