Barry Eichengreen, Professor of Economics and Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley, presents his book "In Defense of Public Debt", published by the University of Crete Press
Public debt has been a dominant topic in recent decades, raising concerns among the general public about its broader consequences. Almost always, behind the news coverage lies a fundamental question: Is public debt “good” or “bad”?
As noted on the book’s back cover: “Greece holds a prominent place in the global history of public debt, not only for the first recorded ‘state’ borrowing but also for the first ‘state’ default in the 4th century. In modern Greek history, public borrowing has played a significant role in financing major projects and ideas, thereby contributing to the formation of the Greek state. The authors argue that public borrowing is crucial for the construction and stability of the modern state.”
Speaking about the book and these themes will be:
Kostas Kostis, Emeritus Professor of Economic History at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and Director of the Educational Foundation of the National Bank of Greece
Gikas Hardouvelis, Chairman of the Board of the National Bank of Greece, Chairman of the Hellenic Bank Association, and Emeritus Professor of Finance at the Department of Finance and Banking Administration, University of Piraeus
Barry Eichengreen, author of the book and Professor of Economics and Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley
The discussion will be moderated by Andreas Kakridis, Assistant Professor of Economic History at Panteion University and Scientific Director of the Historical Archive of the Bank of Greece.
The event will be conducted in both Greek and English without interpretation for the audience.