In Spring 2015, Professor Robert M. Townsend's legacy in development economics and his influential work combining theory and measurement were honored with a conference at the Becker Friedman Institute for Research in Economics at the University of Chicago.
Former students of Robert M. Townsend honored his influence and teaching with a conference in Chicago last month titled “Theory & Measurement: Financial Systems and Economic Development.” Reflecting both Townsend’s scholarly impact and collegial style, the informal conference was notable for the high quality of the scholarship presented, a keynote address by Thomas J. Sargent, winner of the 2011 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, and a commemorative lunch talk by Neil Wallace, Professor of Economics at Pennsylvania State University and Townsend’s own thesis advisor.