Christopher Cotton

Professor and Jarislowsky-Deutsch Chair in Economic & Financial Policy
Queen’s University, cc159@queensu.ca

I am a Professor in the Department of Economics in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (primary appointment). I am also a cross-appointed Professor in both the Schools of Policy Studies and Medicine. I serve as the Director of the John Deutsch Institute for the Study of Economic Policy (JDI) at Queen’s, Co-Director of the One Society Network for infectious disease research, and co-owner and Director of Research at Limestone Analytics.

Research – Links to publications and select working papers – Most of my research can be categorized into one of two themes:

  1. Research on funding and policy decisions in a complex world with competing priorities. This includes my research on competitions for funding, lobbying, political economy, collective action, and firm strategy.
  2. Field experiments and impact evaluations to understand the building blocks of productivity and how policy affects productivity through its impact on education, health, and the labor force.

I use field and lab experiments, game theory, cost-benefit analysis, and empirical analysis in my work. Follow the link above to find papers on lobbying, project finance, philanthropy and charitable giving, education policy, education interventions focused on girls and marginalized populations, and more.

Research institutes and networks – I am the Director of the John Deutsch Institute for the Study of Economic Policy in the Queen’s Economics Department and the Co-Director of the NSERC One Society Network to study the broader impacts of COVID-19 in Canada, including in the space of labour markets and education. The One Society Network is partnering with the Institute for Intergovernmental Relations at Queen’s to publish a volume of papers on the broad impacts of the pandemic and lockdowns through McGill-Queen’s University Press. I am editing that volume with Ellen Rafferty.

Consulting – I regularly provide consulting services to governments, NGOs, and businesses through Limestone Analytics, where I am a co-owner and Research Director. I have led projects for USAID, UKAid/FCDO, the Millenium Challenge Corporation, and World Vision, and served as senior expert or advisor on projects for the WHO, Gates Foundation, World Bank, UNICEF, governments in North America and Africa, and others. Often, these projects turn into research opportunities for myself or my graduate students.

Teaching and Advising – I have served as supervisor or co-supervisor for more than 40 graduate students and postdocs who have gone on to great jobs in Canada and worldwide. Current advisees include post-doc Moshi Alum, an excellent labour economist who is currently on the academic job market.