ET GBS: Nobel laureates Al Gore, Paul Romer to speak

NEW DELHI: Among the star cast of speakers at the March 6-7 Global Business Summit, presented by The Economic Times and YES Bank, are two Nobel Laureates.

Ex-US vice-president Al Gore is a leading voice on environment and a Nobel Peace Prize winner. Another Nobel Laureate Paul Romer is an authority on economic growth research. The themes they will address at the GBS couldn’t be more relevant.

Romer, among the pioneers of the endogenous growth theory, was one of the first economists to analyse what’s accepted as conventional wisdom now — that investment in human capital is a critical factor in sustaining long-term growth.


India, the world’s fifth largest economy but a laggard in human capital investment, is a perfect laboratory for Romer’s growth model. Another of Romer’s insights is that the best bulwark against diminishing returns to capital is the creation and application of new ideas. India can do with plenty of new ideas.

Gore’s post-political career focus on environment started when going green was still not fully accepted by the mainstream. His 2006 documentary on climate change, An Inconvenient Truth, didn’t just win an Oscar, it brought environmental challenges front and square in global public consciousness.

He spoke at Davos this year, telling political and business leaders it’s their primary responsibility to marry growth and profits to clean technology. Expect a similar rousing appeal at the GBS 2020.