The EUROPEAN ECONOMIC ASSOCIATION (EEA) is an international scientific body, with

membership open to all persons involved or interested in economics.

The main activities of the EEA are:

� to contribute to the development and application of economics as a science in

Europe;

� to improve communication and exchange between teachers, researchers and students

in economics in the different European countries;

� to develop and sponsor co-operation between teaching institutions of university

level and research institutions in Europe." (article 2 of statutes)

The EEA publishes the Journal of the European Economic Association.

In August of each year the Association organises its annual congress. The congress
attracts around 1500 participants.

In 2018, the European Economic Association launched the European Job Market for
economists (EJM). From 2019, the EJM is jointly organised with the Royal Economic
Society (RES) and the Asociaci�n Espa�ola de Econom�a (Spanish Economic
Association)

A Short History of the EEA

In the summer of 1984, following discussions between Jean-Jaskold Gabszewicz, Louis

Phlips, Jacques Thisse and Jean Waelbroeck to set up a European Economic
Association, Louis Phlips, then of the Universit Catholique de Louvain in Louvain-
la Neuve, approached several European colleagues with such a plan. The proposal met
with a sufficient positive response to call a meeting of potential founders. Thanks
to funds provided by the European Cultural Foundation, the group met on 7 December
1984 at their Brussels office. Louis Phlips presided a meeting that
enthusiastically approved the idea of a European Economic Association. The group
set itself up as a Steering Committee and started to define the purpose and
activities of the new association. It was decided that there would be an annual
Congress, and European workshops would be organised regularly. The Statutes were
drafted by Anton Barten and the internal organisation was discussed on the basis of
these. A nominating committee was formed, consisting of Birgit Grodal, Peter Neary
and Jacques Thisse, to prepare the election of the first President. The European
Economic Association was born.

A second meeting, sponsored by the European Cultural Foundation and the Belgian
Ministry of Economic Affairs, of the Steering Committee was held on 3 and 4 May
1985, again in Brussels. In the meantime, Jacques Dreze had been elected President,
Louis Phlips, Secretary, and Pietro Balestra, Treasurer. The offices of First Vice-
President (President-Elect) and of Second Vice-President (Vice-President) were soon
occupied by Janos Kornai and Anthony Atkinson, respectively. At this meeting, the
Statutes of the EEA were put into their definitive shape, while the Steering
Committee transformed into a Council and brought its strength up to 30 elected
members. It was also formally decided to have an annual Congress, held for the
first time in August 1986 in Vienna. It was also agreed to let the European
Economic Review, founded in 1969, become the official journal of the Association,
as of the beginning of 1986. Angar Sandmo and Peter Neary joined the original
editors, Jean Waelbroeck and Herbert Glejser, as editors of the EER. In 2003, the
EEA launched its own journal - Journal of the European Economic Association.

On 20 and 21 July ,1985, the Executive Committee met for the first time in the
Belgian seaside resort of De Haan. European Nobel Prize winners Hicks, Meade,
Myrdal, Stone and Tinbergen committed to endorse the founding of the EEA in a
letter to prospective members. A finance committee was set up to recruit "Founding
Institutional Members", who would pledge $5000 USD over the next five years. A
membership drive was started. Council members were asked to approach their
colleagues to become a "Founding Member". By early 1986, almost 900 Founding
Members had joined up. Since then membership has increased and now stands at around
3900.

Due to demand, in the first thirty five years of its existence the European
Economic Association has gone through a process of rapid expansion of activities.
Thanks to the enthusiastic cooperation of all officers and the financial support
from the private as well as from the public-sector supply, the EEA has been able to
meet this demand.

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