Values in Finance

Conrad is a philosopher of economics. He is the co-director of the Erasmus Institute for Philosophy and Economics (EIPE) and co-editor of the Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Economics (Routledge, 2022). In this project, he is most interested in finding out which ethical and epistemic values are and should be at play in finance modeling and theory. Answering these questions will contribute to our understanding of inclusive prosperity. Besides research on the methodology of financial economics, Conrad also works on formulating a new theory of fairness together with Stefan Wintein, and is interested in various other topics in the philosophy of economics and social science. He teaches philosophy of science for graduate students at ERiM.

Marta is a financial economist. Her research focuses on the relation between financial markets and the real economy, and the philosophy of finance. Marta's work has been published in leading academic journals (Journal of Finance, Journal of Financial Economics, Management Science). In this project, she is interested in studying how to shape finance research to ensure and maximize its role in facilitating and promoting prosperity through finance. In her macro-finance work, Marta studies the nature of macroeconomic risks and their impact on financial markets, with a particular focus on the global commodity markets. Studying these markets also contributes to understanding the role of finance in fostering inclusive prosperity. 

Melissa has a degree in Economics from Universidad de Los Andes, in Bogotá, Colombia and a PhD in Philosophy from Erasmus University Rotterdam. Her main research interests are in modelling as a scientific practice, particularly in macroeconomics. At the Initiative she is working with Marta Szymanowska and Conrad Heilmann on the philosophy of science of financial economics. Specifically, she is working on understanding the methodological choices made in the use of financial economics models and the epistemic and practical consequences thereof.

Koen studies the role of ethical, social, and environmental values in financial markets. The aim is to make a contribution to questions such as how do these values interact with financial risk and return, how do investors with different values behave in financial markets, and what can be the role of a financial market in measuring, pricing, and hedging social, ethical and environmental risks. Koen holds a MSc in Economics and gained experience in strategy consulting prior to starting the PhD.