Nancy Folbre
Feminist economist
About
Why is this person notable and influential?Nancy Folbre is professor economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a B.A. in philosophy and an M.A. in Latin American studies. She earned her Ph.D in economics at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. After graduating, she completed a post-doctoral research fellowship at Yale University’s Economic Growth Center.
Folbre specializes in the research and understanding of the economics of care, understanding that the economics of care have to evaluated differently, as the traditional method of valuation for analyzing work doesn’t adequately consider the value to society that care professions represent. As a leading feminist economist, Folbre has questioned the wisdom of women working in the care industry, given the potential economic impacts they may experience.
Her book, The Invisible Heart: Economics and Family Values, dives deep into the role of women in providing care and the social inequalities that unduly burden women with low-paying or pro bono care work. She is a long-time member of the National Organization for Women Legal Defense and Education Fund and the National Advisory Commission of Child Care and Early Education. She has been awarded a five-year fellowship from the MacArthur Foundation and the Leontief Prize.
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