In March, HCEO Co-Director James J. Heckman and several HCEO members formally launched the Asian Family in Transition Initiative in Hong Kong.

The Asian Family in Transition Initiative is a collaborative research project led by Professor Heckman (Director, Center for the Economics of Human Development) and Professor Junsen Zhang (The Chinese University of Hong Kong). It was begun thanks to seed funding provided by the Becker Friedman Institute for Research in Economics in 2015.

The collaborative project aims to deepen the understanding the economics of demographic changes in primarily China, as well as other countries in Southeast Asia. Presentations include "Changing Family Structure in Rural Areas," by members Scott Rozelle and Sean Sylvia; "Marriage and Cohabitation in Contemporary China" by Yu Xie; and "Economics of the Family" by Yoram Weiss.

The initiative will include conferences alternating between the U.S. and China.Topics to be addressed include fertility and son preference, intergenerational mobility, and the aging population and changing family life. 

To view all of the conference videos, click here.