Board of Trustees Awards Tenure to Seven Faculty Members

Economics : Martin Abel is an applied microeconomist specializing in development, labor, and behavioral economics. His research investigates barriers to employment, particularly gender discrimination and the obstacles job seekers face in labor markets. Using field and online experiments, he evaluates labor market policies such as reference letters, wage subsidies, vocational training, and behavioral nudges designed to assist job seekers. He conducts much of this work in collaboration with local governments in South Africa, Rwanda, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and Mexico. His recent research also examines how artificial intelligence is reshaping consumer and labor markets. Abel came to Bowdoin in 2022, having previously taught at Middlebury College. He earned his PhD from Harvard University in 2017 and an MPA in international development from Harvard Kennedy School in 2010. In 2008 Abel was awarded a diploma in economics from Friedrich-Schiller University of Jena, Germany.