2026 Colin Clark Memorial Lecture
The new era of protectionism
The UQ School of Economics is proud to welcome Distinguished Professor Emeritus Robert C. Feenstra as the 2026 Colin Clark Memorial Lecture keynote speaker. In his thought provoking address, Professor Emeritus Feenstra will examine the change in international trade through the shift in US international trade policy.
Event details
Date: 29 October 2026
Time: 5.30 — 8pm
Location: Customs House, Brisbane City
The new era of protectionism
Since 2018, the United States has seen a renewed shift towards protectionist trade policies, such as the use of tariffs and import quotas. These measures have had far-reaching impacts on many countries around the world, including Australia.
Professor Emeritus Feenstra will analyse the economic consequences of these policies, re-examining earlier research findings and exploring how US trading partners have responded – and what these developments mean for the future of global trade.
About Robert C. Feenstra
Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Davis
Robert C. Feenstra is an expert in the study of international trade and trade policy, researching topics including the costs of tariffs and quotas, the growth of offshoring and China’s impact on the world economy.
Professor Emeritus Feenstra is a former editor of the Journal of International Economics and a former director of the International Trade and Investment Program at the National Bureau of Economic Research.
About the Colin Clark Lecture Series
The lecture series is named in honour of the late Dr Colin Clark and his outstanding contribution to the field of economics. Each year since 1991, a leading expert in economics has been invited to present the keynote address.
Dr Colin Clark was a UQ Economics academic whose work on national income accounting was fundamentally important to the development of macroeconomics and to the approach of John Maynard Keynes.
While visiting Australia, he accepted the invitation of Queensland Premier Forgan Smith to work with the government. He reflected on the opportunity in a letter to John Keynes writing the opportunity was "too remarkable an opportunity to be missed for putting economics into practice."
In 1938 he was appointed Government Statistician, Director of the Bureau of Industry, and Financial Advisor to the Queensland Treasury, and provided the State's first set of economic accounts in 1940.
Dr Clark's greatest contribution to economics was his pioneering role in the construction of national accounts.
Recent speakers
- 2025: Professor Tim Hatton, Three Decades of Migration Policy: What have we learned?
- 2024: Professor Jessica Pan, The Evolution of Gender in the Labour Market
- 2023: Professor Diane Coyle, What has happened to economic progress?
Contact
For event enquiries or further information, contact the Business, Economics and Law Events Team: