Dr Edwin Lai joined the Department as an Associate Professor in May 1998 after teaching in Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA, for seven years. He has been a consultant to the World Bank and a visiting scholar with Boston University and a visiting fellow with Princeton University. He got his BSc in engineering from the University of Hong Kong, and his MA and PhD in economics from Stanford University. Dr Lai's main research areas are international economics, economic development and growth, and industrial organization. He is interested in studying the economies of East Asia and China. He has published in the International Economic Review, the Journal of International Economics, the Journal of Development Economics and other journals in international economics and growth.