Koichiro Ito Awarded Two Prestigious Prizes for Excellence In Research

Koichiro Ito, a professor at the Harris School of Public Policy, has been awarded two prestigious prizes: the JSPS Prize by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science as well as the Japan Academy Medal by the Japan Academy.

The recipients of the 21st JSPS prize was announced on December 19, 2024. The prize was established in 2004 to recognize and support young researchers with rich creativity and superlative research ability at an early stage in their careers. Ito was one of twenty-five young scholars across different academic fields who received this prize this year.

The recipients of the 21st Japan Academy Medal were announced on January 14th at the 1185th general meeting of the Japan Academy. The prize was established in 2004 to give formal recognition to outstanding young researchers, while encouraging them in their future work. Ito was one of six honorees, each from different disciplines, recognized for his pioneering economic research on global energy and environmental challenges.

A faculty affiliate of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago (EPIC), Ito’s research focuses on the intersection of environmental and energy economics, industrial organization, and public economics. He employs randomized field experiments and quasi-experimental designs to address policy-relevant questions in energy and environmental policy. Before joining the University of Chicago, he was a SIEPR Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford University and an Assistant Professor at Boston University. In 2020, he was also awarded the Ishikawa Prize by the Japanese Economic Association.