About Us


The Private Debt Project

The Private Debt Project is an initiative of the Governor's Woods Foundation committed to expanding the study of the relationship between private debt, economic growth, and financial stability. The Project is based on the understanding that private debt is as central to an economy's performance as such fundamental concepts as savings, investment, and productivity growth. It is also at the root of the pattern of financial boom and bust that so many economies have experienced over the course of history, most recently in the 2008-09 financial crisis in the United States and the Euro-zone crisis that followed.

In spite of the centrality of private debt to economic growth and financial booms and busts, it receives relatively little attention in policy circles and relatively little study among academics. The goal of the Private Debt Project is to help correct this neglect by supporting and publishing research and writing on issues related to private debt and by making available resources to scholars and policy-makers.

The Private Debt Project invites proposals for papers related to the study of private debt and its relationship to economic growth and financial stability. The Private Debt Project is a project of the Governor's Woods Foundation dedicated to advancing the study of the macro and micro-economics of private credit in the economy as well as its social, political and historical aspects. It aims to create a community of researchers as well as a forum to inform the educated public and policy makers on this important and under-explored topic.

Write for Us

The Project is currently commissioning papers for its late 2016 and 2017 web-journal. Honoraria will range between $1000 and $5000 depending on the length and depth of the proposed paper. We especially encourage applications from junior and younger scholars. And we especially welcome paper proposals on the following topics:

  • The primary role of private debt (business and individual debt) in driving economic growth,
  • The relationship between rapid private debt growth, asset values, and financial crisis;
  • The impact of high levels of private debt on constraining borrowing and suppressing economic growth;
  • The role of financial regulation and capital requirements in maintaining healthy private debt creation;
  • Private debt deleveraging and the effects of debt restructuring on economic recovery.
  • Banking operations and the evolving market structure relating to debt issuance and circulation;
  • The interaction of public policy and private markets in commercial and household debt issuance and the relationship between public and private debt holdings;
  • The history of economic thought on banking and private debt.

For more information on The Private Debt Project and our commission program please contact: jfeygin@privatedebtproject.org