The 35th annual Science Award is presented by the Chamber of Labour in cooperation with the JKU and focuses on essential aspects of distributive justice in Austria. Out of 35 submitted papers, Dr. Heimberger’s dissertation titled “Fiscal Multipliers, Unemployment and Debt: Essays on the Macroeconomics of Fiscal Policy Coordination in Europe” was one of three papers to be selected for an award.

Dr. Heimberger’s dissertation written under the supervision of the Research Institute for Strategic Managerial Analysis of the Economy at the JKU focuses on significant issues about coordinating fiscal policy in Europe. By focusing on a collection of several publications, his work looks at certain active fiscal policy situations that could have been the key in overcoming the crisis, especially the financial crisis in 2010. He shows that reaction pattern agreed upon as part of the EU (Stability Pact) has a decisive “design flaw” resulting in less stable (and more pro-cynical) intensified trend deviations.

The award is accompanied with €3,000 in prize money. The other award winners are sociologist Laura Dörfler and spatial planner Laura Sidonie Mayr.