Stockholm, October 14, 2025 – The Europe Today: Canadian economist Peter Howitt has been awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, along with Joel Mokyr and Philippe Aghion, for their pioneering research on the role of innovation in driving economic growth, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced on Monday.
The trio was recognized for advancing the understanding of “creative destruction” — a key economic concept describing how new technologies replace outdated ones, fostering progress and productivity.
Howitt, 79, is a professor of social sciences at Brown University in the United States. He earned his bachelor’s degree in economics from McGill University and a master’s degree from Western University in London, Ontario. His co-laureates include Philippe Aghion, 69, of the Collège de France and the London School of Economics, and Dutch-born Joel Mokyr, 79, of Northwestern University.
The laureates’ work collectively integrates historical insight and mathematical modeling to explain how innovation sustains long-term economic development. Mokyr examined technological progress through historical evidence, while Aghion and Howitt provided a mathematical framework demonstrating how innovation replaces older processes to sustain growth.
Announcing the award, the Nobel committee stated that the research “better explains and quantifies creative destruction, showing that economic growth depends on maintaining mechanisms that encourage innovation.”
Half of the 11 million Swedish kronor (approximately C$1.6 million) prize will go to Mokyr, while Aghion and Howitt will share the remaining half. The winners will also receive gold medals and diplomas at the Nobel ceremony on December 10 in Stockholm.
Speaking from his home, Howitt expressed his delight upon learning the news, saying it was “the dream of a lifetime come true.” He revealed that a Swedish reporter informed him of the award before the official committee could reach him. “We didn’t have any champagne in the fridge in anticipation of this,” he joked.
At a press conference hosted by Brown University, Howitt reflected on his long academic journey. “Working in Canada was where I really cut my teeth as an economist. The atmosphere at Western University taught me how to be a productive scholar, and I’m forever grateful for that,” he said. Howitt added that he looked forward to celebrating with co-winner Aghion, his collaborator for over three decades.
Prominent Canadian leaders, including Prime Minister Mark Carney, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, and Industry Minister Mélanie Joly, congratulated Howitt for his achievement. Carney praised Howitt’s “pathbreaking research on how innovation and human ingenuity are essential engines of growth,” describing it as “a foremost example of Canadian ideas having global impact.”
Aghion, speaking by phone to the Nobel news conference in Stockholm, said he was “at a loss for words,” while Mokyr admitted he was shocked by the recognition. “I told my students I was more likely to be elected pope than win the Nobel Prize — and I’m Jewish,” he quipped.
The Nobel committee highlighted that the laureates’ collective work underscores the need to protect and promote innovation in an era of rising protectionism. “Economic growth cannot be taken for granted. We must uphold the mechanisms that underlie creative destruction,” said John Hassler, chair of the committee.
Formally known as the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, the award was established in 1968 and has since been conferred 57 times to 99 laureates.
This year’s Nobel announcements also included honors in medicine, physics, chemistry, literature, and peace, with the economics prize concluding the 2025 Nobel season.
