Research
Professor Canning’s research focuses on the role of demographic change and health improvements in economic development. The research on demographic change focuses on the effect of changes in age structure on aggregate economic activity, and the effect of changes in longevity on economic behavior. In terms of health the research focuses on health as a form of human capital and its affect on worker productivity.
Before taking up his position at the Harvard School of Public Health Professor Canning held faculty positions at the London School of Economics, Cambridge University, Columbia University, and Queen’s University Belfast. Professor Canning has served as a consultant to the World Health Organization, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank. In addition, he was a member of Working Group One of the World Health Organization’s Commission on Macroeconomics and Health.
He is currently deputy director of the Program on the Global Demography of Aging and heads the economics track of the doctoral program in Population and International Health.