About Author:
My name is Darapheak, the founder and author of Economind.
I graduated from Zaman International School, Cambodia, in 2008. Not knowing my next goal, I then decided to do double majors in Computer Science and English language at Royal University of Phnom Penh, RUPP. My time there was enlightening. I got to know great people, who are now quite successful in their own ways. An equally important discovery is about what are and are not my passions. While continuing to study English language, I quitted Computer Science program after 3 months, and focused all my energy on figuring out my true interest.
At around late 2008, I began applying to various universities in Canada, including University of Toronto, from which I was admitted into Management program, or pre-program, to be exact. I immediately accepted the offer and took off to Toronto, Canada. Aside from meeting many awesome individuals, 2009 in Canada was when my realization of my true passion came to me as a coincidence, and it was rather vague at first. Among the 5 courses of my first semester, I enrolled in an introductory to micro-economics taught my an amazing professor, whose name I will not mention here for privacy purpose. My first economic class was the greatest thing that happened to me during my first year. I was engrossed in the lecture; I was so captivated and intrigued by the economic concepts. That was when I decided to pursue my study in Economics Specialist. It was hard to get in, and I had to work my butt off to get into the specialist program in my second year. And, even after having been admitted into the program, the road was indeed bumpy from time to time, but I can say that it was the best learning experience.
I later enrolled in a Master of Economics program at the Australian National University (ANU), Australia. Despite the heavy emphasis on mathematics and computer programming (something completely foreign to me at the beginning of the program), all the challenges only further reinforced my great love for economics. In fact, economic modelling, though demanding considerable knowledge in maths and programming language, has become my new favourite.
Currently, I am still the ANU as a PhD Candidate in the Research School of Economics while also working as a teaching assistant. My primary research interest is in demographics and economic dynamics. My research deals with how the evolution of demographic variables (fertility, life expectation, migration, etc) and their interactions with other segments of the economy (capital market, government via taxes and transfers, and the likes) affect household behaviors and macroeconomic aggregates.
I enjoy Economics so much, and I think very highly of this discipline, of the positives it has to offer that I felt the need to share its greatness with the world.
Here I am, the author of Economind. This economics website is my own personal project. As mentioned, It is derived out of pure passion for Economics and the desire to share various knowledge related to the subject. I believe my understanding and knowledge of economics resulting from my zeal and devotion to this particular field of study should suffice to write simple economics articles for the greater good of the society, and choosing to do so online means that the knowledge sharing capability is boundless as it can be accessed from virtually every corner of the world. Self-improvement is also an objective because by sharing, I can learn, especially from all the constructive criticism I may receive. Again, this is a personal project, and the goal is to keep it going until I can no longer write.
To be honest, the study of Economics taught me still fascinates me to these days. It tells about how the world operates, about the defects of Economics, but at the same time, in-depth learning and researching have taught me something else that is not written in many textbooks. It shows me that Economics is not practical and applicable when it stands alone, but only by combining different theories together and with various relevant knowledge, can an economist be able to understand its importance in almost everything, EVERYTHING.
As an Economist, you can work, if desire, in many different fields and organizations. You can start off your own business. You can work for various firms, banks, companies, or research institutions. You can work for the government, in a range of ministries, not limited to the Ministry of Economics. You can also work for international organizations such as the UN. That being said, I am not trying to inflate the value of this particular discipline, but I am just shouting out to those who are interested in this field so to enlighten their way.
Though my knowledge is still narrow and limited, I assure you that every single article in Economind is not rocket science. It requires some thinking if you are not familiar with Economics, but to most who have at least stepped once into the economic training ground, you will find it very easy and simple to understand.
I sincerely thank you for visiting Economind and spending your precious time reading whatever I have to share here.
May the Econforce be with you,
Darapheak