Tristan Billaud, Karin Roth, what is VWelles fighting for?

Tristan Billaud: It bothers us that, to a large extent, only one view of economics is taught – namely the neoclassical one – and that other theories and methods are ignored or even actively devalued. VWelles therefore advocates a multifaceted approach within economics at the University of Bern.

Tristan Billaud: I was irritated by this one-sided view of economics when I was at high school, where economics and law were my special areas. That’s why I started studying economics. After completing my bachelor’s degree, I switched to a master’s degree in sociology.

How did the name VWelles come about?

Karin Roth: The name comes from the German abbreviation for economics and from the French “elles”. With this name, we want to emphasize the diversity of academic approaches.

Who is VWelles and how did the group come into being?

Karin Roth: We are a core team of around six people. Our group was founded in 2019 out of the desire for more courses outside the existing curriculum. Shortly afterwards, VWelles became part of the international network “Rethinking Economics”.

What exactly do you do?

Karin Roth: At the beginning, during the coronavirus pandemic, we launched a podcast. Since spring 2021, we have been organizing regular evening events with discussions, presentations, film screenings in the movie theater at the Reitschule cultural center and introductory events on plural economics. In spring 2024, we were able to hold a lecture series entitled “Introduction to Plural Economics – Approaches for Future-proof Economics” at the University.

“Our first series of lectures was fully booked – even though the lecture could not be credited to the economics degree.”

Karin Roth

Tristan Billaud: We are always active in accordance with our personal resources. Because our commitment is based on volunteer work.

Describe your criticism of the neoclassical approach.

Karin Roth: I like to use an analogy: In the middle you have the globe, around it different lights. Each light stands for its own school of thought. If you only deal with one school of thought, a lot remains in the shadows. So you need lots of different lights in order to be able to respond to and understand the complexity of the world. This is why VWelles advocates the teaching of various schools of thought at the University of Bern.

What do you think falls under the table in the neoclassical view?

Tristan Billaud: Many things. For example, the neoclassical view rarely sheds light on power structures, as it often only makes use of methodological individualism, whereby it explains social science phenomena through individual behavior. This view systematically obscures approaches that could focus on larger accumulations of power.

“Neoclassical economics will not rescue us from our climatic and social woes.”

Tristan Billaud

Karin Roth: In neoclassical theory, systemic hurdles are insufficiently investigated. This overlooks the fact that our current economic system is permeated by patriarchal structures. Feminist economics reflects on these structures and highlights social components and inequalities. On the other hand, the neoclassical view is heavily based on mathematical models and neglects unpaid work, for example.

Were any of the economics students sympathetic to your cause?

Karin Roth: Our first series of lectures entitled “Introduction to Plural Economics” was fully booked – even though the lecture could not be credited to the economics degree. However, what we have also noticed is that there is a certain amount of pre-selection. Students who are bothered by the one-sided economics teaching give up their studies after the first few weeks or study something different from the start.

Tristan Billaud: Other faculties are trans- and interdisciplinary and also self-reflective, which is preferred by critical students. These include gender studies and social anthropology.

How did you find the speakers for the lecture series in spring 2024?

Karin Rot: We looked for suitable lecturers at universities in German-speaking countries, compiled a long list of lecturers and made a selection for our inquiries. We did receive a few rejections because of the fixed dates. Nevertheless, we were able to attract renowned speakers and establish a common theme throughout the series of lectures. It consisted of an introduction to plural economics and lectures on different fields such as ecological, feminist, political/Marxist and post-Keynesian economics. In between, we offered tutorials.

What is the feedback from the professors at the institute?

Tristan Billaud: We often feel misunderstood in our concerns, even if we can sometimes sense a basic interest in our position. Our aim is to highlight the implicit, normative assumptions about what is right and what is wrong with economics through our work. We want to ensure that different schools of thought are treated as equal.

What successes have you achieved?

Tristan Billaud: We are once again offering a series of lectures in spring 2026. In the spring semester 2024, students were not yet able to earn ECTS credits for the degree program in economics, but could instead receive credit in a minor subject such as sustainable development. However, from spring 2026, there will also be ECTS credits for economics. This is a major success.

How does the public react to your commitment?

Karin Roth: We receive approval from students and various professors throughout Europe. In 2024, articles about our lecture series appeared in “Bund” and “Journal B”.

Tristan Billaud: For us, it is important that our efforts in favor of pluralism do not culminate in the offer of a single lecture series, which in the worst case could still be used as the University’s immunization strategy if criticized for its one-sided branch of study.

What are your hopes for the future of economics?

Tristan Billaud: Our aim is to gain new insights through pluralism in economics. We are becoming entangled in ever-growing crises around the world. For us, this is a sign that the neoclassical approach must be questioned. A paradigm shift is imperative because the anomalies are steadily increasing; neoclassical economics will not rescue us from our climatic and social woes.

Karin Roth: You absolutely have to be able to question things critically, certainly at a university. Discourse should be promoted, for example on capitalism, and more self-reflection is needed in university economics as a whole.

Tristan Billaud: The current economic system is not even described as capitalist; the term “capitalism” was not even mentioned during our entire course of studies. Thus, a possible basis for criticism is already conceptually difficult. Neoclassical economics exalts the market. This is an aspect that is not being critically questioned sufficiently at the institute.