Eric Alston
Scholar in Residence
University of Colorado Leeds School of Business
Eric Alston is a scholar in residence and faculty director of the Hernando de Soto Capital Markets Program in the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Boulder and an academic affiliate of the International Center for Law & Economics.
His research centers on institutional and organizational analysis and law & economics, drawing on economics, law, and political science to study constitutional design, property rights, frontier economic development, and digital governance, including cryptocurrencies and blockchain networks. He is also a research associate with the Comparative Constitutions Project.
Before joining the University of Colorado Boulder, Alston served as a senior policy and research analyst focused on criminal-justice reform at Stand Together. He also worked with international organizations on constitutional design and governance, including roles as a human-rights research fellow, Yemen research fellow, and dialogue contributor with International IDEA; a research associate with the United Nations Development Programme; and a constitution-reform associate with the International Development Law Organization.
His distinctions include a National Science Foundation co–principal-investigator research grant, a Templeton World Charity Foundation project leadership award, the Melvin Roberts Teaching Award, and an Ethereum Foundation Academic Award.
Alston earned a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School, a master’s in economics from the University of Maryland, and a bachelor’s from the University of Illinois.
