"A sparkling presence" - colleagues pay tribute to Dr Patrick Nolen

Tributes are being paid by colleagues and friends to Dr Patrick Nolen who died on Sunday following a heart attack.

Dr Nolen was a popular and much loved member of the Department of Economics for over a decade. Head of the Department Professor Christian Ghiglino said: "Patrick joined Essex in 2006, upon completing his PhD at Cornell University in the United States and immediately became an invaluable colleague in every aspect of the Department’s life.

"He was an outstanding and sought-after educator, an extremely driven and high-achieving researcher, and an inspirational and exemplary leader. He played a key role in the development of EssexLab and became its Director recently.

"Patrick was held in high esteem in the profession and he applied his immense skill and intense energy to a variety of topics. These ranged from gender research including single sex education and risk-taking differences, to health insurance, to poverty eradication, to exporting. His talents led to a string of prominent publications, a stream of significant grant income and editorship of the Journal of Economic Behavior and Organisation. In the wider world he acted as a consultant to departments of the UK government and to several international organisations.

"To his colleagues in the Department of Economics, the Faculty of Social Sciences and the wider University, Patrick was a sparkling presence and much like a family member. He was generous, funny, lively, and very much loved. We will miss him greatly."

If you would like to share a memory or pay tribute to Patrick please visit remembr.com