During his stay, Salvatore Babones gave a lecture entitled “Trends in Income by Education in the United States and their Implications for Europe". His study proves that only a small elitist group benefits from economic growth in the USA, while income levels have stagnated for the majority of the population for the last 40 years. By consequence, the American middle class has shrunk dramatically. Dr. Babones has noticed a similar movement in Germany since 2000 and therefore pointed out in his conclusion that Germany might see a similar development happening as in the United States. Following the lecture, an open discussion was held. In addition, Salvatore Babones was available for individual consultation sessions with NEPS team members throughout his entire stay.