Michael Kremer was worried the Skype message was a scam. It appeared to be from a friend in Sweden and said the person needed to speak with the Harvard economist 'urgently.'

That's when Kremer realized he'd been awarded the Nobel Prize in economics on Monday. Kremer was recognised along with Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo 'for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty.'

Kremer says he's watched economics change over the years to a discipline in which researchers engage more with people on the ground.

He also said that while reducing global poverty might seem 'intractable,' researchers are learning all the time about what works and what doesn't, and governments have become more effective in addressing problems.