Ernst Friedrich "Fritz" Schumacher (August 16, 1911 - September 4, 1977) was an intellectual and economist who had an international influence with a professional background as a statistician and economist in England.

He worked as Chief Economic Advisor for the National Coal Board of Great Britain for two decades.

His ideas became well known in most of the English-speaking world during the 1970s. He was also recognized for his criticisms of the economic systems of the West and for his proposal for decentralized technology.