Events

Protection without Protectionism: Manifesto for New Global Governance

This conference, hosted by Joseph Stiglitz and Mary Kaldor (LSE), will address interrelated dimensions of economic, environmental, and physical security in a global context. Underlying the conference is the recognition that globalization has generated new and multiple sources of insecurity and that nation-states are no longer able to provide the kind of protection to individual citizens that formed the basis of the national social covenant. The development of policies to enhance citizens' security within this new global context will be pivotal for the success of democratic governments in the coming decades. Conference discussion themes include social protection, protection against violence, environmental protection, the urbanization of global challenges, and global governance. Prominent scholars will present papers on each topic, and they will be joined in discussion by policy makers.

Monday December 1, 2008 PUBLIC SESSION

Social Protection
4:00 - 6:30pm, World Room, Journalism Building
Chair: Ngaire Woods
Joseph Stiglitz presenter
Karl Ove Moene presenter
Leif Pagrotsky
Kemal Dervis
George Soros

Globalization has been associated with increasing economic insecurity and growing inequality. While this might suggest the need for strengthening social protections, some countries have responded to the competitive pressures of globalization by stripping them back. How can we respond to these threats of globalization without protectionism?

Tuesday December 2, 2008 PUBLIC SESSIONS

Urbanization of Global Challenges
1:00 - 3:00 pm, World Room, Journalism Building
Chair: Mary Kaldor
Saskia Sassen presenter
Tony Travers presenter
Sergio Fajardo
Arjun Appadurai
Sophie Body-Gendrot
Achille Mbembe

Many of our global challenges become concrete and urgent in cities. Current examples focus on environmental crises: local governments have had to act on air quality standards long before nation-states sign international treaties. In the US, hundreds of local governments have limited carbon dioxide emissions ahead of any proposed national law. Rising water levels can paralyze many cities over a matter of days, long before they would incapacitate a national government. Security is also a constant concern - new military asymmetries tend to urbanize war and have made the pursuit of national security a source of human insecurity in cities. Cities bring urgency to what can be quite diffuse at the global level.

Towards a New Global Covenant for Human Security
4:00-6:00pm, World Room, Journalism Building
Kemal Dervis
George Papandreou
Mary Kaldor
Joseph Stiglitz
and others

Video of this event (Part 1 and Part 2) can be found in our "Videos" section.