The role of banks in a globalised economy: balancing innovation and stability [Audio]
Speaker(s): Alessandro Profumo | Banks are called upon to play a primary role, in cooperation with policymakers and regulators, in the quest for better levels of financial stability for the system as a whole. The real economy's needs must be central to the bank's characteristic function. Alessandro Profumo has been the Chief Executive Officer of UniCredit Group since it was founded in 1997; as of December 2005 he is Chairman of the Supervisory Board of HVB and as of July 2006 he is Chairman of t
A lecture by Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the Czech Republic [Audio]
Speaker(s): Mirek Topolánek | Mirek Topolanek has been Prime Minister of the Czech Republic since September 2006. He has been chairman of the Civic Democratic Party (ODS) since November 2002. Mr Topolanek will speak about the priorities of the forthcoming Czech Republic's EU Presidency.
The Shifting Distribution of World Economic Activity: China and global imbalance [Audio]
Speaker(s): Professor Danny Quah | China has, single-handedly, brought more people out of poverty than the rest of the world combined, and faster than anywhere else has been able to achieve. How can this continue? Danny Quah is professor of economics and head of the Department of Economics at LSE.
Here Comes Everybody: how change happens when people come together [Audio]
Speaker(s): Professor Clay Shirky | Clay Shirky, one of the new culture's wisest observers, steer us through the online social explosion and ask what happens when people are given the tools to work together, without needing traditional organisational structures. As online communication becomes ubiquitous, Shirky unpicks fundamental issues that are increasingly the source of much debate in particular in the media, in business, and in government, all of whom are grappling to make sense of the new
A Good Childhood: searching for values in a competitive age [Audio]
Speaker(s): Professor Judy Dunn, Professor Lord Richard Layard | (We apologise for the poor audio quality, this was because of technical problem with the audio-visual system) Is childhood all it should be? Or has it been spoilt by broken homes, junk food, alcohol and exam stress? The speakers will present the findings of The Good Childhood Inquiry. Judy Dunn is professor of developmental psychology at King's College London, and was chair of The Good Childhood Inquiry. Richard Layard is director
Individual and Corporate Social Responsibility [Audio]
Speaker(s): Professor Jean Tirole | This is the third annual Coase-Phillips lecture, hosted jointly by Economica and the Department of Economics. Jean Tirole is one of the world's most eminent economists working in the fields of industrial organisation, finance and game theory.
The Islamic Republic of Iran After 30 Years [Audio]
Speaker(s): Professor Fred Halliday | Thirty years after the fall of the Shah of Iran and the advent of Ayatollah Khomeini to power, the Iranian revolution continues to exert a dynamic ideological and political influence across the Middle East. In a retrospective analysis of the revolutionary period itself, some of whose decisive moments he witnessed at first hand, and of the subsequent development of the Islamic Republic Professor Fred Halliday will attempt to set these dramatic events in conte
Asia and Russia in the Age of Globalisation: the impact for Europe's future [Audio]
Speaker(s): Joschka Fischer | Joschka Fischer was Germany's foreign minister and vice-chancellor from 1998 to 2005.
LSE Literary Weekend - ReaLITy: creative responses to social realities [Audio]
Speaker(s): Morris Gleitzman, Elizabeth Laird; Anthony McGowan; Patrick Ness; Meg Rosoff | The culmination of a creative-writing competition for London state schools, this panel discussion looks at how authors find inspiration in contemporary social issues- from gang culture and knife crime, to the more timeless problems of being a teenager. The panel of popular and award-winning teen authors have dealt with topics as wide ranging as Ethiopian street children and Nazi Germany, with a mixture of
LSE Literary Weekend - The Founders' Tradition: literature as social commentary [Audio]
Speaker(s): Mohsin Hamid, David Hare; Boyd Tonkin | This event marks the launch of the LSE Space for Thought Literary Weekend, the LSE's first ever Literary Festival, celebrating the completion of the New Academic Building. A discussion about not only the links between the social sciences and the arts, but the role of the arts in the LSE's past, present and future. Is literature relevant today?
LSE Literary Weekend - In Conversation with Hans Ulrich Obrist [Audio]
Speaker(s): Hans Ulrich Obrist, Adrian Searle | Editor's note: Unfortunately, owing to technical difficulties, the last few minutes of this event are missing from the audio podcast. Hans Ulrich Obrist was born in Zurich in May 1968. He joined the Serpentine Gallery as Co-director of Exhibitions and Programmes and Director of International Projects in April 2006. Prior to this he was Curator of the Musie d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris since 2000, as well as curator of museum in progress, Vien
LSE Literary Weekend - Ben Okri 'showcase' [Audio]
Speaker(s): Ben Okri | Poet in the City and LSE are honoured to be holding a special showcase event with the world famous poet and writer Ben Okri. Born in 1959 in Minna, northern Nigeria, he became world famous as a writer in 1991 when he won the Booker prize for his novel The Famished Road. Set in a Nigerian village, this was the first in a trilogy of successful novels about Azaro, a spirit child. In all he has published eight novels, and won countless awards and honours for his writing. His l
LSE Literary Weekend - Hackney, That Rose-Red Empire [Audio]
Speaker(s): Iain Sinclair, Jerry White; Patrick Wright | Editor's note: Unfortunately, owing to technical difficulties, the last few minutes of this event are missing from the audio podcast. Iain Sinclair is a writer, poet and film-maker and widely regarded as one of London's greatest chroniclers. Jerry White has been writing about London for thirty years. His London in the Twentieth Century: A City and Its People won the Wolfson History Prize 2001. Patrick Wright is a writer with an interest i
LSE Literary Weekend - Poetry and Choices [Audio]
Speaker(s): Jane Duran, John Mole; Robert Minhinnick; Jo Shapcott | A high profile poetry event reflecting on the choices that we all make in our lives, whether social, economic, moral or spiritual, featuring a great line-up of some of the UK's finest poets.
Europe's Growth and Decline [Audio]
Speaker(s): Professor Vytautas Landsbergis | Professor Vytautas Landsbergis will in his lecture be giving his perspective on the today's pressing events in the western world. His lecture will be an examination of consequences of doubtful mentality, as growth in population figures and average living standards have not resulted in increased happiness. Growing frustration and the crumbling myth of welfare state point to a crucial need to consider a new philosophy for life. The lecture will be follo
Will the Rich Man's Crisis Crush the Emerging Economies? [Audio]
Speaker(s): Thomas Mirow | The crisis originated in the main western financial centres, but emerging markets will pay the price. How steep a price? And what is the responsibility of the rich countries now?
Imagining a Humanist Europe [Audio]
Speaker(s): Francois Bayrou | Frangois Bayrou will address the theme of humanism. He will outline how he believes that Europe needs a new set of values and specially humanism after the failures of capitalism. Frangois Bayrou is the leader of the French centre party called Mouvement Democrate (Democratic Mouvement) and former presidential candidate. Mr Bayrou entered politics in the early 1980s and joined the centre right party called UDF. He served as education minister in centre-right governmen
Progressive Governance: Greece and the New International Order [Audio]
Speaker(s): George Papandreou | George A. Papandreou is president of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) and president of Socialist International. He was minister of foreign affairs from 1999 to 2004, a period that saw inter alia a new rapprochement with Turkey. He has served as minister for national education and religious affairs on two occasions (1988-89; 1994-96).He is the son and grandson of two Greek prime ministers. In 2006 he became president of the Socialist International. The la
The State between Migration and Sojourning: the China difference [Audio]
Speaker(s): Professor Wang Gungwu | At the end of the 19th century, the Qing court described all Chinese living overseas as sojourners. Under the Republic, overseas Chinese were enjoined to be patriotic. After 1949, migration policies changed several times. Why did three different Chinese states pay so much attention to this subject?
Do Tax Havens Cause Poverty? [Audio]
Speaker(s): John Christensen, Felicity Lawrence; Nick Mathiason; Dr Attiya Waris | Defenders of tax havens argue they provide vital financial services for international trade, and that most comply with money-laundering regulations and have juridical co-operation treaties. This panel will explore the issues surrounding tax havens, in particular their impacts on poor people.
