Reviving Democracy

Conventional politics is in upheaval; democratic participation is under threat.  And yet, in the midst of chaos and uncertainty, new and distinct political visions are suddenly finding an unexpected voice: some around cultural identity, some around solidarity and justice, some around the urgent need to address the climate emergency and the catastrophic loss of biodiversity that threaten our common future. Will these emergent voices inevitably be silenced by inertia, apathy and vested interest? Or might they provide the foundation for a new democratic vision for a sustainable prosperity?

Our fifth Nature of Prosperity dialogue tackles the political economy of prosperity, searching among the ruins of an old consensus for the seeds of a new one. Hosted by Rowan Williams, the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury, and chaired by CUSP Director Tim Jackson, speakers will include Caroline Lucas (MP, Green Party), Jesse Norman (MP, Conservatives), Simon Caney (University of Warwick), Will Davies (Goldsmiths College, London), Isabelle Ferreras (Université Catholique de Louvain), Miriam Ronzoni (University of Manchester) and Jonathan Rowson (Director, Perspectiva).

The event will be held at the Royal Institution, Mayfair, London and will run from 11.30am to 5.30pm with lunch included.  We are delighted to invite you to a short drinks reception afterwards. Essays from our published collection on the Moral Nature of Prosperity will be available at the event.

The aim of our Nature of Prosperity dialogue is to explore broader, moral understandings of what it means to ‘prosper’, at a time when other ideals of progress seem to be faltering or even dangerous to our ecological future.