Institute of Ideas

The devastation wreaked by the recent earthquake in China puts the question of ‘progress’ in the spotlight - what does it mean today? Is it the same as economic development or are there alternative interpretations? Come thrash out these questions at the Battle for Progress on 28 June at The Lift - an exciting new mobile festival venue at the Southbank Centre.

Meanwhile, China’s rise and rise features prominently in all discussions on progress, which is why we are dedicating an entire day to unpicking political, economic, infrastructural and cultural developments in contemporary China and Western perceptions of this change. We are delighted to announce a cast of world class speakers, including Deepak Lal, Rana Mitter, Mark Leonard, Guo Yue, Kerry Brown and many more. Get your tickets now for the Battle for China.

In a different vein, After McDonaldization - a one-day conference in association with the Battle of Ideas - asks whether we can ‘re-enchant’ higher education. Finally, looking further ahead, we ask ‘Who gives a folk?’ at the first Time Out Battle Satellite at the end of July. 

**IoI Event**

BATTLE FOR PROGRESS
Saturday 28 June, 6-7.30pm @ The Lift - Southbank Centre Square, London SE1

What does progress mean in the 21st Century? Should countries like China and India be prevented from developing because of environmental concerns, or is this ‘eco-imperialism’? Is there a danger of romanticising Southern poverty from the comfort of our modern cities? Must development mean Westernisation, or is it possible to overcome poverty while preserving unique cultures?

Speakers include: John Hilary (War on Want), Ceri Dingle (WORLDwrite), Lee Jones (Nuffield College, Oxford), Claire Fox

Tickets: £5 from Lift

Full details on the Battle of Ideas website

**One-Day Conference**

BATTLE FOR CHINA
Saturday 12 July, 10am - 6pm @ Norton Rose LLP, 3 More London Riverside, London SE1 2AQ

The rise of China as an economic and political power is the subject of much debate in the West. The dramatic awakening of the ‘sleeping giant’ seems to provoke as much fear as admiration. This day of discussion aims to provide some balance in the debate on, and probe deeper into actual developments happening in China.

The Battle for China is in assocation with CHINA NOW, the UK’s largest ever festival of Chinese culture and is hosted by leading international legal practice Norton Rose LLP.

Tickets: £15 (£10 concessions) from Institute of Ideas

Full details, including speakers and readings on the Battle of Ideas website

WHO GIVES A FOLK?
Tuesday 29 July, 7-9pm @ Vibe Live, 91-95 Brick Lane, London E1 6QL

A new generation is giving folk new meaning and an unexpected lease of life. Has folk left behind its parochial, twee image? Can it help create a more ‘radical’ English identity and heritage, an alternative to the flag-waving jingoism of Rule Britannia or is it just another brand?

Speakers: Barb Jungr, Ivan Hewett, Eddy Lawrence, Neil Davenport, Cara Bleiman, Don Eales, Abdul Rehman-Malik; chair - Shirley Dent

Tickets: £7.50 (£5 concessions) from Institute of Ideas

Full details on the Battle of Ideas website

**Advert**

AFTER McDONALDIZATION:
Visions of Higher Education
Friday 13 June, 10.15am - 6pm @ Oxford Brookes University, Headington Campus, Gipsy Lane, Oxford

The ‘McDonaldization’ of higher education is a reality. The industrial techniques of efficiency, calculability, predictability and control have transformed higher education into a bureaucratised institution in which creativity and new ideas are scarce. A conference bringing together many well-known writers and academics will address a challenge set by George Ritzer: can we ‘re-enchant’ higher education?

Speakers include: George Ritzer, Frank Furedi, Claire Fox + many others

Tickets: £69 (£29 concessions); includes refreshments and lunch

For further details or to register, email Margaret Pye at mpye@brookes.ac.uk. For press and other comment, email conference organiser, Prof Dennis Hayes at d.hayes@brookes.ac.uk or phone 07862712742.

Download the flyer here (pdf)

**Advert**

SPIKED DEBATE:
The Best & Worst of Medicine
Thursday 26 June / 17 July @ Wellcome Collection, London NW1

Wellcome Collection is hosting two debates in London on the best and worst ideas, phenomena, developments and practices in the history of medicine. Join the debate now on a special spiked site and vote for your best and worst.

The Best & Worst of Medicine

**Advert**

NY SALON RUMBLE:
Should the 'Right to Die' be made legal?
Saturday 7 June, 8pm @ PS112, 150 First Ave x E 9th St, New York

Following on from the performance of Liza Lentini’s play The Euthanasist, a panel will reflect on the issues raised in the play and by the ‘right to die’ debate in society more broadly.

Tickets and details from NY Salon

INTERN AT THE INSTITUTE OF IDEAS
The IoI is looking for interns. If you have an interest in politics, the arts or science, or want to help out organising the Battle of Ideas, contact geoffkidder@instituteofideas.com.

APPEARANCES

Claire Fox will be on the panel for a special Moral Maze from Cheltenham Science Festival on 5 June

Claire will be speaking at an RSA/Reuters Institute/Media Standards Trust Moral Maze-style debate alongside Matthew Taylor, Ian Dale and Stephen Whittle. ‘Private Lives - a thing of the past?’, 19 June

Claire Fox will chair the debate ‘What is the media for today?’ at the BBC’s Media Futures Conference, Alexandra Palace, London, 20 June

Tiffany Jenkins will present ‘The Corpse in Contemporary Art’, exploring the role of the corpse and body parts in the work of Lucy Skaer, Christine Borland, and Teresa Margolles at the Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh, on 11 June

VIDEO / AUDIO

Claire Fox will be on a new series of BBC Radio 4’s The Moral Maze on 11, 18 and 25 June

Claire Fox will be on Dinner with Portillo on BBC Four discussing women in politics on 12 June, 10.20pm

Claire Fox spoke on ‘Can the free-market stop climate change?’, part of the World Development Movement’s ‘Turning up the HEAT’ series, on 8 May. Watch or listen to the debate here

Geoff Kidder was on City Talk 105.9 discussing whether Britain is a nation of sporting losers, 22 May

Angus Kennedy was on City Talk 105.9 discussing swearing, 5 May

IN THE PRESS

It’s the people’s choice, Claire Fox, MJ, 20 May

Rangers after UEFA: Just don’t call us plucky, Dolan Cummings, spiked, 16 May

Thrills from arts TV, Tiffany Jenkins, Culture Wars, 21 May

Dead bodies: The changing treatment of human remains in British museum collections and the challenge to the traditional model of the museum, Tiffany Jenkins, Mortality, Vol. 13, No. 2, May 2008

Cut for the very first time, Shirley Dent, Guardian Books blog, 20 May. The rest of Shirley’s blogs are archived here

Intellectual sneering is no joke, Dennis Hayes - IoI Education Forum convenor, Times Higher Education, 1 May

Fiddling with local government won’t restore trust, Suzy Dean - Battle of Ideas committee member, 21 May

Highlights this month:

In books, Rob Walsh on the history of secularism and Angus Kennedy on ‘the disrespect agenda’, plus arts on TV, science as environmentalism’s fig leaf, and more.

In exhibitions, James Bond, CHINA NOW and other current London shows.

Coming soon: an all-new Culture Wars design, ready for the Battle of Ideas. 

The Institute of Ideas and Pfizer Debating Matters National Final (3-5 July) is almost upon us and we are delighted that our primary funder, the Wellcome Trust, will be hosting us at their new conference and exhibition centre in London, the Wellcome Collection.

Eight schools from across the country will gather to debate a wide range of pressing contemporary concerns and battle it out for the national title 2008. We have some fantastic motions to debate over the course of the weekend and some excellent topic guides to support them. The list of motions and a link to each of the topic guides can be found below:

Migration: ‘We should have an open borders policy for migrants’
Media Violence: ‘People need protecting from violent lyrics, films and videogames’
Drugs and sport: ‘Allowing the use of enhancement drugs will not undermine the spirit of sport’
China: ‘The West is unfairly demonising China’
Organ donation: ‘We should introduce a system of presumed consent in organ donation’

The programme for the three day residential event is now filling up, and we are pleased to be including expert witness seminars, an inspiration lecture, a guided tour of the Wellcome Collection and an Institute of Ideas Question Time session, in amongst the actual debates.

Judges, experts and speakers taking part over the weekend include: poet and author, Wendy Cope; Head of Communications at Lehman Brothers, Andrew Gowers; Vice President of External Medical Affairs at Pfizer, Dr Jack Watters; Controller of BBC Parliament and Editor of Parliamentary Programmes, Peter Knowles; psychiatrist and broadcaster, Dr Raj Persaud; journalist and author, Philippe Legrain; Director of UK Sport, John Scott; journalist and editor of spiked, Brendan O’Neill and China specialist, Dr Kerry Brown.

The National Final is a great opportunity for finalists and audience members to explore some pressing contemporary issues, meet some influential judges and speakers, and socialise and argue together. Anybody interested in attending should email Justine Brian or phone 020 7269 9233.

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Institute of Ideas
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