Mark Blyth
Eastman Professor of Political Economy; Professor of Political Science and International and Public Affairs

Mark Blyth argues that economic ideas are powerful political tools as used by domestic groups in order to effect change since whoever defines what the economy is, what is wrong with it, and what would improve it, has a profound political resource in their possession. Blyth analyzes the 1930s and 1970s, two periods of deep-seated institutional change that characterized the twentieth century. Viewing both periods of change as part of the same dynamic, Blyth argues that the 1930s labor reacted against the exigencies of the market and demanded state action to mitigate the market’s effects by „embedding liberalism“ and the 1970s, those who benefited least from such „embedding“ institutions, namely business, reacted against these constraints and sought to overturn that institutional order. In Great Transformations, Blyth demonstrates the critical role economic ideas played in making institutional change possible and he rethinks the relationship between uncertainty, ideas, and interests on how, and under what conditions, institutional change takes place.

Moderation: Robert Misik, author

Am Beispiel der internationalen Entwicklungsgenossenschaft Oikocredit wird gezeigt, wie wirtschaftliche Aufbauhilfe für Menschen in Entwicklungsländern der Fluchtprävention dienen kann. Komplementär zu staatlichen Geldern für entwicklungspolitische Maßnahmen gilt sogenanntes „Social Impact Investment“ in die Mikrofinanz als bewährte Alternative. Mikrokredite schaffen Jobs, Bildung und damit Lebensperspektiven zur Armutsüberwindung. Dabei helfen Oikocredit-Partnerorganisationen in 70 Ländern mit fairen Kleinstkrediten für Menschen, die keinen Zugang zu Finanzdienstleistungen haben. Das klar definierte Ziel: nachhaltiges Einkommen schaffen. Wer die Chance hat, in der Heimat ein einigermaßen gesichertes Auskommen zu haben und seine Kinder in die Schule schicken kann, wird kaum an Flucht denken. Genau das unterstützt Oikocredit als sozialer Investor. Seit über 42 Jahren gilt Oikocredit als Pionier der Mikrofinanz und hat bereits Millionen Menschen ein Bleiben in ihren Heimatländern ermöglicht und damit Flucht vermieden.
Das Thema soziales Investment gewinnt angesichts der jüngsten Migrationsbewegungen auch an außenpolitischer Dimension. Erst jüngst forderte Dr. Hugo Portisch einen „Marshallplan für Afrika.“
Oikocredit-Investoren handeln sowohl aus sozialer Motivation wie auch aus reiner Vernunft. Denn Menschen, die eine Lebensperspektive haben, helfen mit, die Wirtschaft in ihrem Heimatland aufzubauen. Über 5.500 Österreicher legen derzeit Geld bei Oikocredit an und achten in erster Linie auf die soziale Wirkung ihres Investments und erst in zweiter Linie auf die finanzielle Rendite. Info: www.oikocredit.at

Keynote: Günter Lenhart, stv. Vorstandsvorsitzender Oikocredit Austria

anschließend Gespräch mit Franz Vranitzky, Bundeskanzler a.D. und Ehrenpräsident des Bruno Kreisky Forums

African Youth between Narratives and Realities

Date: Tuesday, 12th December 2017, 6.30 pm
Location: Central Library, Urban-Loritz-Platz 2A, 1070 Vienna

Please register for the event: www.now-conference.org/events

Moderation: Rita Isiba (tbc)

Panel
• YOUSSOUF DIAKITÉ, Chairperson, African Diaspora Youth Forum in Europe (ADYFE), Austria/Mali
• ANA KALIN, Policy maker and analyst, Forum from Equitable Development, Slovenia
• VICTOR OCHEN, Global Advisor to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees at United Nations, UN Ambassador for Peace and Justice – Representing Sustainable Development Goals 16 at United Nations, Director at African Youth Initiative Network (AYINET), Uganda
• HANNES SWOBODA, President of the International Institute for Peace (IIP), Member of the European
Parliament ret.

Content
Since 2015, when the then current influx of refugees reached its climax in Europe, no other topic was discussed as intensively and as ambiguously than migration and flight. Newspapers spilled over with pictures of masses of immigrants and many politicians played on the topic to gain political weight, using the existing narratives describing migration first and foremost as a security threat for Europe. From 29-30 November 2017, the heads of states and governments of the African Union and the EU will meet in Cote d’Ivoire to discuss common challenges and opportunities. This year’s topic of the AU-EU summit is “Investing in the youth for a sustainable future”. With the world’s largest population under 18, Africa is the youngest continent. African youth, however, is very active, they see themselves as agents of change. Migration, also within Africa, is seen as possibility to gain education and professional know-how, just like many European students profit from exchange programs. The experience of wars, famines, demographic growth, repressive regimes and the lack of job opportunities are substantially challenging Africa’s youth. Empowerment of the African youth to improve economic and social development but also good governance and democracy in their home countries is essential and likewise the change of the current narrative on migration.

Following up on the 4th International Conference NOW on “African Youth and Migration” from September 3-5, 2017 in Kampala, Uganda and a series of Africa-Workshops and public debates organised by the Bruno Kreisky Forum, the VIDC and the IFK from 2016-2017 the discussions are to be continued.

After the AU-EU Summit 2017 – How to go on? What is to be done? How can African youth, in all their diversity, become stakeholders that can bring about relevant change in their countries? How can they be supported from abroad, what do they expect from their governments? How can the narrative on African migration be modified to match reality? These and other questions will be addressed and discussed by the distinguished panellists, whom we are very pleased to bring together in Vienna.

The event will be held in English.
Informal talks, drinks and snacks after the event.

You also find this event on our website :
www.iipvienna.com/events
www.act-n-o-w.com

or on Facebook :
www.facebook.com/IIPVIENNA
www.facebook.com/nowconf

In cooperation with:

 

Eine Veranstaltung von Cocon – Verein zur Entwicklung und Umsetzung von Kunstprojekten und WERK X in Kooperation mit dem Bruno Kreisky Forum für internationalen Dialog

Information und Kartenkauf unter

http://werk-x.at/produktion/asli-erdogan-zu-gast-im-werk-x

Religion, State and Disintegration in the Middle East

The project Striking from the Margins: Religion, State, and Disintegration in the Middle East seeks a nuanced and dynamic understanding of the transformations of religion in relation to those of state and social structures, most specifically in Syria and Iraq, over the past three decades. It works towards conceptual and analytical vocabularies which would be more adequate to the situation than common recourse to culturalist and post-colonialist explanations and lends keen attention to social dynamics, political economy, conjunctural developments and the global setting of comparable developments elsewhere.

Participants:
Harout Akdedian, SFM Post-Doctoral Fellow, hosted at the Central European University
Harith Hasan Al-Qarawee, SFM Post-Doctoral Fellow, hosted at the Central European University
Aziz Al-Azmeh, Professor at the CEU at the Department for History and Director of SFM
Nadia Al-Bagdadi, Director of the Institute for Advanced Study at CEU and Co-Director of SFM

Moderation: Gudrun Harrer, Senior Editor, Der Standard; Lecturer on Modern History and Politics of the Middle East, University of Vienna and Diplomatic Academy of Vienna

In cooperation with the Central European University, Budapest

https://www.strikingmargins.com/#striking-from-the-margins