Equality and democracy in local and city Government: Theory and practice Keynote speaker: Professor Thad Williamson, University of Richmond
Event details
Political Philosophy Conference
Join us in York for a one-day conference on the theory and practice of progressive local and city government.
In recent years, with the emergence of the Cleveland Model in the US and the Preston Model in the UK, there has been an enormous upsurge of interest in ways to make local economies more egalitarian and more democratic. Our one-day conference will bring together a range of academics, policy researchers and practitioners to discuss the theory and practice of building more equal and democratic economies at the local and city level, looking at issues including Community Wealth Building, remunicipalisation, and the role of local institutions in creating a more just society. Our keynote speaker is Professor Thad Williamson, who is both an academic political theorist at the University of Richmond, and was also from 2014-16 the founding director of the Office of Community Wealth Building in the City of Richmond, VA, the first institution of its kind in the United States.
Video recordings of each of the five sessions can be found here via the Department of Philosophy's Youtube channel.
Schedule
09.30-10.00 Welcome and Tea / Coffee
Foyer, Berrick Saul Building
10.00-11.20 Session 1: Political Values: the Case for More Democratic Local Economies
Bowland Auditorium, Berrick Saul Building
Speakers: Martin O’Neill (University of York), Hettie O’Brien (Demos), Neil McInroy (CLES), Mathew Lawrence (Common Wealth), Jonathan Davies (De Montfort University)
11.20-11.40 Tea & Coffee Break
Foyer, Berrick Saul Building
11.40-13.00 Session 2: Building Inclusive Local Economies: Agents and Institutions
Bowland Auditorium, Berrick Saul Building
Sarah McKinley (Democracy Collaborative), Peter O’Brien (Yorkshire Universities), Frances Northrop (NEF - New Economics Foundation), Luke Raikes (IPPR), Anthony Painter (RSA - Royal Society of Arts)
13.00-14.00 Lunch
The Treehouse, Berrick Saul Building
14.00-15.20 Session 3: Frontiers of Radical Local Government: Institutions and Policies
Bowland Auditorium, Berrick Saul Building
Keir Milburn (University of Leicester) & Bertie Russell (University of Sheffield); Satoko Kishimoto (TNI – Transnational Institute), Dan Hind (Next System Project), Carys Roberts (Shared Assets), Simon Parker (University of York)
15.20-15.40 Tea & Coffee Break
Foyer, Berrick Saul Building
15.40-16.40 Keynote Talk: Thad Williamson (University of Richmond)
Bowland Auditorium, Berrick Saul Building
Reflections on Community Wealth Building in Richmond, Virginia
16.40-18.00 Session 4: Local Justice & Beyond: the Future of Radical Local Government
Matthew Brown (Preston City Council), Hilary Wainwright (Red Pepper), Asima Shaikh (Islington Council), Joe Guinan (Democracy Collaborative), James Meadway (former chief economist of NEF)
18.00 Conference Ends
Organised by the Department of Philosophy at the University of York, in association with the Centre for Urban Research (CURB), and with the support of the Humanities Research Centre (HRC), the Research Centre for Social Sciences (RCSS), and the Independent Social Research Foundation (ISRF).