Globalization and Its Critics in the 21st Century

This year’s theme, “Globalization and its Critics in the 21st Century,” invites presenters and attendees to critically examine the categories and concepts that different disciplines have used to understand, defend, or critique globalization and its critics. We hope to interrogate the usefulness and ethical implications of these frameworks for thinking about contemporary social, cultural, and political developments. 

Some of the questions that have motivated us this year include: How have different disciplines conceptualized globalization? How have recent social and political changes and movements affected the way we talk and think about globalization? What are the ethical dimensions of these changes? What are the ethical and theoretical stakes of the study of globalization in the 21st century, both within and beyond the university?

In the course of this 2-day event, participants from a variety of disciplines will present their work in an interdisciplinary environment that takes a deliberately broad approach to ethics. The faculty discussants for each panel will also read presenters’ papers in advance, offer feedback, and guide the ensuing discussion period. There will also be a public keynote address by Professor Bernard Yack, author of Nationalism and the Moral Psychology of Community. This conference is free and open to the public.