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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261020T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261020T210000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
CREATED:20260507T132630Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261012T110516Z
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SUMMARY:Did we only dream democracy?
DESCRIPTION:BRLSI’s Democracy Under Threat series invites you to pause and take stock by surveying the wealth of history and political thinking which underpins our long-held democratic systems and institutions. It explores the laying down of democratic principles from Ancient Athens to the present day\, and takes in current scenarios in international geopolitics\, while considering Britain as its own small island with its own set of political traditions. \nSo where are we? Since its conception some 2\,500 years ago\, democracy has existed under persistent pressure. Indeed\, one might ask whether any society has ever truly practiced “real” democracy?  While there have been moments when groups of people have come close\, the gap between democratic ideals and lived political reality has usually been vast. In many cases\, the illusion of a functioning democracy has reassured majorities even as power and wealth has became increasingly concentrated in the hands of a small minority. This concentration has not only weakened democratic practice but begun to erode confidence in democracy as an idea. \nSo\, if democracy has never been fully viable in practice\, how should humankind make collective decisions\, especially now\, as we confront the consequences of a profound and catastrophic separation from the natural world? \nPeter MacFadyen\, Author of Flatpack Democracy \nA discount of 20% is on offer to all those purchasing five tickets or more from the series\, excluding the conference on the 4th of July. \nTo learn more about Democracy Under Threat and the exciting range of speakers coming up as part of the programme\, don’t forget to follow our Democracy Under Threat Webpage: https://www.brlsi.org/democracyunderthreat/
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/did-we-only-dream-democracy/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Democracy under Threat,Modern World,World Affairs
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261024T143000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261024T160000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
CREATED:20260507T125120Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261012T111658Z
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SUMMARY:Mad about Trump - MAGA on the couch
DESCRIPTION:BRLSI’s Democracy Under Threat series invites you to pause and take stock by surveying the wealth of history and political thinking which underpins our long-held democratic systems and institutions. It explores the laying down of democratic principles from Ancient Athens to the present day\, and takes in current scenarios in international geopolitics\, while considering Britain as its own small island with its own set of political traditions. \nIn recent years\, political life has become increasingly charged with psychic stress\, especially anger\, grievance\, nostalgia\, and a powerful sense that something vital has been lost. The rise of Donald Trump and the enduring appeal of the “Make America Great Again” movement raise important questions not only about politics\, but about the psychic life of politicians and political activists. \nFocusing on the appeal of Trump and the MAGA movement\, Bath-based psychoanalyst Daniel Jeffreys considers how unresolved loss – of status\, identity\, or imagined pasts – may shape both individual and collective experience. \nDrawing on two personal interviews with Trump\, and on his book America’s Back Porch\, which mapped the communities that formed the MAGA movement\, Jeffreys explores the Western political landscape with help from Sigmund Freud’s ideas of mourning and melancholia alongside Jacques Lacan’s concept of lack. Through this lens\, he examines how difficulties in accepting loss and tolerating uncertainty may contribute to the hardening of belief\, the rejection of unwelcome realities\, and the pressures currently fracturing democratic life. \nThe talk will create a space for thinking about how unconscious processes – especially desire\, and the need for certainty – may shape public life in an age where both the mind and democracy itself feel increasingly unsettled. \nA discount of 20% is on offer to all those purchasing five tickets or more from the series\, excluding the conference on the 4th of July. \nTo learn more about Democracy Under Threat and the exciting range of speakers coming up as part of the programme\, don’t forget to follow our Democracy Under Threat Webpage: https://www.brlsi.org/democracyunderthreat/ \n 
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/mad-about-trump-maga-on-the-couch/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Democracy under Threat,Modern World,Psychology,The Unsettled Mind,World Affairs
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261031T143000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261031T160000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
CREATED:20260827T122633Z
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SUMMARY:Nathan Filer: Storytelling that honours Psychosis
DESCRIPTION:Award-winning author\, broadcaster and former mental health nurse Nathan Filer asks what happens to a person’s story when their experience is translated into a psychiatric diagnosis. Drawing on literature\, psychiatry\, politics and his own experience in mental health care\, Filer explores psychosis without reducing it to illness or metaphor. Diagnosis can name something important\, but what does it leave out? Moving from psychiatric wards to literary history — with appearances from Holden Caulfield and Winnie-the-Pooh — this funny\, personal and searching talk asks who gets to tell the story of mental illness\, and what literature can reveal that medicine alone cannot. At its heart is a case for exquisite attention: resisting the temptation to turn a difficult human life into a label\, and remaining curious about everything that does not fit. \nNathan Filer
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/nathan-filer-storytelling-that-honours-psychosis/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Psychology
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261102T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261102T210000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
CREATED:20260805T151937Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260911T111935Z
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SUMMARY:Gilbert White: Beyond the Natural History of Selborne
DESCRIPTION:Rev Gilbert White (1720–1793) is celebrated for a single work\, The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne\, the fourth longest continuously printed book in English—a remarkable literary achievement.  \nYet White was far from the secluded village naturalist he is often imagined to be. His travels ranged widely across England\, including visits to Bath\, bringing him into contact with diverse landscapes\, ideas\, and people. This talk reconsiders White beyond Selborne\, tracing his journeys and encounters\, and exploring how travel shaped his observations\, his writing\, and the enduring legacy of his pioneering natural history. \nAn ecologist by training\, Stephanie Holt has worked across local government\, consultancy\, NGOs and academia before joining the Natural History Museum\, London\, over a decade ago. Now based between the Museum’s Centre for UK Nature and its Library and Archives\, she works on both modern conservation science and the Curious Travellers project\, exploring the life and influence of the eighteenth-century naturalist Thomas Pennant. \nA Trustee of the Gilbert White House and Gardens and the British Naturalists’ Association\, Stephanie is also Associate Editor of Archives of Natural History\, the journal of the Society for the History of Natural History and a Fellow of the Linnean Society of London. Recently awarded the David Bellamy Award for Exceptional Field Naturalist\, she combines natural history expertise with historical scholarship. \nCurrently completing a DPhil at Oxford on eighteenth-century natural history and its modern legacy\, Stephanie is a passionate and engaging communicator at the intersection of ecology and history. \n \nImage of naturalist Gilbert White derived from a colourised sketch\, courtesy of the Trustees of the Natural History Museum. A Museum algorithm replaced coloured pixels with like-coloured images of digitised specimens from the Museum’s UK collections.
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/gilbert-white-beyond-the-natural-history-of-selborne/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Literature,Literature and Humanities
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261103T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261103T210000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
CREATED:20260506T135502Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261007T101833Z
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SUMMARY:From John Locke to America’s founding & destiny
DESCRIPTION:BRLSI’s Democracy Under Threat series invites you to pause and take stock by surveying the wealth of history and political thinking which underpins our long-held democratic systems and institutions. It explores the laying down of democratic principles from Ancient Athens to the present day\, and takes in current scenarios in international geopolitics\, while considering Britain as its own small island with its own set of political traditions. \nAnd speaking of political thinking and democratic systems! Were you aware that the roots of American independence has its roots in English philosophy? When America announced its independence from Britain it did so extensively with words chosen from a book by the English philosopher John Locke.  \nWho was John Locke? Why did America choose to do so? When the U.S.A came to reshape itself decisively for the independence it had won\, it had to do so on fresh lines designed to ward off tyranny by separating the power to govern. For most of the two and a third centuries which have followed that worked surprisingly well\, but it is now failing terminally? Professor John Dunn explores what has happened to change American democracy so fundamentally.  \nProfessor John Dunn\, University of Cambridge \nA discount of 20% is on offer to all those purchasing five tickets or more from the series\, excluding the conference on the 4th of July. \nTo learn more about Democracy Under Threat and the exciting range of speakers coming up as part of the programme\, don’t forget to follow our Democracy Under Threat Webpage:  www.brlsi.org/democracyunderthreat/
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/from-john-locke-to-americas-founding-destiny/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Democracy under Threat,World Affairs
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261107T091500
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261107T170000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
CREATED:20260901T060007Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261008T082617Z
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SUMMARY:Bath History Festival 2026
DESCRIPTION:The third annual Bath History Festival brings a whole day of fascinating talks to BRLSI. The event is a great opportunity to hear from experts in the heritage field\, catch up with current projects and share thoughts with fellow history enthusiasts over lunch. \nThe festival\, presented by BRLSI and supported by the History of Bath Research Group and the Bath Branch of the Historical Association\, is a chance to find out more about history organisations from across the city. \nDoors open at 9.15am\, with welcome and introductions at 9.45am. A light sandwich lunch\, tea & coffee are included in your ticket price. \nTalks for the day include: \n”So glorious was the show”: A short history of coronations \nIn 973 King Edgar was crowned in Bath Abbey. His was the first English coronation for which significant records survive. Although coronations have evolved and adapted in the more than 1\,000 years since that historic occasion\, many of the key ingredients of these ceremonies have remained the same. Historian and Curator Charles Farris will trace the origins of the coronation ceremony from the ancient past to the present day. Dr Farris is Public History Lead at Historic Royal Palaces. He is based at the Tower of London where he curated the new The Crown Jewels Exhibition\, which opened in 2023. \nThe mystery of the mortuary chests: untangling a jumble of royal remains \nHalf a century after Edgar’s coronation the English throne was occupied by the Dane\, King Cnut (1016–1035)\, and his Norman wife\, Queen Emma. Tradition has long held that their remains were included among a jumble of bones thought to belong to early medieval bishops and royals\, stored in mortuary chests above the high altar in Winchester Cathedral. The remains\, dating from the 7th to 12th centuries\, have been under investigation since 2012. Dr Heidi Dawson of Winchester University and Professor Kate Robson Brown of University College\, Dublin\, will discuss how they pieced some of these skeletons back together and the science that might help to uncover who they were. \nChew Valley Treasure: new light on Bath and Somerset at the time of the Norman Conquest \nThree decades after Cnut’s death Harold Godwinson\, Earl of Wessex\, assumed the English throne in 1066\, only to be fatally ousted nine months later by William the Conqueror. In 2019 a hoard of 2\,584 coins from 1066–68 was discovered in Chew Valley\, proving that Bath was minting silver pennies for King Harold during his brief reign. \nHighlights of the hoard will go on show in Bath in January 2027 at the Roman Baths Museum before heading to their permanent home at The Museum of Somerset in Taunton*. Amal Khreisheh\, Senior Curator\, South West Heritage Trust\, and Zofia Matyjaszkiewicz\, Senior Curator\, Roman Baths\, discuss the hoard’s discovery\, its significance and historical context\, and what’s in store when it goes on show in Bath and beyond. \n*South West Heritage Trust acquired the Chew Valley Hoard for Somerset Council museum collection under the Treasure Act 1996 thanks to £4.3 million from The National Lottery Heritage Fund\, a £150\,000 Art Fund grant and smaller but vital funding from South West Heritage Trust\, Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Society and the Friends of the Museum of Somerset. \nTwo kingdoms: masters of ceremonies who ruled in both Bath and Tunbridge Wells \nSeven centuries after the Battle of Hastings\, the clink of chainmail was replaced in Bath by the Georgian finery of the fashionable spa.  Oversize Bath personalities – the 18th century masters of ceremonies – behaved like royalty even when their rule was merely social. From Beau Nash’s time until 1801\, Masters of Ceremonies split their rule between Bath and Tunbridge Wells.  While this certainly lined the MCs’ pockets\, did this work out as well for the spas and the high society visitors these fascinating characters aimed to keep in line\, asks Dr Rachael Johnson. She is a historian of Georgian England\, with a particular interest in the social and medical history of spas and seaside resorts. Since 2023 she has been working at the University for the Creative Arts. \nMacaronis: their quest for extreme elegance \nFashionable salons of the late 1700s were also transfixed by the appearance of extreme fashionistas known as Macaronis\, targets of caricature. One Bath Master of Ceremonies\, Captain William Wade was dubbed ‘the Bath Adonis’ and in the year he fell from grace was described as ‘the immaculate Captain Wade’. In Gainsborough’s full-length painting of Wade in the Victoria Art Gallery\, called by some ‘the finest portrait in Bath\,’ he wears a scarlet outfit that closely matches the Macaronis’ style of dress. Michael Rowe delves into the whacky world of the Macaronis and how they made a splash. Dr Rowe is Chair of the Friends of Victoria Art Gallery and of the History of Bath Research Group. \nPlease note the programme is subject to change.  \nGeneral admission: £40\nBRLSI members/students: £24\nTickets include a sandwich lunch\, tea and coffee \nImage credits: \nChew Valley Hoard © British Museum / Mortuary Chest © Winchester Cathedral / Beau Nash courtesy of Bath and North East Somerset Council / The Coronation Procession of King James II\, 1685 © Historic Royal Palaces \n  \n 
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/bath-history-festival-2026/
LOCATION:Live at 16 Queen Square\, BRLSI 16-18 Queen Square\, Bath\, Somerset\, BA1 2HN\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:History & Culture,History, Culture and Geography
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261109T110000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261109T123000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
CREATED:20260827T115206Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260923T080319Z
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SUMMARY:Eco talks at BRLSI - Degrowing towards an equal world
DESCRIPTION:How do we build a sustainable future? If you’re looking for something to inspire you this season ‘Eco Talks at BRLSI ‘ delivers inspiring and thought provoking content on the issue of climate change and conservation. Continuing with Degrowing towards an equal world with Professor Manfred Lenzen\, BRLSI will deliver monthly talks and films exploring how to best futureproof the planet against rising global challenges and invite you to become part of a community who feel the same way that you do. \nFor more than three decades\, climate science has documented the risks of global warming with increasing confidence. We understand the consequences of exceeding 1.5°C and 2°C\, the scale of emissions reductions required\, and we have developed a growing suite of policy and technological solutions. Yet global emissions remain near historical highs\, fossil fuels continue to dominate energy systems\, and climate action remains politically fragile. \nThis talk asks a simple question: why are we not changing? Drawing on the work of Kari Norgaard\, Sally Weintrobe\, and Robert Costanza\, the talk argues that the gap between knowledge and action cannot be understood solely as a technological\, economic\, or policy problem. Instead\, it reflects deeper social and psychological processes\, including denial and collective attachment to growth-dependent ways of life. \nBio \n \nProfessor Manfred Lenzen is Professor of Sustainability Research with the ISA team in the School of Physics at the University of Sydney. He has a PhD in Physics and experience in renewable energy technologies\, life-cycle assessment\, and carbon footprinting. His current research interests focus on the link between environmental/resource impacts and international trade. He currently leads the development of cloud-based collaborative-research platforms for building large-scale global economic-environmental models that enable environmental impact analysis across global supply-chain networks. In addition\, his research deals withn climate change mitigation\, resource use\, and sustainable development. He is a leading contributor to industrial ecology and environmental-economic modeling and currently investigates post-growth futures and the societal barriers to climate action. \nPlease note that Professor Lenzen will be speaking live from Australia and will not be appearing in person. You can buy a ticket to watch the talk on the large screen at 16 Queen Square\, or a ticket to watch online wherever you are.
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/eco-talks-at-brlsi-degrowing-towards-an-equal-world/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Science and Research,Sustainability
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261110T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261110T210000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
CREATED:20260806T111505Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260930T115136Z
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SUMMARY:Secrets of the Jungle
DESCRIPTION:BRLSI’s brand new talk series Let’s Go Adventure invites you to follow the intrepid and the bold as they share personal tales from a life of exploration lived across the globe. Curated by explorer Jacki Hill Murphy\, the series provides the perfect night out for those undergoing a bad case of winter wanderlust or looking for inspiration for their own individual adventures. \nOur next adventurer is Joe Trevorrow! After leaving the Royal Navy Joe Trevorrow became a Mountain Leader in 2020 and has since swapped the slopes of Scottish Munros for the rainforest of South America\, working as a Jungle Expedition Leader for The Wild Tales – an adventure tourism company operating in Guyana pioneering indigenous Amerindian-led expeditions. \nOver recent years indigenous Amerindian-led expeditions have been exploring undocumented archaeological sites deep within the jungles of Guyana. Spanning across different geographical areas and indigenous tribes\, Joe Trevorrow will take listeners on a dive under the canopy of some of the most pristine rainforest left on planet earth. He will be revealing the archaeological finds made by The Wild Tales indigenous Amerindian-led teams on some of their recent expeditions – from a spectacular crown-shaped cave with hundreds of petroglyphs to mysterious pottery high up on the summit of Makarapan Mountain. \nJoe will also explain what being on and leading an expedition in the lost world of the Guiana Shield entails\, some of the rules of the rainforest one must follow to navigate the challenges faced in a jungle environment along with the threats facing this magnificent ecosystem\, its people and their fascinating culture. \n  \n 
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/secrets-of-the-jungle/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Geography and Adventure,History, Culture and Geography
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261117T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261117T210000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
CREATED:20260506T143539Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260923T081516Z
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SUMMARY:A.C Grayling: fighting authoritarianism\, saving democracy
DESCRIPTION:BRLSI’s Democracy Under Threat series invites you to pause and take stock by surveying the wealth of history and political thinking which underpins our long-held democratic systems and institutions. It explores the laying down of democratic principles from Ancient Athens to the present day\, and takes in current scenarios in international geopolitics\, while considering Britain as its own small island with its own set of political traditions. \nSo are things really that bad? Around the world\, says A.C Grayling\, the foundations of democracy\, freedom\, civil liberties are being eroded – what can be done? Are we living through the end of the democratic moment? While democracy once seemed the bedrock of Western societies\, the past few decades have revealed a fragile reality. Once liberal countries are turning to authoritarianism\, wealthy individuals and corporations are interfering with elections ever more flagrantly\, and faith in democracy has plummeted among every demographic. From gerrymandering and partisanship to corporate interference and tainted donations\, A. C. Grayling reveals the forces undermining our democratic ideals and offers bold solutions. An urgent wake-up call to the risks this poses to us all\, For The People reminds us why democracy remains worth fighting for. \nProfessor A C Grayling\, CBE\, MA\, DPhil (Oxford)\, FRSL\, FRSA\, Master of the New College of the Humanities and a Supernumerary Fellow of St Anne’s College\, Oxford \nA discount of 20% is on offer to all those purchasing five tickets or more from the series\, excluding the conference on the 4th of July. \nTo learn more about Democracy Under Threat and the exciting range of speakers coming up as part of the programme\, don’t forget to follow our Democracy Under Threat Webpage: https://www.brlsi.org/democracyunderthreat/ \n 
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/for-the-people/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Democracy under Threat,World Affairs
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261201T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261201T210000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
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LAST-MODIFIED:20260923T081936Z
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SUMMARY:The life\, death & afterlives of Athenian democracy
DESCRIPTION:BRLSI’s Democracy Under Threat series invites you to pause and take stock by surveying the wealth of history and political thinking which underpins our long-held democratic systems and institutions. It explores the laying down of democratic principles from Ancient Athens to the present day\, and takes in current scenarios in international geopolitics\, while considering Britain as its own small island with its own set of political traditions. \nWhatever your thoughts about the pressures on our current democracies\, BRLSI’s Democracy Under Threat series invites you to pause and take stock  as we collectively take the long view across history and the breadth of political thinking which underpins our long held democratic systems and institutions. \nSo where did it all begin? Originating in a popular uprising against foreign invaders\, ancient Athenians developed the first democracy in Ancient Greece: making the majority of citizens the deciders of key political questions and enabling them to hold their leaders to account – even while vulnerable to rhetorical manipulation. Having regrouped in the aftermath of military defeat\, the democracy lived on in altered forms under later foreign pressure for longer than is often recognised. And in centuries to come\, Athenian democracy would serve as a warning of mob rule for some\, an inspiration of popular power for others.  \nThis talk will explore the life\, death and many afterlives of Athenian democracy\, asking what we might learn in facing up to the threats to democratic rule today. \nProfessor Melissa Lane\, Princeton University \nPlease note that Professor Lane will not be at BRLSI in person – she will be giving the talk live from America and the talk will be shown on the large screen in the Elwin Room. \nA discount of 20% is on offer to all those purchasing five tickets or more from the series\, excluding the conference on the 4th of July. \nTo learn more about Democracy Under Threat and the exciting range of speakers coming up as part of the programme\, don’t forget to follow our Democracy Under Threat Webpage: \n 
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/the-life-death-afterlives-of-athenian-democracy/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Democracy under Threat
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261202T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261202T210000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
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SUMMARY:Political cartoons: a heritage under threat?
DESCRIPTION:BRLSI’s Democracy Under Threat series invites you to pause and take stock by surveying the wealth of history and political thinking which underpins our long-held democratic systems and institutions. It explores the laying down of democratic principles from Ancient Athens to the present day\, and takes in current scenarios in international geopolitics\, while considering Britain as its own small island with its own set of political traditions. \nSo\, how can we hold our politicians to account? For years\, political cartoons have appeared regularly in newspapers to comment on events in the news. They catch the attention and often convey issues far more quickly than words can. Some are perceptive\, some are satirical\, some are humorous – and some have proved to be deeply controversial. They represent an important part in our democracy\, and have embedded themselves in our heritage – they are uniquely British. \nBut newspapers are in decline\, and with them so are political cartoons. Would our democracy – and heritage – be the poorer without them? \nTim Benson is Britain’s leading authority on political cartoons.  Every day\, he scours the press looking for great examples so that he can compile an annual of “Britain’s Best Political Cartoons” of the year.   Who better to tell us about his personal favourites\, the stories behind them and the ones that arguably pushed at boundaries too far. \nA discount of 20% is on offer to all those purchasing five tickets or more from the series\, excluding the conference on the 4th of July. \nTo learn more about Democracy Under Threat and the exciting range of speakers coming up as part of the programme\, don’t forget to follow our Democracy Under Threat Webpage: https://www.brlsi.org/democracyunderthreat/ \n 
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/political-cartoons-a-heritage-under-threat/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Democracy under Threat,Modern World,World Affairs
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261215T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261215T210000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
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SUMMARY:AI technologies inside the state
DESCRIPTION:BRLSI’s Democracy Under Threat series invites you to pause and take stock by surveying the wealth of history and political thinking which underpins our long-held democratic systems and institutions. It explores the laying down of democratic principles from Ancient Athens to the present day\, and takes in current scenarios in international geopolitics\, while considering Britain as its own small island with its own set of political traditions. \nSo what about AI technologies inside the state: the challenges for authority and political rule? Who gets to decide\, what\, for whom\, how\, and how are they held to account?  An upcoming talk by Professor Emma Carmel of University of Bath\, examines how the relationship between technology and statehood has shaped political rule and authority historically\, and what this means for democratic states in an age of AI. Setting the use of AI technologies in a broader historical and political economy context\, this talk addresses how the specific characteristics of AI technologies and their use in governing present more than just a new phase in the wider “digitalisation” of governance of the last half-century\, in four key ways. Taken together\, these have transformative implications for our understandings of democratic statehood in the twenty-first century. \nEmma Carmel is Professor of Governance and Public Policy. She is a history-trained political sociologist who investigates the relationship between statehood and society. Through a series of international collaborations\, her scholarship has theorised new ways of understanding how policy and politics exert effects on society: in social and labour market policies; migration; and through the use and regulation of digital technologies. She is currently researching the political economy of AI technologies and the future of the liberal state. \nA discount of 20% is on offer to all those purchasing five tickets or more from the series\, excluding the conference on the 4th of July. \nTo learn more about Democracy Under Threat and the exciting range of speakers coming up as part of the programme\, don’t forget to follow our Democracy Under Threat Webpage: https://www.brlsi.org/democracyunderthreat/
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/ai-technologies-inside-the-state/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Democracy under Threat,World Affairs
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20270324T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20270324T210000
DTSTAMP:20261015T004359
CREATED:20260821T100101Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260923T084806Z
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SUMMARY:Eco Talks at BRLSI: Is global net zero possible? A political economy perspective
DESCRIPTION:How do we build a sustainable future? If you’re looking for something to inspire you this season ‘Eco Talks at BRLSI ‘ delivers inspiring and thought provoking content on the issue of climate change and conservation. Continuing with Professor Robert Falkner on whether Net Zero is possible\, BRLSI will deliver monthly talks and films exploring how to best futureproof the planet against rising global challenges.  \nTo avert catastrophic climate change\, the world needs to reduce global emissions of greenhouse gases to “net zero”. While the science of climate change is now widely accepted\, opposition to the net zero goal is spreading\, in the UK and US\, but also in Europe.  \nAmidst a growing “green backlash”\, what are the chances that we can successfully decarbonise the global economy? Drawing on his new book Green Political Economy\, Robert Falkner identifies the political-economic forces that stand in the way of the global green transition – and how to overcome them. \nBIO \n \nProfessor Robert Falkner\, London School of Economics and Political Science \nRobert Falkner is Professor of International Relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and Distinguished Fellow of the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy\, University of Toronto. His latest book\, Green Political Economy\, was published by Polity Press in 2026.
URL:https://www.brlsi.org/whatson/eco-talks-at-brlsi-is-global-net-zero-possible-a-political-economy-perspective/
LOCATION:Queen Square or Online\, 16 Queen Square\, Bath\, BA1 2HN
CATEGORIES:Science and Research,Sustainability
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