ATHENS, GREECE— The Levy Economics Institute of Bard College will gather high-level policymakers, distinguished economists, and leading banking and investment professionals at the conference “Europe at the Crossroads: A Union of Austerity or Growth Convergence?” in Athens, Greece, to explore the ongoing economic crisis in Greece and other eurozone countries. Coorganized by the Levy Institute and Economia Civile, with support from the Ford Foundation and the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, the conference takes place Friday and Saturday, November 21 and 22, at the Megaron Athens International Conference Centre, and is free and open to the public.
Invited participants include Mihai Tănăsescu, vice president, European Investment Bank; Panagiotis Liargovas, director of the budget office, Greek Parliament, and Jean Monnet Chair in European Integration and Policies, University of Peloponnese; Yannis Dragasakis, MP (Syriza) and vice president of the Hellenic Parliament; Peter Bofinger, member of the German Council of Economic Experts, professor of monetary policy and international economics, University of Würzburg, and research fellow, Centre for Economic Policy Research; Elga Bartsch, European chief economist, Morgan Stanley; Marek Belka, governor, National Bank of Poland; Patrick Honohan, governor, Central Bank of Ireland; Lubomír Lízal, member of the board, Czech National Bank; Heiner Flassbeck, formerly director, Division on Globalization and Development Strategies, UNCTAD, and deputy finance minister, Germany; Nikos Chrysoloras, Greece and Cyprus bureau chief, Bloomberg News; Viktoria Dendrinou, correspondent, The Wall Street Journal; Joanna Kakissis, correspondent, NPR and PRI, Athens; and Christina Kopsini, editor, labor market and employment issues, Kathimerini.
The conference will focus on, among other issues, the continuing debate surrounding the eurozone’s systemic instability; proposals for banking union; regulation and supervision of financial institutions; monetary, fiscal, and trade policy in Europe, and the spillover effects for the U.S. and the global economy; the impact of austerity policies on U.S. and European markets; and the sustainability of government deficits and debt. The conference will include presentations by Dimitri B. Papadimitriou, president, Levy Institute; Jan Kregel, senior scholar, Levy Institute, and professor of finance and development, Tallinn University of Technology; George Argitis, professor of economics, University of Athens, and scientific director, Institute of Labour, GSEE; Emilios Avgouleas, chair, International Banking Law and Finance, University of Edinburgh; Eckhard Hein, research associate, Levy Institute, and professor of economics, Berlin School of Economics and Law; Stuart Holland, professor, University of Coimbra; Lex Hoogduin, professor of complexity and uncertainty, University of Groningen; Stephen Kinsella, lecturer in economics, Kemmy Business School, University of Limerick; Michalis Nikiforos, research scholar, Levy Institute; Engelbert Stockhammer, professor of economics, Kingston University; Andrea Terzi, professor of economics, Franklin University Switzerland and Università Cattolica; Mario Tonveronachi, professor of financial systems, University of Siena; and Raymond Torres, director, research department, International Labour Organization.
The Levy Economics Institute of Bard College, founded in 1986 through the generous support of the late Bard College trustee Leon Levy, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, public policy research organization. The Institute is independent of any political or other affiliation, and encourages diversity of opinion in the examination of economic policy issues while striving to transform ideological arguments into informed debate.
Economia Civile is a cultural association, based in Rome, that aims to promote scientific research and cultural and political debate on the mutual relationship between the economy and the civil development of society.
The Ford Foundation is an independent, nonprofit grant-making organization. For more than half a century it has worked with courageous people on the frontlines of social change worldwide, guided by its mission to strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement. With headquarters in New York, the foundation has offices in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.
To register to attend the conference, visit www.levyinstitute.org/conferences/athens2014/registration/index.php. There is no fee.