Professor Ben Ansell from the University of Oxford Presented on "The Future of Prosperity"
The BBC Radio 4 Reith Lecture featuring Ben Ansell, professor of comparative democratic institutions at the University of Oxford, took place at the Historic Academy of Medicine at Georgia Tech on Nov. 28, 2023.
The Reith Lectures built on Ansell's recent book, Why Politics Fails. The four-lecture series, entitled "Our Democratic Future," considered how to build political systems that work for all and are robust enough to face the wide-ranging challenges of the 21st century.
In this final lecture, "The Future of Prosperity," Ansell engaged with a crucial question: can we continue to grow our economies without despoiling the earth? Focusing on the existential threats created by our own innovation — from climate change to out-of-control artificial intelligence — Ansell asked whether our politics is up to the task of supporting sustainable growth. He concluded by showing that the political lessons of past technological revolutions provide important lessons for today's challenges.
Photos by Joshua Smith
