Value And Values Of Science

The challenges facing countries with developing economies can be staggering and South Africa is no exception. Current solutions are no longer adequate to meet the multi-dimensional social, technological and economic challenges. In this context, does Science hold the answers to unprecedented opportunities for rapid social progress and what values should support its development? The National Research Foundation, together with the Human Science Research Council (HRSC), cordially invites you to a public lecture by world renowned social scientist, Professor Craig Calhoun, whose work connects sociology to culture, communication, politics, philosophy, and economics.  

In this lecture, Prof Calhoun will explore the value and values of Science in addressing modern socio- economic realities.

Date: Thursday, 6 September 2018

Time: 17:00 for 17:30

Venue: Chief Albert Luthuli Auditorium, National Research Foundation, Meiring Naude Road, Pretoria

For inquiries, contact 

Sam Lekala: slekala@hsrc.ac.za 

Lerato Mpetshwa: lerato.mpetshwa@nrf.ac.za or 012 481 4357

Speaker

Professor Calhoun is the President of the Berggruen Institute; former Director and President of the London School of Economics and Political Science from 2012 to 2016, where he remains a Centennial Professor; and University Professor of Social Sciences at Arizona State University. In addition, he was President of the Social Science Research Council in the United States from 1999 to 2012 and University Professor of the Social Sciences at New York University from 1996 to 2012.

Prof Calhoun has written more than 100 scholarly articles and chapters as well as books, among which his most famous is a study of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, Neither Gods Nor Emperors: Students and the Struggle for Democracy in China (California, 1994).

Prof Calhoun’s work has been translated into more than a dozen languages. His recent work has focused on the future of capitalism and on humanitarianism. He has also written on Brexit and the rise of populism. He received his Doctorate in Sociology and History from Oxford University and a Master’s in Social Anthropology from Manchester University. He has edited several books, most recently The Roots of Radicalism as well as Knowledge Matters: The Public Mission of the Research University (with Diana Rhoten) and Nations Matter: Culture, History, and the Cosmopolitan Dream. He co-founded, with Richard Sennett, Professor of Sociology at London School of Economics, the NYLON program, which brings together graduate students from New York and London for a cooperative research program.