Niall Ferguson on importance of civil institutions and more

 "Degeneration and Regeneration after the Cold War." Is the West in terminal decline? Niall Ferguson argues that, less than 25 years after the end of the Cold War and the apparent triumph of liberal democracy and the free market, the economic and political supremacy of Western Europe and North America is fading rapidly. According to the International Monetary Fund, advanced economies continue to pose a serious risk to global recovery. In the euro area, prolonged stagnation looms large, whilst in the United States excessive fiscal consolidation could derail the recent upturn. As developing economies continue to grow, many advanced economies are battling high unemployment, debt, and income inequality. Niall Ferguson argues that these challenges indicate the deterioration of economic and political institutions. What are the causes of this degeneration and what comes next?

 Professor Ferguson is the Laurence A. Tisch Professor of History at Harvard University, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, and a senior research fellow at Jesus College, Oxford. He has published fourteen books, including The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of the World, Civilization: The West and the Rest, and most recently, The Great Degeneration: How Institutions Decay and Economies Die. An accomplished broadcaster, in 2009 he won the International Emmy for Best Documentary. In 2010 he won the Benjamin Franklin Award for Public Service and in 2012 the Hayek Prize for Lifetime Achievement. The seminar is open to the general public, no pre-registration necessary.