On May 31st, American philosopher Martha Nussbaum will visit Amsterdam on invitation of the John Adam's Society. Nussbaum – a Harvard alumna who has taught at her alma mater and Brown University – is the Ernst Freund Distinguished Service Professor of Law and Ethics at the University of Chicago. She will speak at the International School of Amsterdam in Amstelveen about her latest translated book: Creating Capabilities.
From the Harvard University Press: "If a country’s Gross Domestic Product increases each year, but so does the percentage of its people deprived of basic education, health care, and other opportunities, is that country really making progress? If we rely on convent ional economic indicators, can we ever grasp how the world’s billions of individuals are really managing?
In this powerful critique, Martha Nussbaum argues that our dominant theories of development have given us policies that ignore our most basic human needs for dignity and self-respect. For the past twenty-five years, Nussbaum has been working on an alternate model to assess human development: the Capabilities Approach. She and her colleagues begin with the simplest of questions: What is each person actually able to do and to be? What real opportunities are available to them?"
Following the lecture, there will be an opportunity to have your book signed by Nussbaum. There will be a drink in the foyer of the school after the lecture for for all guests with a cash bar. We set up a space for Ivy Circle members to gather and get to discuss the evening's lecture.
This is going to be an important evening. Please note that tickets are going very fast and the official ticket sales have not even opened yet. If you are interested in attending, don't hesitate as you might just miss your chance!
Tickets are available at the John Adams Institute's web site. Tickets for JAI members cost 11,-€ and for non-members 18,50€. A year membership costs only 30,-€.
Books are available for pre-order with a discount at Boekenhandel van Rossum