Academy of Ideas

#BattleFest2016: A tale of two cities - is inequality killing London?

Listen to the opening remarks from the Battle of Ideas launch event at the Barbican in LondonLondon
has, by most accounts, emerged as one of the premier cities of the
twenty-first century: firmly established as a global hub for finance,
technology and culture. Yet there have been growing anxieties about the
effect rising inequality levels are having on the city and its
inhabitants. Soaring private rental prices and strain on social housing
have fuelled fears about gentrification driving out long-term residents
as unfashionable neighbourhoods become regenerated. Such fears have also
begun to spread among the relatively affluent, with even the New York
Times‘s departing London correspondent bemoaning the distorting effects
of foreign investment into the capital’s ‘crazyexpensive’ property
market. Stories abound of young creatives being priced out to the extent
that they find commuting from Spain or Berlin a more affordable option.
More generally, there is a growing conviction that London’s development
is coming at the expense of a sanitised city, with public space
becoming increasingly privatised and stage-managed.While much ire
has been expressed at the stark disparity between London’s increasing
range of luxury tower blocks and ‘poor doors’ provided to inhabitants of
socially affordable accommodation, some have suggested that inequality
is not as big a problem as lack of adequate infrastructure. A range of
measures from rent controls to strict penalties for under-occupancy have
been suggested, although many are sceptical of their long-term impact.
Almost everyone seems to agree that a chronic lack of housing in the
city is driving prices through the roof, yet calls to build on the green
belt and relax planning regulations are met with strong opposition.Does
inequality pose a serious threat to the vibrancy of London? Would
measures such as rent control provide relief to the housing bubble, or
continue to distract from tackling the problems of supply? Is London in
danger of becoming a sanitised millionaire’s playground without urgent
action? Are concerns over ‘hipster gentrification’ a resistance to the
changing nature of the city, or is there a real threat posed by divided
communities in an increasingly expensive city? Should the capital’s
rapid development be a cause for celebration or concern?

#PodcastOfIdeas: making happiness policy

Rob Lyons speaks to philosopher Piers Benn about the nature of happiness and why it has become a Government policy objective in recent years.

#PodcastOfIdeas: Aylan Kurdi, the migration crisis and drone strikes

In this week's Podcast of Ideas Rob Lyons, Claire Fox and David Bowden discuss the week's news, including the migrant crisis and the drone assassinations of two British Jihadis in the Islamic State.

#PodcastOfIdeas: US shootings, migrant crisis and robot wars

In this week’s Podcast of Ideas, Rob Lyons, Claire Fox and David
Bowden discuss the murder of two journalists on live television by a
disgruntled former colleague in the United States, and the latest tragic
events in the ongoing European migration crisis. Rob talks to Martyn
Perks about the growing fears about the role of artificial intelligence
and robots in society in everything from manufacturing to warfare, and
why a machine could never become truly human, ahead of his session at
the upcoming Battle of Ideas session titled Man vs machine: who controls the robots?.
And after the release of this year’s GCSE results, Philip Walters comes
in to discuss the state of education in the UK and whether exams for
16-year-olds are necessary any more.   

#PodcastOfIdeas: Kid’s Company, doping and milk prices

Discussion of the news, race and policing in America and Immanuel Kant
In this edition of the Podcast of Ideas, Rob Lyons, Claire Fox and Dave Bowden discuss the big stories of the past few weeks, including the scandal at Kid’s Company, doping in sport and the row over falling milk prices. Rob speaks to Jean Smith from the New York Salon about race and policing in America ahead of her session on the subject at the Battle of Ideas, and we have Steve Murphy’s mini lecture from the Institute’s recent event University in One Day on Immanuel Kant and the nature of enlightenment.

#PodcastOfIdeas: Jeremy Corbyn, Lord Sewell and Ashley Madison

In this edition of the Podcast of Ideas Rob Lyons, Claire Fox and Dave Bowden discuss the big stories of the last few weeks including the rise of Jeremy Corbyn, the fall of Lord Sewell, the Ashley Madison leak, David Cameron's miguided strategy for tackling ISIS and the Brighton smoking ban.

City of London Festival - highlights from our Justice, Money and Power series

Highlights from the AOI's Justice Money Power debates at the City of London Festival
In this week’s podcast we here some of the most informative and inspiring speeches from the Institute’s recent Justice, Money and Power debates at the City of London Festival, including chairman of the Night Time Industry Association’s Alan Miller’s defence of the night-time economy as a force for societal good at our Fight For Your Right To Party debate at the Bishopsgate Institute. Economist Phil Mullan gives a worrying prognosis for the British economy unless we can stimulate real econonic growth at our Are We Heading For Another Crisis? event, also at the Bishopsgate Institute. Architect Alastair Donald makes a powerful argument for building huge numbers of new houses across the UK to end the housing crisis at A Tale Of Two Cities: Skyscrapers And Slums at London & Partners, and Professor of Law John Fitzpatrick gives a history of the development of human liberties since Magna Carta and proffers what his thinks should be the next great leap in human freedom at A Twenty-First-Century Magna Carta.
Full recordings of the Justice, Money and Power series will be available for download soon. 

#PodcastOfIdeas: Greg Lukianoff, Sebastian Morello and DM at the British Library

In this week’s Podcast of Ideas, Rob speaks to Greg Lukianoff from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) about the fight for freedom of speech on US campuses amid an increasingly intolerant climate. Following the Institute’s inaugural University in One Day this week, we hear Sebastian Morello’s mini-lecture from the event on why Pico della Mirandola’s 1486 Oration on the Dignity of Man is a foundational work for humanist thought. David Bowden and Adam Rawcliffe come in to give us their views on the week’s news stories, and Nadia Butt reports back on last weekend’s Debating Matter National Final at the British Library in London.