A Conference and a Summer School

Here are a couple of (unrelated) events that might be interesting for philosophers and historians of economics.

The first is a conference on Mechanisms and Causality in the Sciences, 9-11 September 2009 at the University of Kent, Canterbury, UK. More info at: http://www.kent.ac.uk/secl/philosophy/jw/2009/macits/

The second is the first of a newly launched series of summer schools “CES Critical Economics Summer School” organized by the Centre for Social Studies, Associate Laboratory of the University of Coimbra. The theme of the first edition to be held in Coimbra, 6-9 July is “The Institutional Foundations of the Economy: Property, Markets and Public Policy.”

I was unable to find their website, so for those interested here is more detailed info.

The first edition is devoted to the institutional foundations of the economy. It will bring on board the institutionalist and the feminist perspective on two basic economic institutions – property and markets. Particular attention will be given to the relation between these institutions and public policy, specifically, to how those institutions are shaped, and permanently reshaped, by public policies. The speakers are invited to discuss four main topics:

1) The foundations of the economy: the institutionalist and the feminist perspective.
2) Rights, property and property rights.
3) The limits of the market and institutional impurity.
4) Public policy and institutional change.

Guest lecturers include Daniel W. Bromley from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Julie A. Nelson from the University of Massachusetts Boston, and John O’Neill from the University of Manchester. CES Lecturers include José Castro Caldas, Vítor Neves, José Reis, Tiago Santos Pereira.

Interested graduate students and post-docs are encouraged to apply by submitting a curriculum vitae and a two-page abstract of the proposed paper together with the contact details of the author (Name, affiliation, email address) to summer2009@ces.uc.pt.

Deadline for submissions is April 1st 2009. Acceptance will be communicated by email by May 1st 2009.

The summer school will be held at the hotel Quinta da Geia, located in Aldeia das Dez. It offers the perfect ambience for critical economics with a view to the extraordinary sightseeing of the Serra da Estrela.

The registration fee: 50 € for students and 150 € for non-students. Accommodation costs + meals for the four days of the conference: 350 €. The organization may subsidize a reduced number of students. The decision will be based on the interest of the proposed communication and subject to proof of student condition.

Organizing commitee: José Castro Caldas, Vítor Neves, Ana Cordeiro Santos, João Tolda

For further information, email summer2009@ces.uc.pt.