This month, the Weiser Center for Emerging Democracies at the University of Michigan will welcome two experts to present lectures on countries facing local economic challenges.

On Tuesday, November 10, Stathis N. Kalyvas, Arnold Wolfers Professor of Political Science and director of the Program on Order, Conflict and Violence at Yale University, will give a talk titled, “Greece: What Happened?” Kalyvas will analyze the various stages of the “Greek Crisis” from its eruption in 2009 to the present. He will place the crisis in the broader context of Greek history and the process of European integration, both monetary and political, comparing and contrasting political and economic dynamics, as well as domestic, European, and international ones. This lecture will draw on the arguments of his recently published book, Modern Greece: What Everyone Needs to Know (Oxford University Press, 2015).

On Tuesday, November 17, Konstantin Sonin, professor at the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy, will deliver the lecture, “The Russian Economy in 2015.” The Russian ruble’s value has been in decline over the past year in response to falling gas prices and economic sanctions imposed by the West in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine. Sonin recently joined the faculty at the University of Chicago after leaving Russia amid an unfriendly political climate. He is widely recognized as a top Russian specialist in development economics and political economy.

Both lectures will take place at 4:00 pm in Room 1636 at the International Institute/School of Social Work, 1080 S. University Ave., Ann Arbor, MI. Admission is free and open to the public. The lectures will be presented by the Weiser Center for Emerging Democracies. Kalyvas’s lecture has additional support from the Center for European Studies and Modern Greek Program. Sonin’s lecture will be presented with support from the Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies.

More details:
Nov 10, 4pm | Stathis N. Kalyvas | Greece: What Happened?
Nov 17, 4 pm | Konstantin Sonin | The Russian Economy in 2015

The Weiser Center for Emerging Democracies (WCED) promotes scholarship to better understand the conditions and policies that foster the transition from autocratic rule to democratic governance, past and present. Named in honor of Ronald and Eileen Weiser and inspired by their time in Slovakia during Ambassador Weiser’s service as U.S. ambassador from 2001-04, WCED began operations in September 2008. For more information, visit ii.umich.edu/wced.

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Contact:Rachel Brichta
Weiser Center for Emerging Democracies
Phone: 734.764.0351
E-mail: weisercenter@umich.edu