Futures in Crisis: The Politics of Work and Capitalism in a Digital Age (Bristol Festival of Ideas)

The world has faced two major crises in 12 years. The aftershocks of the 2008 financial crisis are still being felt and the consequences of COVID-19 for economy and society will be with us for a long time. A series of utopian and dystopian visions of the futures of work and capitalism have sprung up alongside these crises, seeking to make sense of an age defined by technological shifts, populist upheaval, digital authoritarianism and global pandemic. In the immediate wake of the US presidential election, this special event with Political Quarterly picks through these futures and debates their political implications on both the national and international stage. Is global capitalism doomed or under new management? Is the end of work near or a utopian pipedream? Is the big state back, and where should its limits lie in a digital age? And how does a politics of place based in our towns and cities connect with the global common good in a fraying world order? Speakers include: Jon Cruddas, MP for Dagenham and Rainham and author of The Dignity of Labour (forthcoming, Polity); Lisa Nandy, MP for Wigan and Shadow Foreign Secretary; Paul Mason, commentator and author of How to Stop Fascism (forthcoming, Penguin). The event was be chaired by Frederick Harry Pitts (University of Bristol), academic and author of Value (forthcoming, Polity). This session is based on a special issue of Political Quarterly on “Postcapitalism and the Politics of Work”: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/1... It is a Thinking Futures event at the University of Bristol, part of the ESRC Festival of Social Science 2020, made possible thanks to funding from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), which is part of UK Research and Innovation. Festival of Ideas is presented by Bristol Ideas. Find out more here: https://www.bristolideas.co.uk/