Connect For alumni of the London School of Economics and Political Science Vol 24, number 1, summer 2012 Olympics LSE joins in the fun New director Judith Rees introduces Craig Calhoun Highs and lows Stories from the favelas LSE residences offer good quality, centrally located accommodation to all during the summer vacation! Bankside House By choosing to book with LSE Vacations you are helping to provide safe, secure and affordable Carr-Saunders Hall housing for our students. The additional revenue from vacation trading contributes to keeping Grosvenor House student rents as low as possible. High Holborn This environment supports and enhances the learning Northumberland House goals of our diverse community, in particular our efforts to widen participation. LSE is committed to Passfield Hall recruiting the best possible students with the highest Rosebery Hall academic and intellectual potential, regardless of their economic or social background. Also available: LSE TopFloor! a range of high quality rooms, studios and apartments available year round. for alumni, staff and current students (Staff, student or alumni ID required) VOLUME 24 NUMBER 1 CONTENTS Editor’s message When the UK hosts the Olympics in just a few short weeks, it will be the culmination of years of planning – for athletes and administrators alike. The excitement has not bypassed LSE, where LSE academics have researched and advised on the likely legacy of the games as well as their impact 11 38 on happiness, London borough budgets and children’s fitness, amongst other themes. LSE alumni are also set to play their part. Mara Yamauchi (MSc Politics of the World Features Regulars Economy 1996) will be running the marathon for team GB, while others will be commentating or using their LSE-honed skills to predict the medals (see page 6). Going for gold Headline news 4 The excitement and optimism generated by the games masks, however, Joanna Bale talks to LSE staff and alumni gearing up for the 2012 Opinion: Tim Newburn on pressing concerns about the UK’s economy and its position in the world. As researching with journalists 17 Professor Mick Cox makes clear in his piece on page 15, the last decade has Olympics, while alumnus Kurt Barling seen an extraordinary erosion in the power of the West, as the financial crisis offers a journalist’s viewpoint 6 Campus: latest developments 24 has brought parts of Europe to the brink of economic collapse and eroded the A cricketing nation LSE and me: alumna and power and confidence of the United States. “For many during the heady days Ramachandra Guha on the LSE governor Gita Patel of the 1990s it really did seem as if the West was best,” he writes, going on to 26 Indianisation of cricket 10 describe the impact of the rise of China and economies such as that of Brazil. LSE icons: from our Which is why it is fitting that our cover story is from Brazil, which will receive Life and death in the picture archives 27 the Olympic torch from the UK at the end of the games, and which will also favelas of Brazil host the World Cup in 2014. In her piece on the favelas of Brazil, Dr Sandra Sandra Jovchelovitch describes her Thank you: how you’ve helped 28 Jovchelovitch notes the extraordinary success of the Brazilian economy and the fieldwork in a Rio de Janeiro favela 11 News huge prospects opened up by the hosting of these tournaments, but reminds 30 readers that for those living in the favelas life chances are still very limited. A hell of a decade Research update 34 These extraordinary stories and global shifts are reflected, I hope, throughout Michael Cox charts the rise of a the magazine. We also bring you news of developments closer to home. We new economic world order 15 Letters 35 welcome Professor Craig Calhoun who will become director of LSE this September, and say farewell to Professor Judith Rees, who has seen LSE through a tumultuous To dream the Alumni: news, events, reunions, year, not least with the publication of the Woolf report last November (see pages impossible dream group activities and volunteering 36 4 and 22). Armine Ishkanian examines the nature Class notes 42 As ever, I end by reminding you that we now offer LSE Connect online as of David Cameron’s “Big Society” and an alternative to receiving the magazine in print – in an effort to reduce our alumna Maria Crastus considers its Rapid resumé: Natalie Griggs 44 environmental impact. impact on biodiversity 18 Obituaries: featuring Claire Sanders At the base of the pyramid Richard Descoings 45 Christian Busch on reducing poverty LSE Connect is Books 46 available online at through business model innovation 21 lse.ac.uk/LSEConnect Farewell and welcome LSE Connect Judith Rees introduces Craig LSE Connect is published twice a year by the Press and Information All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, Office at the London School of Economics and Political Science, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any Calhoun and says farewell as Houghton Street, London WC2A 2AE. Tel: +44 (0)20 7955 7060. means without the prior permission in writing of the publisher, Fax: +44 (0)20 7852 3658. Email: [email protected] nor be issued to the public or circulated in any form of binding or director. Chair of council, Peter cover other than that in which it is published. Commissioning editor: Claire Sanders Production editor: Fiona Whiteman Requests for permission to reproduce any article or part of the Sutherland, pays tribute 22 magazine should be sent to the editor at the above address. Alumni news editor: Zoe Povoas Art and design editor: Claire Harrison In the interests of providing a free flow of debate, views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the editor, LSE alumni Assistant art and design editor: Ailsa Drake or LSE. LSE photography (unless stated): Nigel Stead Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy and Editorial assistants: Sarah Savage, Jess Winterstein reliability of material published in this magazine, LSE accepts no Printed by: Warners responsibility for the veracity of claims or accuracy of information Published by The London School of Economics and Political Science provided by contributors. (‘LSE’), Houghton Street, London WC2A 2AE. LSE is a School of the Freedom of thought and expression is essential to the pursuit, University of London. It is a Charity and is incorporated in England advancement and dissemination of knowledge. LSE seeks to ensure as a company limited by guarantee under the Companies Acts (Reg that intellectual freedom and freedom of expression within the law number 70527). is secured for all our members and those we invite to the School. Copyright in editorial matter and in the magazine as a whole belongs to LSE ©2012. Copyright in individual articles belongs Printed on recycled paper to the authors who have asserted their moral rights ©2012. LSE CONNECT is available online at lse.ac.uk/LSEConnect. If you would like to opt to receive only the online version of LSE Connect via an email alert, please update the “Personal Information” section in the “My Profile Page” of your Houghton Street Online account. 27 6 HEADLINE NEWS Leading social scientist and public intellectual LSE’s new director for Public Knowledge and president of the Social Science Research Council. Peter Sutherland, chairman of LSE’s Court of Governors, said: “Craig is an outstanding appointment – an intellectual completely at ease in public life whose career shows how academia is not aloof from society but embedded in it. “He is also a vastly experienced leader of academic organisations, finding new ways of drawing out their inherent strengths and bringing their expertise to bear on society. I have no doubt LSE will thrive under his leadership.” Professor Calhoun, who is a US citizen, has deep connections to the UK, having taken a DPhil in History and Sociology at Oxford University and a master’s in Social Anthropology at Manchester. He co-founded, with LSE’s Professor Richard Sennett, the NYLON programme, which brings together students from New York and London for co-operative research programmes. He is the author of several books including Nations Matter (2007), Neither Gods Nor Emperors (1997) and Professor Craig Calhoun, a world-renowned social rofessor Calhoun, who was Critical Social Theory (1995). appointed following an open Describing his own approach to scientist whose work connects sociology to culture, P competition by a selection panel academic work, Professor Calhoun communication, politics, philosophy and economics which included members of LSE’s faculty, says: “We must set high standards for will be the new director of LSE. student body and governors, will take ourselves, but in order to inform the public over from current director Professor well, not to isolate ourselves from it.” n Judith Rees on 1 September 2012. He For more information about Professor is currently university professor at New Calhoun see nyu.edu/ipk/calhoun or York University, director of the Institute read Judith Rees’ introduction on page 22. For the biggest stories from around the campus and beyond, see page 30 LSE rises in UK and world Judith Rees signs off LSE launches its reputation rankings p new Ethics Code p digital library p 4 I LSE Connect I Summer 2012 I MANY EMINENT SPEAKERS HAVE LSE EVENTS VISITED THE SCHOOL RECENTLY 1 2 3 4 5 6 1 “Leading Colombia towards explored by Masaaki Shirakawa, 4 Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft “The EU in the global economy: prosperity for all” was the topic governor of the Bank of Japan.