Leading author and expert on world’s poor to speak in Melbourne
Media releaseOxford Professor of Economics, author of the multi-award winning book The Bottom Billion and advisor to the UN and British Government Paul Collier will outline his latest thoughts on how the planet's natural resources should be managed to help the world's poor at Deakin University's inaugural Fusion lecture this Thursday 25 November.
The free lecture will take place at 6pm at the Village Roadshow Theatrette, State Library of Victoria, Swanston Street, Melbourne.
Director of Deakin University's Alfred Deakin Institute Professor David Lowe said the inaugural lecture was the first in a series of thought-provoking topics to be delivered by leading academics and policy-makers of significant international standing.
"Professor Collier is a renowned expert on developing countries and the world's poorest populations," he said.
"We are thrilled he has accepted our invitation to speak at our first Fusion lecture.
"He is an absolute world leader when it comes to the cutting edge economic thinking the world needs to survive in the 21st Century and beyond."
Professor Lowe said the Fusion lectures draw inspiration from Alfred Deakin in bringing different disciplines to bear in interpreting and responding to global and regional change.
"Professor Collier's visit and address will be based on the themes from his latest book The Plundered Planet - Why We Must and How We Can Manage The World's Natural Resources to Ensure Global Prosperity.
Professor Lowe said in his book Professor Collier argued that proper stewardship of natural assets and liabilities is a matter of planetary urgency.
"He proposes a series of international standards that would help poor countries rich in natural assets better manage those resources, policy changes that would raise world food supply, and an approach to climate change that acknowledges the benefits of industrialization while addressing the need for alternatives to carbon trading," he said.
"These proposals have already attracted attention and generated discussion overseas, we hope Professor Collier's address does the same here."