The Decline of the Middle Classes Around the World? Segovia, Spain September 28–30, 2014

The Decline of the Middle Classes

Around the World?

Segovia, Spain

September 28–30, 2014

Conference website

In the wake of the 2008/2009 financial crisis have come increasing concerns that we may be witnessing the decline of the middle classes around the world. The forces underlying this uneasiness, of course, were at work before the crisis, but it seems to have hastened and aggravated their impact. Is the decades-long period of relative middle-class affluence at an end? Or will current difficulties pass as national economies strengthen?

In order to explore these and related issues, the Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED), the University of Maryland School of Public Policy (UMD), and the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM) will hold a conference in Segovia, Spain, September 29–30, 2014. An opening reception will take place the evening of September 28. 

The conference is designed to attract a worldwide audience, including academics and professionals from universities, think tanks, government agencies, nonprofits, and the private sector.

Conference schedule:

Listed below are some highlights from the conference. View the complete agenda here.

Keynote addresses:

Amitai Etzioni, University Professor and Professor of International Affairs; Director, Institute for Communitarian Policy Studies, Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University, Washington, D.C., “The social and political consequences of the coming big disruption: The second digital revolution”

Georg Fischer, Director for Analysis, Evaluation, External Relations, Directorate General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission, "European labour markets in (the) crisis: Is there light at the end of the tunnel?” 

Dimitris Kyriakou, Chief Economist, European Commission's Institute for Prospective Technological Studies, “A rude awakening for the middle class: systemic features of the debt crisis in the eurozone and the road(s) ahead”

Antonio López Peláez, Professor, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia; Editor, Comunitania: International Journal of Social Work and Social Science, “Labor, health and middle classes: Do young Spaniards have to jeopardize their health to find a job?”

José Antonio Martínez Alvarez, General Director of Fiscal Studies Institute, Madrid, “Has the recession caused the decline of the middle class in Spain? A comparative study with other European countries”

Kumar Venkatesh, Professor and Chairperson, Centre for Public Policy and Governance, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, “Aspirational middle class, neoliberalism, and democratic politics in India”

Panels:
The Middle Class: Who are they, where did they go, and why does it matter?

            Moderator: David Johnson, Chief Economist, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis

Panel members:

Marco Mira d'Ercole, Head of the Division for Household Statistics and Progress Measurement, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Brian Nolan, Director of Employment, Equity and Growth Programme and Professor of Social Policy at the Department of Social Policy and Intervention, Oxford University

Sagrario Segado Sánchez-Cabezudo, Director, Gregorio Marañon Center, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia; English editor, Comunitania: International Journal of Social Work and Social Sciences

Timothy Smeeding, Director of the Institute for Research on Poverty; Arts and Sciences Distinguished Professor of Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin

The future of workforce development programs in Latin America (Spanish-language panel)

            Moderator: Ariel Fiszbein, Program Director, Inter-American Dialogue

Panel members:

Angel Melguizo, Senior Economist, Development Center, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Silvia Montoya, Director General for Education Evaluation, Buenos Aires

Carmen Pagés-Serra, Chief of the Labor Markets and Social Security Unit, Inter-American Development Bank

Germán Ríos, Strategy Director, Banco de Desarrollo de América Latina, CAF

Alexandria Valerio, Senior Economist, World Bank

Skills that matter: What skills will be needed in the future (and how should we measure them)?

            Moderator: Ariel Fiszbein, Program Director, Inter-American Dialogue

Panel members:

Arup Banerji, Senior Director for Social Protection and Labor, World Bank

Mark Keese, Head of the Employment Analysis and Policy Division, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, TBC

Robert Lerman, Professor, Department of Economics, American University; Institute Fellow, Urban Institute

Carmen Pagés-Serra, Chief of the Labor Markets and Social Security Unit, Inter-American Development Bank

Editors’ panel

Chair: Douglas Besharov, Professor, School of Public Policy, University of Maryland; Chair, International Activities Committee, Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management; Co-Editor, International Policy Exchange Series, Oxford University Press

Panel members:

Kenneth Couch, Professor, Department of Economics, University of Connecticut; Editor-designate, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management

Neil Gilbert, Professor, School of Social Welfare, University of California, Berkeley; Chair, Editorial Board,International Journal of Social Welfare

Traute Mayer, Professor of Social Policy, University of Southampton; Co-Editor, Journal of European Social Policy

Timothy Smeeding, Director, Institute for Research on Poverty; Arts and Sciences Distinguished Professor of Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin; Co-Editor, Poverty and Income Distribution and Income Assistance SIRN        

Additional panels

Panel session topics will include the social and economic condition of the middle class in individual or groups of countries, and the contributing and countering factors to the social and economic condition of the middle class (such as macroeconomic policy, labor market conditions, family structure, work/family issues, demographics, immigration and migration, government cash transfer programs, social welfare, workforce development efforts, unemployment benefits, minimum wage policies, education, health, housing, pensions, disability, and public safety).

There will also be a Spanish-language track of panels.

Events:

Opening ceremony, followed by a cocktail reception

City tour of Segovia by bus

Visit to La Granja de San Ildefonso Gardens

Closing gala dinner

Language:

English will be the official language of the conference. There will also be a separate, Spanish language track of panels. Abstracts, papers, and presentations are expected to be delivered in English or Spanish.

Program committee:

See the list here.

Hotels and transportation:

More information about Segovia, accommodations, and transportation can be found here.

Conference registration:

Regular registration began on July 16, 2014 and will continue until September 9, 2014. There will also be on-site registration for the conference. Please see the table below for registration costs. Instructions for registering can be found at the APPAM website here.

Category	Regular registration(by September 9)	On-Site registration
Student Members of APPAM	$400	$450
APPAM Members	$500	$550
All Others	$550	$600

For questions about abstracts (submitted to APPAM) and registration, please contact Jocelyn Mason of APPAM here.

For all other questions, please contact customer service here. 

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