2017 Events

Wednesday, January 25

Seminar in Environmental Economics and Policy

The Impact of Removing Tax Preferences for U.S. Oil and Gas Production

Gilbert Metcalf
Tufts University

Room L-382 (3rd Floor Littauer Building)
4:15-5:30

Thursday, January 26

PIC Event

Davos Debrief

Dean Doug Elmendorf
Prof. Iris Bohnet
Prof. Carmen Reinhart

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
11:45-1

Thursday, January 30

Study Group

Connecting National Climate Ambition to Financing and Climate Resilience

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Farrukh Khan

Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm--Additional details HERE

Monday, January 30

STS Circle at Harvard

Group Creativity: Lessons from Synthesis Centers?

Edward Hackett
Brandeis University

K262, Bowie-Vernon Room, CGIS, 1737 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

Wednesday, February 1

Business & Government Seminar

Israel's Economic Paradox: Great Macro, Poor Micro

Israel's economy has been performing remarkably well for the past couple of decades (except for 2001-2003), including during the recent crisis. However, Israeli society has seen increasing inequality, high cost of living, a housing crisis, etc., leading to the big social eruption of 2011, the causes of which have not entirely abated. Hence the excellent "macro" performance, allowing with the "poor micro." This paradox will be discussed in the seminar, as well as policy implications and similar phenomena elsewhere, including the U.S.

Manuel Trajtenberg
The Eitan Berglas School of Economics
Tel-Aviv University

Fainsod Room (3rd Floor Littauer)
1-2pm

Thursday, February 2

Business & Government Seminar

Going Public: My Adventures Inside the SEC and How to Prevent the Next Devastating Crisis

Norm Champ
Author, Going Public
Partner, Kirkland & Ellis, LLP

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
11:45am-1pm

Thursday, February 2

Study Group

Rethinking Operational Risk Capital Requirements

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Peter Sands

Taubman 301
4:00-5:30 pm--Additional details HERE

Monday, February 6

ETIP/Consortium for Energy Policy Research

The Great Swap: Addressing Climate Change with a Carbon Tax

Joseph Aldy
Harvard Kennedy School

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12-1:30pm

Monday, February 6

STS Circle at Harvard

What is a Whale Stock? And Other Moral Questions in Large Cetacean Management

Les Beldo
Williams College

K262, Bowie-Vernon Room, CGIS, 1737 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

Monday, February 6

Study group

Addressing complexity: smallholder farmers facing climate risks in sub-Saharan Africa

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Simon Winter with Stephanie Hanson, Senior Vice President, Policy & Partnerships, One Acre Fund

Belfer 503 (M-RCBG Conference Room)
4:00-5:30 pm – Additional details here

Wednesday, February 8

Seminar in Environmental Economics and Policy

The Welfare Effects of Nudges: A Case Study of Energy Use Social Comparisons

Hunt Allcott
New York University

Room L-382 (3rd Floor Littauer Building)
4:15-5:30

Thursday, February 9

Business & Government Seminar

*POSTPONED*

Presidential Elections and Political Change: 1912 and the Making of the Fed and Donald Trump Today

Roger Lowenstein
Author and reporter

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
11:45-1

Saturday, February 11-Sunday, February 12

2017 India Conference at Harvard University

India: The Global Growth Engine

For additional information, click here.

Monday, February 13

ETIP/Consortium for Energy Policy Research

The Brazilian Power Sector

Mauricio Tolmasquim
Visiting Fellow, HEPG
Professor, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro
Former President of Brazil's Empresa de Pesquisa Energetica (Energy Research Company)

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12-1:30pm

Monday, February 13

STS Circle at Harvard

Making Livable Natures: Caring for Wetlands in Turkey

Caterina Scaramelli
MIT HASTS

K262, Bowie-Vernon Room, CGIS, 1737 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

Monday, February 13

Study Group

Regulation Innovation: Protecting Consumers Through Technology & Trust

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Jo Ann Barefoot with guest Theo Cosmora of Social Eco

Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm--Additional details HERE

Monday, February 13

Forum Event

Alternatives to the Affordable Care Act

Katherine Baicker
Harvard School of Public Health
Jonathan Gruber
MIT
Avik Roy
The Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity
Gail Wilensky
Project HOPE

Amitabh Chandra
Harvard Kennedy School

Sponsored by the Institute of Politics, Harvard Kennedy School Healthcare Policy Program, and the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business & Government.

JFK Jr. Forum
6pm

Wednesday, February 15

Business & Government Seminar

The Mosaic Principle: The Six Dimensions of a Remarkable Life and Career

Nick Lovegrove
Author
U.S. Managing Partner, The Brunswick Group
Former M-RCBG Senior Fellow

Allison Dining Room (5th Floor Taubman)
1-2pm

Wednesday, February 15

Study group

The Looming Trans-Atlantic Battle: Regulating Data While Boosting Growth
Session 1: The Promise of the Data Revolution

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Christopher Smart

Belfer 503
4:00-5:30 pm – Additional details here

Wednesday, February 15

Seminar in Environmental Economics and Policy

Shedding Light: Understanding Energy Efficiency and Electricity Reliability

Robyn Meeks
University of Michigan

Room L-382 (3rd Floor Littauer Building)
4:15-5:30

Thursday, February 16

Business & Government Seminar

Pursuing Sustainability: A Guide to the Science and Practice
(Click here for slides)

William Clark
Harvard Kennedy School

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
11:45-1

Wednesday, February 22

Seminar in Environmental Economics and Policy

Valuing Nuclear Energy Risk: The Impact of the Fukushima Crisis on U.S. Housing Prices

Jeffrey Zabel
Tufts University

Room L-382 (3rd Floor Littauer Building)
4:15-5:30

Wednesday, February 22

Study Group

Escaping the High Cost Lending Trap—Exploring FinTech Alternatives to Borrowing for Low-Income Working Americans

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Todd Baker

Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm--Additional details HERE

Friday, February 24

Global Food + 2017

24 Speed Talks at the Nexus of Food, Agriculture, Environment, Health and Society

Keynote speaker: Shenggen Fan, Director General of the International Food Policy Research Institute

CGIS South Building, 1730 Cambridge Street, Tsai Auditorium (S010)

Monday, February 27

ETIP/Consortium for Energy Policy Research

Competitiveness Issues with a Carbon Tax

Gilbert Metcalf
Tufts University

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12-1:30pm

Monday, February 27

STS Circle at Harvard

Architectural Strategies and Infrastructural Landscapes of the Green Revolution in India in the 1960s

Ateya Khorakiwala
Harvard Graduate School of Design

K262, Bowie-Vernon Room, CGIS, 1737 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

Tuesday, February 28

Program on U.S.-Japan Relations seminar

A Productivity Revolution and Japan's Revitalization

Dale Jorgenson
Samuel W. Morris University Professor, Harvard University

Moderator: Susan Pharr, Edwin O. Reischauer Professor of Japanese Politics and Director, WCFIA Program on U.S.-Japan Relations, Harvard University

Co-sponsored by the Department of Economics.

K262, Bowie-Vernon Room, CGIS, 1737 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

Wednesday, March 1

Study group

The Looming Trans-Atlantic Battle: Regulating Data While Boosting Growth
Session 2: The Struggle to Balance Privacy, Security and Growth

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Christopher Smart

Belfer 503
4:00-5:30 pm – Additional details here

Wednesday, March 1

Seminar in Environmental Economics and Policy

On a World Climate Assembly and the Social Cost of Carbon

Martin Weitzman
Harvard University

Room L-382 (3rd Floor Littauer Building)
4:15-5:30

Thursday, March 2

Regulatory Policy Program Seminar

Competition and Stability in Banking: The Role of Regulation and Competition Policy

Xavier Vives
Professor of Economics and Finance
IESE Business School

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
11:45-1

Monday, March 6

ETIP/Consortium for Energy Policy Research

Carbon Prices, Preferences, and the Timing of Uncertainty

Gernot Wagner
Harvard's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences

William Hogan
Harvard Kennedy School

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12-1:30pm

Monday, March 6

STS Circle at Harvard

The Strange Life of Film--Return Spy Satellites, 1946-1986

Matthew Hersch
Harvard

KI262, Bowie-Vernon Room, CGIS, 1737 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

Monday, March 6

Seminar

When Markets Quake: Online Banks and Their Past, Present and Future

Marshall Lux and Martin Chorzempa

M-RCBG Conference Room (Belfer 503)
4:00-5:15pm

Wednesday, March 8

Seminar in Environmental Economics and Policy

On the Costs and Benefits of Mandatory Labeling, with Special Reference to Genetically Modified Foods

Cass Sunstein
Harvard University

Joint with HKS Behavioral Economics, Law and Public Policy Seminar

Malkin Penthouse (4th Floor Littauer Building)
4:15-5:30

Thursday, March 9

Regulatory Policy Program Seminar Series

Durability and Adaptability in Energy Policy

Dallas Burtraw
Darius Gaskins Senior Fellow
Resources for the Future
Ann E. Carlson
Shirley Shapiro Professor of Environmental Law and Faculty Co-Director
Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment
UCLA Law School
Eric Patashnik
Julis-Rabinowitz Professor of Public Policy
Professor of Political Science, and Director, Public Policy Program
Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs
Brown University
Joseph E. Aldy
Associate Professor of Public Policy
Harvard Kennedy School

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer Building)
11:45am-1:00pm

Thursday, March 9

Study Group

Sausage Making: The Art of Passing Clean Energy Legislation --A Case Study in Success: How Massachusetts Is Becoming #1 in Off-shore Wind Generation in the U.S.

M-RCBG Senior Fellow John DeVillars with guest speakers Michael A. Costello, Partner at Smith, Costello & Crawford and Matthew Morrissey, Vice President, Deepwater Wind

Littauer Building, Room 275
4:00-5:30pm Further details here

Monday, March 20

ETIP/Consortium for Energy Policy Research

Limits of Bioenergy for Carbon Mitigation

Alexandre Strapasson
Georgio Ruffolo Research Fellow in Sustainability Science/Environment and National Resources Program
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12-1:30pm

Monday, March 20

STS Circle at Harvard

The Social Rate of Discount and the Political Economy of the Future in the 1960s

William Deringer
MIT HASTS

K262, Bowie-Vernon Room, CGIS, 1737 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

 

Thursday, March 23

Business & Government Seminar

On the Tenth Anniversary of the Great Financial Crisis: What Financial Stability Reforms Must Be Preserved?

Paul Tucker
Systemic Risk Council

Click here for additional information.

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
11:45-1

Thursday, March 23

Study Group

Clean Energy – A View from “The Swamp”

M-RCBG Senior Fellow John DeVillars with guest speaker Kevin Knobloch, former President of the Union of Concerned Scientists and former Chief of Staff to the Secretary of the U.S. DOE

Littauer Building, Room 275
4:00-5:30pm Further details here

 

Monday, March 27

ETIP/Consortium for Energy Policy Research

Which Social Cost of Carbon?

Matthew Kotchen
Yale University

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12-1:30pm

Monday, March 27

STS Circle at Harvard

Eco Swaraj: Can India's Model of the Micro Transform Development for the 21st Century?

Meera Subramanian
MIT

K262, Bowie-Vernon Room, CGIS, 1737 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

Monday, March 27

Study Group

Making Progressive Economic Policy in the 21st Century

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Ed Balls

Fainsod (Littauer 324)
4:00-5:30 pm – Additional details here

Monday, March 27

Discussion

Is the Case for Central Bank Independence Dead?

Larry Summers
Director, M-RCBG

Alberto Alesina
Department of Economics, Harvard

Ed Balls
Senior Fellow, M-RCBG

Langdell Hall 225, Vorenberg Classroom, Harvard Law School
6-7:30pm

 

Wednesday, March 29

Study group

Addressing complexity: smallholder farmers facing climate risks in sub-Saharan Africa

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Simon Winter with guest Don Seville, Co-Director, Sustainable Food Lab

Belfer 503 (M-RCBG Conference Room)
4:00-5:30 pm – Additional details here

Wednesday, March 29

Seminar in Environmental Economics and Policy

Accelerator or Brake? Cash for Clunkers, Household Liquidity, and Aggregate Demand

Jonathan Parker
MIT

Room L-382 (3rd Floor Littauer Building)
4:15-5:30

Thursday, March 30

Business & Government Seminar

Bondholders Vs. Retirees in Municipal Bankruptcies

Financially distressed U.S. municipalities may be eligible for federal bankruptcy protection. This is occurring with greater frequency. These municipal debtors tend to be burdened by the claims of two large classes of creditors: bondholders, on the one hand, and retirement benefit recipients, on the other. In recent high-profile Chapter 9 cases, U.S. Bankruptcy Courts have clarified the legal rights and entitlements of these two creditor classes, paving the way for municipal debtors to use bankruptcy to restructure both bond and pension obligations in times of scarcity.

Notwithstanding these judicial pronouncements, the municipalities in these and other cases have mostly declined to modify their public pensions, instead advancing plans of adjustment that privilege pension claimants over all other constituents. In public discourse, these outcomes are explained and justified by a prevailing view that employees and retirees simply have a higher moral claim to repayment. Is this the right answer?

Diane Lourdes Dick
Seattle University School of Law

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
11:45-1

Friday, March 31

Study Group

Climate Change Financing and the Energy Sector: A Case Study

M-RCBG Senior Fellow Farrukh Khan with Guest Steven Ferrey of Suffolk University Law School

M-RCBG Conference Room (Belfer 503)
2-3:30

 

Monday, April 3

ETIP/Consortium for Energy Policy Research

U.S. Natural Gas Market Evolution

Richard O'Neill
Chief Economic Adviser
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12-1:30pm

Monday, April 3

STS Circle at Harvard

Counting Black Investors: The Historical Role of the U.S. Patent System as a Political Resource

Kara Swanson
Northeastern University School of Law

K262, Bowie-Vernon Room, CGIS, 1737 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

Monday, April 3

Harvard University Center for the Environment

The Future of Food: Climate, Crops, and Consequences
Trends and Challenges in Global Agriculture: The Opportunity for Digital Ag
Michael K. Stern
Chief Executive Officer and President, The Climate Corporation

Geological Lecture Hall (100), 24 Oxford Street, Cambridge
5pm

Tuesday, April 4

Study Group

Reframing Climate Policy Approaches in the Electric Power Sector

M-RCBG Senior Fellow Larry Makovich

M-RCBG Conference Room (Belfer 503)
4-5:30

Tuesday, April 4

Event

Quo Vadis, Europe? Global Implications of European Reshuffling

Mateusz Morawiecki
Deputy Prime Minister & Minister of Economic Development and Finance, Poland

Starr Auditorium (Floor 2.5 Belfer Building)
8:30-9:30pm

**Attendees must possess a Harvard ID or driver's license to enter the building after hours. Please also RSVP to david_liebers@hms.harvard.edu**

Wednesday, April 5

Seminar in Environmental Economics and Policy

Mind the Gap! Tax Incentives and Incentives for Manipulating Fuel Efficiency in the Automobile Industry

Shinsuke Tanaka
Tufts University

Room L-382 (3rd Floor Littauer Building)
4:15-5:30

Thursday, April 6

Business & Government Seminar

Presidential Elections and Political Change: 1912 and the Making of the Fed and Donald Trump Today

Roger Lowenstein
Author and reporter

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
11:45-1

 

Monday, April 10

ETIP/Consortium for Energy Policy Research

California and Guangdong: A Tale of Two Cap-and-Trade Programs

Pu Wang
Giorgio Ruffolo Post-doctoral Research Fellow in Sustainability Science in the Environment and Natural Resources Program
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12-1:30pm

Monday, April 10

STS Circle at Harvard

Can a Cell Have a Sex?

Sarah Richardson
Harvard

CGIS South S050, 1730 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

Wednesday, April 12

Seminar in Environmental Economics and Policy

Asymmetric Information, Drilling Distortions, and Oil and Gas Leases

Evan Herrnstadt
Harvard University

Room L-382 (3rd Floor Littauer Building)
4:15-5:30

Thursday, April 13

Regulatory Policy Program Seminar

Cost-Benefit Analysis and Environmental Regulation in the New Era

Richard Revesz
Lawrence King Professor of Law and Dean Emeritus, NYU Law School
Director, Institute for Policy Integrity, NYU

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
11:45am-1:00pm

Monday, April 17

ETIP/Consortium for Energy Policy Research

Benefits of Coordination: Reducing Renewable Curtailment and Phasing Out Coal in China

Wei Peng and Zhimin Mao
Giorgio Ruffolo Post-doctoral Research Fellows in Sustainability Science in the Environment and Natural Resources Program
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12-1:30pm

Monday, April 17

STS Circle at Harvard

Assessing and Mitigating Synthetic Biology Risks: Exemplary Cases and Cautionary Tales

Kenneth Oye
MIT

K262, Bowie-Vernon Room, CGIS, 1737 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

Wednesday, April 19

Study Group

A Clean Energy Success Story: One Woman’s Road to Reinventing Vermont’s Largest Utility

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow John DeVillars with guests Mary Powell, President and CEO of Green Mountain Power and Peter Shumlin, Former Governor of Vermont

M-RCBG Conference Room (Belfer 503)
4:00-5:30

Thursday, April 20

Regulatory Policy Program

Reflections on Environmental Policy

Gina McCarthy
Fellow, Institute of Politics and former Administrator
Environmental Protection Agency

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
11:45am-1:00pm

Monday, April 24

ETIP/Consortium for Energy Policy Research

Valuing Climate Damages: Updating Estimation of the Social Cost of Carbon Dioxide

Richard Newell
President and CEO, Resources for the Future

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12-1:30pm

Monday, April 24

STS Circle at Harvard

Wrong Way After Nuremberg: Misconceiving Research Ethics

Daniel Wikler
Harvard School of Public Health

K262, Bowie-Vernon Room, CGIS, 1737 Cambridge Street
12:15-2pm

Monday, April 24

Study Group

Making Progressive Economic Policy in the 21st Century

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Ed Balls

Nye A (Taubman 520)
4:00-5:30 pm – Additional details here

Monday, April 24

Study Group

Making Electric Utilities Greener: Electric Vehicles, Performance Incentives, and Low Income Affordability

M-RCBG Senior Fellow John DeVillars with HKS/HBS/MIT Research Assistants: Jeffrey Bryant, Benjamin Luxenberg, Jennifer Hatch, Elizabeth Hanson, Elise Harrington, and Ali Nadeem

Deland Room (Littauer 332)
4:30-6:00pm

Wednesday, April 26

Climate Week Event

Defending the Climate in the Trumpocene

David Doniger
Director, Climate and Clean Air Program, National Resource Defense Council

Science Center A, 1 Oxford Street
12pm

Wednesday, April 26

Business & Government Seminar

Uncertainty and Risk in technological Innovation: A 50 Year Retrospective

F.M. Scherer
Emeritus Professor, Harvard Kennedy School

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12:15-1pm

Thursday, April 27

Business & Government Seminar

Sustaining Capitalism: Bipartisan Solutions to Restore Trust & Prosperity

Joe Minarik
Senior VP and Director of Research, Committee for Economic Development

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
11:45-1

Monday, May 1

ETIP/Consortium for Energy Policy Research

The Utility of the Future

Ignacio Perez-Arriaga
Visiting Professor, Sloan School of Management, MIT
Professor & Director of the BP Chair on Energy & Sustainability, Instituto de Investigacion Tecnologica (IIT), Universidad Pontifica Comillas

Bell Hall (5th Floor Belfer)
12:15-1:30pm

Thursday, August 31

 

Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government Open House
Come learn about M-RCBG's programs, faculty and student activities. Pizza, dessert and beverages provided.
Bell Hall (5th Floor, Belfer Bldg.)
11:45-1:00PM

Tuesday, September 5

Study Group
Anatomy of a Public-Private Partnership (P3)--
Case Study: Port of Miami Tunnel and Access Improvement Project

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow, Phillip C. Gildan
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm Additional details here

Wednesday, September 6

Harvard Environmental Economics Policy Seminar
Reflections on Serving at the President's Council of Economic Advisers, 2016-2017 (Sheila Olmstead)
Littauer-382
4:15-5:30 pm Additional details here

Monday, September 11

Energy Policy Seminar Series
Will We Adapt? Labor Productivity and Adaptation to Climate Change in the United States
Jisung Park, Post-doctoral Fellow, HKS
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building
12pm-1:30pm | Additional details

Science, Technology and Society Seminar
Nuclear Cultural Heritage in Russia: Politics, Community, Materiality
Egle Rindzeviciute (Kingston University, Sociology)
12:15–2 pm, at Room 100F, Pierce Hall, 29 Oxford Street | Additional details

Wednesday, September 13

Harvard Environmental Economics Policy Seminar
The Impact of Consumer Subsidies on Innovation in Solar Panel Manufacturing (Todd Gerarden)
Littauer-382
4:15-5:30 pm | Additional details here

Planes, Trains, Automobiles (and Bikes)
A Rappaport Center Seminar Series | Co-Sponsored by M-RCBG
Can We “Tweet” Ourselves to Better Mobility?
Meghan Verena Joyce
, Regional General Manager for Uber US and Canada city operations
Taubman 301 (3rd floor of the Taubman Building)
4:30-6:00 pm

Monday, September 18

Energy Policy Seminar Series
Investigating ARPA-E as a Model for Energy Innovation Funding
Anna Goldstein, Postdoctoral Researcher, Stanford University and the Carnegie Institution for Science
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building
12pm-1:30pm | Additional details

Science, Technology and Society Seminar
Molecular Government, Toxicological Information, and Environmental Protection
Evan Hepler-Smith (Harvard University Center for the Environment)
12:15–2 pm, at Room 100F, Pierce Hall, 29 Oxford Street. Additional details here

Wednesday, September 20

Planes, Trains, Automobiles (and Bikes)
A Rappaport Center Seminar Series | Co-Sponsored by M-RCBG
David Block-Schachter, CIO of the MBTA
Taubman 301 (3rd floor of the Taubman Building)
4:30-6:00 pm

Monday, September 25

Study Group
Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Africa Session #1--Africa and the 4th Industrial Revolution: Innovation, leapfrogging and the promise and challenges of the Demographic Dividend
Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Euvin Naidoo
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
10:15-11:30am | Additional information here

Energy Policy Seminar Series
The Political Economy of Carbon Taxes
Jerry Taylor, President, Niskanen Center
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building
12pm-1:30pm | Additional details

Science, Technology and Society Seminar
Crowdsourcing Memory: The 1947 Indian Partition
Tarun Khanna (Harvard Business School)
12:15–2 pm, at Room 100F, Pierce Hall, 29 Oxford Street. Additional details here

Tuesday, September 26

Study Group
China’s Eurasian geoeconomic plan: how much does it extend the country’s political influence?
Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Philippe Le Corre
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm | Additional information here

Study Group
Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Africa Session #2--Financial Inclusion: Unpacking the concept of what financial inclusion means
Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Euvin Naidoo
DP/SA Student Lounge Conference Room, Taubman 202
4:15-5:30pm | Additional information here

Wednesday, September 27

Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Africa Session #3--Leadership in Africa: Public, Private and Civil Society: ‘Mandelanomics’ and how his vision, more than ever, has relevance for Africa, the globe and across sectors
Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Euvin Naidoo
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30pm | Additional information here

Thursday, September 28

Seminar
The Riots and the Slums: Comparing Public and Private Sector-Led Redevelopment in Washington, D.C.
Led by former M-RCBG senior fellow Stan Marcuss
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
2:30-3:45 pm | Additional information here

M-RCBG Speed Networking Event for Students & Senior Fellows
Network with Senior Fellows from the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business & Government to learn about industries, jobs, careers and research opportunities.
Co-sponsored by Office of Career Advancement and the B&G PIC
Bell Hall (Belfer 5th Floor)
4-5:30 pm | M-RCBG Senior Fellows Profiles here

Monday, October 2

Energy Policy Seminar Series
Vehicle Electrification in China: Preferences, Policy, and Technology Trajectories
John Helveston, Associate at the Institute for Sustainable Energy at Boston University
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building
12pm-1:30pm | Additional details

Study Group
Better Regulation in the European Union – Boon or Boondoggle?
Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Elizabeth Golberg. Guest speaker: Catherine Day, former Secretary General of the European Commission
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm | Additional details here

Study Group
British Politics - what's going on?
After the upset of the 2017 election, the seismic shock of the 2016 EU referendum, and the pollster-defying surprise of the 2015 election, the British and Irish Caucus take a second to ask - what the hell is going on in British politics?? Our discussion will be led by Ed Balls, former UK Shadow Chancellor, former UK Education Secretary and MRCBG Fellow, and Peter Sands, former Standard Chartered Group Chief Exec and MRCBG Fellow. We will look at the factors that have contributed to these shifts, and consider what they mean for British politics moving forward. All are welcome, and as usual we'll head to Shays afterwards for a pint.
Weil Town Hall (Belfer building, first floor)
7-8 pm

Tuesday, October 3

Study Group
Anatomy of a Public-Private Partnership (P3)--
Case Study: C-51 Reservoir Alternative Water Supply Project

Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow, Phillip C. Gildan
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm | Additional details here

Brexit: Opportunity or Disaster? A Case Study of the Challenge to Globalization
Join Larry Summers, Ed Balls, and Peter Sands in discussing what Brexit means for British and international business, and the future of globalization. Brexit implies profound changes for British businesses: how they trade, to how they are regulated, and how they employ people. It also results in significant changes for European and international businesses, who will need to adjust their UK trade to the new post-Brexit order. Simultaneously, Brexit has raised fundamental questions about globalization and its consequences. What are the key opportunities and challenges that Brexit poses for British and international businesses? How can they adjust and prepare for post-Brexit operations? Do we need to rethink globalization and the future of our globalized economy?
Malkin Penthouse | 4:00pm – 6:00pm

Wednesday, October 4

Policy in Action: How OregonSaves is Nudging Workers toward Better Retirement Outcomes
Lisa Massena is the founding Executive Director of OregonSaves, the first state-sponsored Auto IRA savings program to go live earlier this year. She will talk about Oregon’s early experience with rolling out its Auto IRA program, how they have designed OregonSaves to help ensure its success, and the lessons learned along the way that may be of value to other states pursuing similar efforts. Moderated by Brigitte Madrian.
Taubman 102 (Cason Conference Room) | 12:00 – 1:00 pm | RSVP here

M-RCBG Fall Student Reception
Please join us to network with faculty, fellows and students interested in business and government. Hear remarks from Lawrence Summers, Director, Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business & Government; and John Haigh, Co-Director, Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business & Government
Malkin Penthouse (4th floor, HKS Littauer building)
3:00-4:00 pm

Harvard Environmental Economics Policy Seminar
Navigating Market-Based Environmental Regulation: Lessons from the U.S. Acid Rain Program
Cuichi Chen, Harvard University
Littauer-382
4:15-5:30 pm | Additional details here

Planes, Trains, Automobiles (and Bikes)
A Rappaport Center Seminar Series | Co-Sponsored by M-RCBG
Jake Sion, COO of TransitApp transitapp.com/
Taubman 301 (3rd floor of the Taubman Building)
4:30-6:00 pm

Thursday, October 5

RPP Seminar Series
One Step Forward, Two Steps Back? The New U.S. Regulatory Budgeting Rules in Light of the International Experience
Andrea Renda, Senior Research Fellow and Head of Regulatory Policy Unit, Centre for European Policy Studies
Bell Hall, 5th Floor Belfer Building, HKS
11:45 am-1:00 pm

Tuesday, October 10

Study Group
Renewing America’s Infrastructure: a Comprehensive Examination of Policy Options and Implications
Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Dennis Lockhart
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm | Additional details here

Workshop
Pandemics and Profits: An Interactive Workshop On Business Response To Infectious Disease Outbreaks
Peter Sands, Research Fellow at M-RCBG and former CEO of Standard Chartered PLC, will lead a simulation exercise on commercial responses to infectious disease outbreaks. The exercise will be a rehearsal for a workshop he will be running for the World Economic Forum in New York later this month with over 40 senior executives from leading multinationals. Additional details.
4:00-6:00 pm | RSVP required to confirm location anas_el_turabi@hks.harvard.edu

Wednesday, October 11

Harvard Environmental Economics Policy Seminar
The Effect of Fuel Economy Standards on Vehicle Weight Dispersion and Accident Fatalities
Kenneth Gillingham, Yale University
Littauer-382
4:15-5:30 pm | Additional details here

Planes, Trains, Automobiles (and Bikes)
A Rappaport Center Seminar Series | Co-Sponsored by M-RCBG
Susan Bregman, Principal and Founder, Oak Square Resources, LLC, and co-editor of Best Practices for Transportation Agency Use of Social Media (2013)
Taubman 301 (3rd floor of the Taubman Building)
4:30-6:00 pm

Thursday, Oct 12

Business & Government Seminar
Democracy: A Case Study
To all who declare that American democracy is broken—riven by partisanship, undermined by extremism, and corrupted by wealth—history offers hope. In nearly every generation since the nation’s founding, critics have made similar declarations, and yet the nation is still standing. When should we believe the doomsayers? In this seminar, David Moss will discuss case studies from his book on democracy and discuss how the United States has often thrived on political conflict.
David Moss, Harvard Business School
Bell Hall
11:45-1:00 pm

Monday, October 16

Energy Policy Seminar Series
Can Wholesale Power Markets Survive Subsidies?
Joseph Bowring, President, Monitoring Analytics, and Independent Market Monitor, PJM
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building
12pm-1:30pm | Additional details

Tuesday, October 17

Study Group
Attention Shoppers: Unleashing Consumer Power to Improve U.S. Health Care
Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Deborah Gordan
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm | Additional details

Wednesday, October 18

Harvard Environmental Economics Policy Seminar
Valuing Mortality Risk in China: Comparing Stated-Preference Estimates from 2005 and 2016
James Hammitt, Harvard University
Littauer-382
4:15-5:30 pm | Additional details here

Study Group
Financing the Industrial Internet: Potential Opportunities, Risks and Challenges
Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Christopher Smart
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm | Additional details

Thursday, October 19

RPP Seminar Series
The Trump Administration’s Regulatory Rollback: A Panel Discussion on Environmental and Financial Regulatory Reforms
Jody Freeman, Archibald Cox Professor of Law, Harvard Law School
Howell Jackson, James S. Reid, Jr. Professor of Law, Harvard Law School
Joseph E. Aldy, Associate Professor of Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School, moderator
Bell Hall, 5th Floor Belfer Building, HKS
11:45 am-1:00 pm

Thursday, October 19

Planes, Trains, Automobiles (and Bikes)
A Rappaport Center Seminar Series | Co-Sponsored by M-RCBG
Avi Bar, head of public policy for Waze www.waze.com/
Taubman 401 (4th floor of the Taubman Building)
4:30-6:00 pm

Monday, October 23

Energy Policy Seminar Series
American Energy Policy: The Search for Common Ground
Dan Poneman, President and CEO, Centrus Energy Corp; Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building
12pm-1:30pm | Additional details

Tuesday, October 24

Study Group
Can Venture Capital and FinTech improve the lives of low-income working Americans?
Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Todd Baker, with Guest Speaker Raj Date, Managing Director and Founder of Fenway Summer Ventures
Deland Room, Littauer-332
4:15-5:30pm | Additional details

Wednesday, October 25

Harvard Environmental Economics Policy Seminar
Are Co-Benefits Real? Interactions between Air Pollution and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Control in China
Valerie Karplus, MIT
Littauer-382
4:15-5:30 pm | Additional details here

Thursday, Oct 26

Business & Government Seminar
The Promise, Perils and Prospects for Tax Reform
Jason Furman
Bell Hall
11:45-1:00 pm

Monday, October 30

Energy Policy Seminar Series
HouseZero: A First-of-its-kind, Ultra-efficient Retrofit
Ali Malkawi, Professor of Architectural Technology and Founding Director of the Harvard Center for Green Buildings and Cities
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building
12pm-1:30pm | Additional details

STS Circle at Harvard
Cancerous Environments and the Global Search for Cancer's Causes
Lucas Mueller, MIT HASTS
Room 100F, Pierce Hall, 29 Oxford Street
12:15-2pm | Additional details

Wednesday, November 1

Harvard Environmental Economics Policy Seminar
Willingness to Pay for Clean Air in China
Ran Song, Harvard University
Littauer-382
4:15-5:30 pm | Additional details here

Thursday, Nov 2

Business & Government Seminar
Moving into the Mainstream? Human Rights as the “S” in ESG Investing
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) refers to the three central factors in measuring the sustainability and ethical impact of an investment in a company or business. But what does ‘social’ mean? John Ruggie makes the case for mainstreaming ‘human rights’ as the ‘S’ in ESG.
John Ruggie, Berthold Beitz Professor in Human Rights and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School
Bell Hall
11:45-1:00 pm

Monday, November 6

Energy Policy Seminar Series
On a World Climate Assembly and the Social Cost of Carbon
Martin Weitzman, Professor of Economics, Harvard
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building
12pm-1:30pm | Additional details

STS Circle at Harvard
Privacy Default(s) by Design? Personal Data in Cybersecurity Information Sharing
Paula Kift, Palantir
Room 100F, Pierce Hall, 29 Oxford Street
12:15-2pm | Additional details

Thursday, November 9

RPP Seminar Series
The Political Spectrum: The Tumultuous Liberation of Wireless Technology, from Herbert Hoover to the Smartphone
Thomas Hazlett, H.H. Macaulay Endowed Professor of Economics, Clemson University
Bell Hall, 5th Floor Belfer Building, HKS
11:45am-1:00pm

Monday, November 13

Energy Policy Seminar Series
Charging Electric Cars-- The Challenges
Henry Lee, Jassim M. Jaidah Family Director of the Environment and Natural Resources Program, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, and Senior Lecturer in Public Policy, HKS
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building
12pm-1:30pm | Additional details

STS Circle at Harvard
Splitting Up Diagnoses: A Sociological Study of Cancer Classifications
Moran Levy, Columbia
Room 100F, Pierce Hall, 29 Oxford Street
12:15-2pm | Additional details

Tuesday, November 14

Study Group
“Frenemies”---FinTech and Bank Innovation, Competition & Regulation in US and International Markets
M-RCBG Senior Fellow, Todd Baker with guest Shamir Karkal
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm | Additional details

Wednesday, November 15

Study Group
Attention Shoppers: Unleashing Consumer Power to Improve U.S. Health Care
Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow, Deb Gordon
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm | Additional details

Thursday, November 16

RPP Seminar Series
Making Healthcare Better Faster!
Bob Kocher, Partner, Venrock
Bell Hall, 5th Floor Belfer Building, HKS
11:45am-1:00pm

Seminar
The Digital Future and the Role of Government: A View from Inside "Big Tech"
Caroline Atkinson, Head of Global Policy at Google
As globalization has come under fire, so have the companies that represent the ultimate borderless terrain -- the internet. Cool new technologies, and the companies that make them, are still favorites with consumers. But politicians, governments and commentators are increasingly questioning the role of digital technology companies in society -- and blaming the internet for a range of ills. How do these concerns square with the view from inside, and with the promise of innovations that can improve our lives? How can governments regulate successfully as innovation races forward?
Co-sponsored by the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics & Public Policy
Allison Dining Room (5th Floor Taubman)
1:15-2:15pm

Monday, November 20

Energy Policy Seminar Series
Regional Approaches to Carbon Emissions
Stu Bresler, Executive Vice President, Operations and Markets, PJM Interconnection
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building
12pm-1:30pm | Additional details

STS Circle at Harvard
Sonic Lawfare: The Jurisprudence of Weaponized Sound
James Parker, Melbourne Law School
Room 100F, Pierce Hall, 29 Oxford Street
12:15-2pm | Additional details

Monday, November 27

STS Circle at Harvard
Grapes from Zion: Biblical Prophesy and Quality Wine in the West Bank
Ian McGonigle, Harvard
Room 100F, Pierce Hall, 29 Oxford Street
12:15-2pm | Additional details

Wednesday, November 29

Study Group
Can New Technology Help Mobilize Capital in Emerging Markets?: Case Studies in Financing the Industrial Internet
Led by M-RCBG Senior Fellow Christopher Smart
Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:30 pm | Additional details

Thursday, November 30

RPP Seminar Series
Reflections on U.S. Regulatory Policy
Sally Katzen, Professor of Practice and Distinguished Scholar in Residence, NYU Law School and Former Administrator, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (1993-1998)
NEW LOCATION: Fainsod Room, 3rd Floor Littauer, HKS
11:45am-1:00pm

Monday, December 4

Energy Policy Seminar Series
Mitigation Versus Solar Geoengineering: Role of Risk Aversion and Time Preference
Mariia Belaia, Post-doctoral Fellow, John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard
Bell Hall, 5th Floor, Belfer Building
12pm-1:30pm | Additional details

Monday, December 4

Science & Democracy Lecture Series
Contested Realities: India's Environmental Movement and the Politics of Change
Sunil Amrith, Harvard
Jody Freeman, HLS
David S. Jones, Harvard
Moderated by Sheila Jasanoff, HKS
Emerson Hall, Room 105, 25 Quincy Street
5-7pm | Additional details

Thursday, December 7

RPP Seminar Series
Does Cleaner Air Injure Workers? The Effect of Stricter Environmental Regulations on Firms’ Occupational Health and Safety Performance
Matthew Johnson, Research Scientist, Duke Sanford School of Public Policy
Bell Hall, 5th Floor Belfer Building, HKS
11:45am-1:00pm