Campaign for Peace and Democracy Left Forum panel

March 2012

CPD believes that peace, global justice and ecology are intertwined. This year we are sponsoring a panel at the Left Forum entitled ‘Should Labour and the Left Propose a Global Green Jobs Alternative to Austerity and Climate Change?’

We invite you to attend the event, which will be held at Pace University in Manhattan, March 16-18. You will be notified when the exact day and time for the panel are set.

We have an outstanding group of panelists:

Jeremy Brecher of the Labour Network for Sustainability
Greg Albo, who teaches political economy at the Department of Political Science, York University, Toronto
and is co-editor of the Socialist Register
Elaine Bernard, Executive Director of the Labour and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School and the Harvard Trade Union Program
Robert Pollin, Professor of Economics and Co-Director, Political Economy Research Institute, Univ of Massachusetts
Chair: Joanne Landy, Co-Director, Campaign for Peace and Democracy

PANEL DESCRIPTION

The aim of this panel is to explore and debate the question of whether it is productive for labour and the left to propose ‘transitional programs’ to address the growing global ecological and economic crises. What types of proposals can move the agenda in the right direction? In particular, we will talk about how a global green jobs alternative might be defined and presented in a way that is convincing and attractive to ordinary people around the world. Is there a danger that such a proposal could end up reinforcing rather than weakening the power of elites and their institutions? If so, can this pitfall be avoided? We will discuss what a progressive global green jobs proposal might actually look like. Can and should a jobs program be international? How can such a program be paid for? How would it realistically address the issues of climate change, pollution, development and conservation of energy resources, migration, poverty, inequality, democracy, and the world-wide race to the bottom in wages and working conditions? Furthermore, we will ask how, if at all, a movement for this kind of reform relates to achieving the goal of socialism.

More information about the Left Forum is available on their website. For more information about the Campaign for Peace
and Democracy, where you will read about CPD's opposition to U.S. wars against Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and elsewhere, and our support for democratic struggles in Bahrain, Iran, Syria, Egypt and around the globe, see our website.

BRIEF PANELIST BIOS

Jeremy Brecher's new book ‘Save the Humans? Common Preservation in Action’, just published by Paradigm Publishers, addresses how social movements make social change. Brecher is the author of more than a dozen books on labour and social movements, including ‘Strike!’ and ‘Global Village or Global Pillage’ and the winner of five regional Emmy awards for his documentary movie work. He currently works with the Labour Network for Sustainability.

Greg Albo teaches political economy at the Department of Political Science, York University, Toronto. He is co-editor of the Socialist Register, and on the editorial boards of ‘Studies in Political Economy’, ‘Relay’, ‘Capitalism’, ‘Nature’, ‘Socialism’, ‘Canadian Dimension’, ‘The Bullet’, and ‘Historical Materialism’. He teaches courses on the foundations of political economy, Canadian political economy, alternatives to capitalism, and democratic administration.

Elaine Bernard is a lifelong union member and activist who has conducted courses for unions, community groups, universities and government departments. Research and teaching interests are international comparative labour movements, union leadership and governance, and the role of unions in promoting civil society, democracy and economic justice. Talks and publications include: "From Heroes to Zeros: the War on Unions and the Public Sector" and "Social Unionism: Labor as a Political Force."

Robert Pollin's research centres on macroeconomics, conditions for low-wage workers in the US and globally, analysis of financial markets, and the economics of building a clean-energy economy in
the US. His books include ‘Back to Full Employment’ (forthcoming 2012); ‘A Measure of Fairness: The Economics of Living Wages and Minimum Wages in the United States’; and ‘Contours of Descent: U.S. Economic Fractures and the Landscape of Global Austerity’. He co-authored the recent studies ‘Green Recovery and Green Prosperity’.

Campaign for Peace and Democracy, 2790 Broadway, #12 New York, New York 10025.

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