2005 Fellowship Programme
2005 Conference Programme

1. Politics and Ethnicity: communities, the state and managing changing relationships

2. The Battle against HIV/AIDS: thinking further ahead

1. Politics and Ethnicity: communities, the state and managing changing relationships
(In Cooperation with the Trudeau Foundation)

Neal Ascherson's Introductory Paper

Merton College, Oxford 1 - 9 April 2005

Senior Fellow

Speakers

Advertised Synopsis
Lord Durham famously described what would become Quebec as ‘two nations warring in the bosom of a single state’, a phrase which could apply in myriad locations worldwide. Durham’s nineteenth-century solution – assimilation – has been widely resisted, especially by minority communities. The problem, however, remains and has become increasingly acute over the last 15 years in what, in some parts of the world, has been an era notorious for ‘ethnic cleansing’. The relationship between communities is of prime concern now as states are reconstructed after conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan, and as the crisis in Darfur has unfolded. The relationship between the state and diverse communities is also under renewed scrutiny in many parts of the West. Even in countries such as the Netherlands, so long renowned for its liberal consensus, the political ground has been shifting on this issue. There is therefore renewed urgency in questioning how to balance the rights of diverse minority and majority religious and ethnic groups (nations, so to speak) within a state, in a world where the nation-state is still a fictive norm in and around which institutions are built. What are the problems and strengths inherent in the concept of minority rights as distinct from individual rights? When is multi-culturalism the best approach? Or how far are its critics right that it tends to institutionalize, or even increase existing divisions, and give power within communities to leaders who are not necessarily representative? Through case studies, the conference will consider different strategies – both of the state and of groups – as to claims on state attention and resources, and the impact of these on the country as a whole. This latter question is complicated in many states by a growing split between cosmopolitan urban areas and more mono-cultural rural ones, with even the possibility of the ‘horizontal’ territory, the nation state, losing out to ‘vertical’ conurbations, increasingly autonomous cities. Finally, the conference will assess the significance of hybridity - newly developing cultural syntheses, accepting neither the ‘one-way street’ of assimilation into a majority culture nor the boundaries of multi-culturalism - and the set of issues which it in turn may bring to the fore.

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2. The Battle against HIV/AIDS:
thinking further ahead
(In Cooperation with Cumberland Lodge)

Shereen El Feki's Introductory Paper

Cumberland Lodge, Windsor 18-22 July 2005

Senior Fellows

Speakers

Advertised Synopsis
Despite a huge increase in the resources deployed against HIV/AIDS recently, controversy still rages about almost every aspect of this battle. This conference will examine the obstacles to effective action and explore sustainable strategies to over-come them. What are the lessons from the crisis in sub-Saharan Africa and are they being communicated there and to areas where the epidemic is at an earlier stage? Governance, both international and national, is of central importance. Within states how can administrative failures or complacency be addressed, without foreign support being viewed as interference or even shadow imperialism? Where are the crucial weaknesses in healthcare infrastructure, and are more integrated approaches redressing these? Money is key, but so is how it is raised or deployed. Could donors be more effectively coordinated? Will the proposed International Finance Facility alter the funding landscape, and could other initiatives be encouraged? Religious beliefs, culture and social norms play a major role in addressing human sexuality. What can faith communities achieve, or must differing moral vantage points inevitably lead to distraction from fighting the virus? How might civil society and business be more effectively mobilized? Despite advances, is policy-making appropriately dealing with issues of gender and the vulnerability of women to HIV/AIDS? As to treatment, what are the limits of generic drugs? Where can or should long-term resources be deployed to enable science and technology to speed up work? But is there an opportunity cost in boosting spending on HIV/AIDS, particularly with respect to other diseases or the entire healthcare system, and what is the appropriate place for HIV/AIDS on the development agenda? Finally, are our horizons too short term to address what will be sustainable in this battle through to 2015 and 2025?

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Summary of all Conferences

2005 Fellowship Programme
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Where is Europe headed?
(with the generous sponsorship of Commerzbank)

Brief Description
The European Union has recently passed a major milestone with the
entry of ten new Member States.  While consolidating related changes,
and planning for the eventual entry of a number of states from South
Eastern Europe, it is appropriate to consider what is next for the Union
and Europe as a whole.  Is the constitution likely to succeed and, if not,
what is the likely shape of domestic arrangements and power
relationships within the EU?  Will the Union develop a more unified
international voice, including a truly common foreign and security policy,
or will national interests continue to dominate in this sphere? How will
relations develop with major international players, in particular the
United States? Where will expansion finally stop, and will Turkey
become a full member of the club?  What new projects might be on the
horizon, or has the Union grown too big to do much more than maintain its current condition?  In short, where next for Europe?

The Trust would like to express its gratitude to Commerzbank and its
Chairman Klaus-Peter Muller for hosting this event at Commerzbank
headquarters.

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Taming the Wind?: Science, Policy and Public Perceptions in an Era of Rapid Innovation
(in cooperation with the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft and the Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft)

Brief Description
In various sciences, information technology and genetics to name but two, the pace of innovation and discovery over the last decade have been immense.  Such advances are laden with the possibility of great benefit.  They pose dilemmas, however, for policy makers.  The latter must, as representatives of a state’s citizenry, respond to unease in parts of the population over possible moral implications of such research – such as those underlying debates over stem cell debate or genetically-modified foods.  Even where there is general approval of these developments, regulatory structures often require substantial adjustment, such as those the Internet has forced on communications and broadcasting regimes around the world.  The biggest complication, however, is that the speed of scientific advance often outstrips the ability of government to adjust.  They thus run the risk of either regulating technologies and practices which have become obsolete, or trying to create policy for developments whose arrival they can predict only unclearly.  This round-table conference is designed to bring together leading thinkers in the field from a variety of perspectives, including that of the rising generation, to assess the strengths and weaknesses of science policy today.  It is intended that this conference will then be a seed bed of ideas for a series of four further conferences on science policy and the links between scientific research and society at large and the establishment of a network of younger leaders.

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3. Iraq, Insurgency, and the Prospects for Peace in the Greater Middle East

Scenarios for the outcome of state-building in Iraq and their strategic implications
Dr Graeme Herd	George C Marshall Center for Security Studies
Iraq and the Israel-Palestine Conflict
Professor Avi Shlaim	St Antony’s College, Oxford
What future for Saudi Arabia?
Dr Mai Yamani	Royal Institute for International Affairs, London
The US and the ethics of the war against terrorism
Professor Christopher Coker	London School of Economics

Brief Description
The Iraq war and its aftermath have been among the most controversial topics of recent history, with complex repercussions in the Middle East
and beyond.  This conference will consider future prospects for Iraq itself, along with an assessment of how events there might affect, and be
affected by, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, developments in Iran and Saudi Arabia, and the US war on terrorism.

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