GDI Lecture Series: Batman Saves the Congo: How Celebrities Disrupt the Politics of Development - Postponed
| Dates: | 1 December 2021 |
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| Times: | 16:00 - 17:30 |
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| What is it: | Webinar |
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| Organiser: | Global Development Institute |
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| How much: | Free |
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| Who is it for: | University staff, External researchers, Adults, Alumni, Current University students, General public, Post 16, Secondary schools |
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| Speaker: | Alexandra Cosima Budabin, Lisa Ann Richey, |
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Due to the planned UCU strike action, this lecture has been postponed. We are working to reschedule this and will update our website as soon as any date is finalised. We apologise for any inconvenience.
Can a celebrity be a “disrupter,” promoting strategic partnerships to bring new ideas and funding to revitalize the development field—or are celebrities just charismatic ambassadors for big business? Examining the role of the rich and famous in development and humanitarianism, Batman Saves the Congo argues that celebrities do both, and that understanding why and how yields insight into the realities of neoliberal development.
In 2010, entertainer Ben Affleck, known for his superhero performance as Batman, launched the Eastern Congo Initiative to bring a new approach to the region’s development. Affleck’s organization operates with special access, diversified funding, and significant support of elites within political, philanthropy, development, and humanitarianism circuits. With his convening power, Affleck has built partnerships with those inside and outside development, staking bipartisan political ground that is neither charity nor aid, but “good business.” Celebrity humanitarians are an unruly bunch of new players in development that amplify business solutions.
Register for this event: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcofuGhqjotGt0VUd3Ls-tDE_ZEmRYlXHKo
Speakers
Alexandra Cosima Budabin
Role: Post-Doctoral Researcher
Organisation: Free University of Bolzano
Lisa Ann Richey
Role: Professor of Globalization
Organisation: Department of Management, Society and Communication at the Copenhagen Business School in Denmark
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