This event has now finished.
  • Date and time: Thursday 11 June 2020, 1pm to 2pm
  • Location: Online event
  • Audience: Open to alumni, staff, students, the public
  • Admission: Free admission, booking required

Event details

Missed this event? Watch the talk on Youtube.

Most people now realise that economic growth, however desirable, will not solve all our problems. Instead, we need a philosophy and a science which encompasses a much fuller range of human need and experience.

Labour economist Richard Layard of the London School of Economics argues that the goal for a society must be the greatest possible all round happiness. Discover how each of us can become more effective creators of happiness, both as citizens and in our own organisations.

Richard, the author of Can We Be Happier?, will provide hard evidence that increasing happiness is the right aim, and that it can be achieved.

Richard Wilkinson Lecture for The Equality Trust

Missed this event? Watch the talk on Youtube.

 

About the speaker

Professor Richard Layard is Founder and former Director of the Centre for Economic Performance at the London School of Economics, and Programme Co-Director - Wellbeing. He is the author of the ground-breaking Happiness: Lessons from a New Science (2005), which has been published in 19 languages, and (with David Clark) Thrive: The Power of Psychological Therapies (2014). He is co-editor (with John Helliwell and Jeffrey Sachs) of the annual World Happiness Report, and has been instrumental in the development of improving access to psychological therapies in the UK.

Improving the quality of life: How you can help

Tragically, the Covid-19 outbreak has firmly demonstrated the role inequality plays, when a national emergency strikes. UK income inequality is among the highest in the developed world and evidence shows that this is bad for almost everyone. The Equality Trust works to improve the quality of life in the UK by reducing economic and social inequality.

People in more equal societies live longer, have better mental health and have better chances for a good education regardless of their background. Community life is stronger where the income gap is narrower, children do better at school and they are less likely to become teenage parents. When inequality is reduced people trust each other more, there is less violence and rates of imprisonment are lower.

If we want to build a better society, it is essential we take action. The Equality Trust works with others to build a social movement for change. We analyse and disseminate the latest research, promote robust evidence-based arguments and support a dynamic network of campaign groups across the country.

Please help make a difference and donate to The Equality Trust, the only dedicated campaign for reducing economic and social inequality in the UK.

About the Richard Wilkinson Lectures

Since 2017 The Equality Trust has held an annual Richard Wilkinson Lecture. The purpose of these lectures is to disseminate the latest research on socio-economic inequalities from world-renowned expert academics and practitioners in the field. These events increase public engagement about inequality and encourage attendees to join the movement to tackle inequality in the UK and beyond.   

Partners

The Equality Trust