Elisabeth Gerber will speak on "Balancing Regionalism and Localism: Regional Governance in Transportation Policy" for the Center for Urban Research and Policy Seminar Series and the Center for Urban Research and Policy. Thursday, May 1, 2008 Time: 4:10 - 6:00pm Location: 801 IAB

The Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy at Columbia University today announced the launch of the Center on African-American Politics and Society which will conduct research on the political, social and economic conditions affecting blacks in the United States.

Renowned political scientist and public opinion expert Robert Shapiro has agreed to serve as Acting Director of ISERP. Since joining Columbia faculty in 1982, Shapiro has been a leading figure in the charge to reinvigorate the social sciences at the University. From his position as Chair of the Political Science department, as a leader and founder of multiple interdisciplinary initiatives, and through service on numerous University committees, he has facilitated key improvements to research, teaching, and overall quality of life for faculty and students at Columbia. Few people could match the record of leadership, deep institutional knowledge, and intellectual contributions that Shapiro will bring to ISERP when he assumes the post of Acting Director in summer 2008.

Michael Sherry will speak on "Go Directly to Jail: The Punitive Turn in American Life in the 1970s" for the Project on Security, Military, and U.S. Society and the Project on Security, the Military and US Society. Tuesday, February 12, 2008 Time: 4:10 - 6:00pm Location: 270B IAB

David Segal will speak on "Insurgency Social Organization, Social Networks, and the Capture of Saddam Hussein" for the Project on Security, the Military and US Society Seminar Series and the Project on Security, the Military and US Society. Tuesday, April 8, 2008 Time: 4:00 - 6:00pm Location: 270B IAB

The cost of war in Iraq reaches far beyond the tab for bullets and bombs, says economist Joseph Stiglitz, co-author, with Linda Bilmes, of the new book The Three Trillion Dollar War: The True Cost of the Iraq Conflict.

How do large-scale protest events differ across nation-states? Do social networks play different roles in different places and, if so, how do they matter? This paper compares the roles that social networks play in mobilizing participants in large-scale domestic protest.

Ester Fuchs will speak on "Confronting the Challenges of Effective Urban Governance: Lessons from New York City" for the Center for Urban Research and Policy. Thursday, February 28, 2008 Time: 4:00 - 6:00pm Location: 801 IAB

Tanisha Fazal and Charles Tilly will speak on "State Death: The Politics and Geography of Conquest, Occupation, and Annexation " for the Book Culture. Wednesday, February 27, 2008 Time: 7:00pm Location: 536 West 112th Street

Bruno Latour will explore the ways in which the extension of democratic institutions to ecological issues is fraught with difficulties. The event will take place on Monday, February 25 at 8pm in 501 Schermerhorn and is sponsored by the Alliance Program, the Heyman Center for the Humanities, and ISERP.