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Power and profit: stresses and futures of market economies

The famous epithet that “the old world is dying, and the new world struggles to be born: now is the time of monsters”, is most often attributed to the Marxist thinker and revolutionary Antonio Gramsci.
The famous epithet that “the old world is dying, and the new world struggles to be born: now is the time of monsters”, is most often attributed to the Marxist thinker and revolutionary Antonio Gramsci.
Wednesday 28 January 2026 | 1 hour 34 minutes 22 seconds
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The famous epithet that “the old world is dying, and the new world struggles to be born: now is the time of monsters”, is most often attributed to the Marxist thinker and revolutionary Antonio Gramsci. It seems especially relevant to our time and to the man that we are honouring, as we search for an understanding of the changes that are going on around us. We face intense environmental crises. Economic policy ideas, which appeared sound, are now being questioned. Institutions are under challenge. Will our social support systems survive and will the poor benefit?

It is a time for radical and deep thinking of the kind that our colleague Meghnad Desai, who sadly passed away in July 2025, was a master. This event will honour his memory by bringing together a group of leading thinkers to debate the future of market economies and to offer their thoughts on the main challenges that lie ahead.