LSE honours Lord Desai with memorial lecture and new student support fund

The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) celebrated the life and legacy of Lord Meghnad Desai this evening (28 January 2026) with a memorial lecture, that also marked the official launch of a new student support fund in his name.

Lord Desai, who died on 29 July 2025 aged 85, was a pioneering economist, writer, public thinker, and a cherished member of the LSE community for over five decades.

The memorial event opened with LSE President and Vice Chancellor Professor Larry Kramer officially launching the Lord Desai Student Support Fund.

The fund will continue Lord Desai’s mission of rigorous inquiry, global engagement, and social impact and will directly benefit students whose work aligns with his values and intellectual breadth.

Commenting on Lord Desai’s legacy and the launch of the fund, President and Vice Chancellor of LSE Professor Larry Kramer said: “Lord Desai’s intellectual independence made him more than just another teacher whose classes students liked and learned from. He became a catalyst for transformation, someone who inspired countless students to think differently, argue boldly, and embrace complexity.

“In recognition of this powerful legacy, we are establishing The Lord Desai Student Support Fund: a fund dedicated to empowering students to become the next wave of changemakers. The fund will help them pursue ideas and innovations that have the potential to reshape our world, just as he did.

“Created in honour of Lord Desai’s lifelong belief in the power of ideas and of dissent, the fund will champion the next generation of bold thinkers: students who can and are prepared to question assumptions, cross boundaries, and seek knowledge without fear of where it leads them. It will ensure that his influence lives on not only in memory, but in action—supporting those who dare to reimagine the world.”

Lord Desai joined LSE as a lecturer in 1965 and was appointed Professor of Economics in 1983. He served as Convenor of the Economics Department (1987–1990), founded the Centre for the Study of Global Governance (1992), and led the Development Studies Institute (1990–1995). Upon retirement in 2003, he became Emeritus Professor and Honorary Fellow.

Described as “generous, insightful, and unforgettable,” he brought warmth, wit, and humanity to LSE’s academic life. His tutoring left an indelible impact on generations of students and faculty.

The memorial lecture, Power and profit: stresses and futures of market economies, brought together leading thinkers to debate the future of market systems and the challenges ahead. Speakers included Montek Singh Ahluwalia; LSE’s Francesco Caselli; Professor David Hendry; and Professor Stephen Nickell. The event was chaired by Professor Mary Kaldor.

Commenting on the new fund, British economist and Emeritus Professor of Banking and Finance with the Financial Markets Group at LSE Professor Charles Goodhart, who has supported the fund, said: “For decades, Meghnad contributed to the intellectual fabric of LSE in ways that defy simple categorisation: economist, theorist, public intellectual, and above all a mentor. His readiness to debate any idea, however unconventional, made him invaluable to generations of students. A student fund in his honour is an entirely fitting way to continue that legacy.”

For more information about Lord Desai and his legacy, please visit: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/condolences/2025/07/30/in-memory-of-lord-meghnad-desai-1940-2025/

For more information about the Lord Desai Student Support Fund, please visit: https://www.lse.ac.uk/economics/news/celebrating-the-life-and-legacy-of-lord-meghnad-desai-19402025