BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//sebbo.net//ical-generator//EN URL:https://lectures.london/london-school-of-economics/lse-and-the-fabian- society-130-years-of-partnership/calender.ics NAME:Lectures London X-WR-CALNAME:Lectures London TIMEZONE-ID:Europe/London X-WR-TIMEZONE:Europe/London BEGIN:VEVENT UID:21abbb09-9e02-480a-8c50-83deba774c8c SEQUENCE:0 DTSTAMP:20260602T073401 DTSTART:20260604T173000 DTEND:20260604T193000 SUMMARY:LSE and the Fabian Society: 130 years of partnership LOCATION:London School of Economics: In-person public event (Shaw Library\ , Old Building) DESCRIPTION:Thursday 4 June 2026 6.30pm - 8.30pmSpeakersJoe DromeyBaroness BlackstoneBaroness Glenys ThorntonDr Michael WeatherburnChairProfessor Mi chael CoxJoin us for this special event to mark the 130th anniversary of t he founding of LSE\, with a panel discussion exploring the historic relati onship between LSE and the Fabian Society.This will be followed by a Q&A w ith the audience and a reception.ChairMichael Cox is a Founding Director o f LSE IDEAS. He was Director of LSE IDEAS between 2008 and 2019 and now ho lds a senior fellowship. He is also Emeritus Professor of International Re lations at LSE. He was appointed to a Chair at LSE in 2002\, having previo usly held positions in the UK at The Queen's University of Belfast and the Department of International Politics\, Aberystwyth. He helped establish t he Cold War Studies Centre at LSE in 2004 and later co-founded LSE IDEAS i n 2008 with Arne Westad.SpeakersJoe Dromey is General Secretary of the Fab ian Society. Dromey is a British policy expert and Labour movement figure whose career spans think tanks\, local government\, and the voluntary and social policy sectors. He began his career as an employment adviser in Sou thwark\, supporting long‑term unemployed people into work\, before movin g into policy roles focused on employment\, skills\, and inclusive growth. He went on to work at leading think tanks including IPPR and the Learning and Work Institute\, where he served as Deputy Director and led major res earch programmes on skills and the future of work. Alongside this\, Dromey spent seven years in local government as a councillor and cabinet member in a London borough\, and later became Director of Central London Forward (also referred to as Central London First)\, a partnership of central Lond on councils that supported thousands of residents into employment. In Janu ary 2025\, he was appointed General Secretary of the Fabian Society\, the Labour‑affiliated think tank\, bringing together his experience in polic y development\, local governance\, and labour‑market reform.Baroness Bla ckstone was educated at Ware Grammar School for Girls and the London Schoo l of Economics\, where she completed a doctorate on the development of pre school education in Britain between 1900 and 1965. She began her academic career at Enfield College (now Middlesex University)\, later becoming a le cturer at LSE and Professor of Educational Administration at the Institute of Education\, University of London. Her professional roles extended beyo nd academia into public administration and policy. She served as Deputy Ed ucation Officer of the Inner London Education Authority and worked in the Cabinet Office\, including membership in Jim Callaghan’s Downing Street think tank. She later led Birkbeck College as Master (1987–1997) and the n became Vice-Chancellor of the University of Greenwich\, serving until 20 11. Blackstone has held numerous leadership and governance roles across cu ltural and policy institutions\, including the British Library\, Great Orm ond Street Hospital\, and organisations such as the Fabian Society and IPP R. A Labour life peer since 1987\, she served as Minister for Education (1 997–2001) and Minister for the Arts (2001–2003)\, contributing to Euro pean higher education initiatives\, including the Bologna Declaration. She remains active in public\, cultural\, and charitable sectors.Baroness Gle nys Thornton is a British Labour and Co‑operative life peer who has serv ed in the House of Lords since 1998\, with a career spanning government\, public policy\, and the voluntary sector. Raised in Bradford and educated at LSE\, she worked in the co‑operative movement and as General Secretar y of the Fabian Society from 1993-1996 before being created Baroness Thorn ton of Manningham. In government she served as a Lords whip and Parliament ary Under‑Secretary of State for Health (2008–2010)\, and in oppositio n she has held senior shadow portfolios including Health\, Women and Equal ities\, and Culture\, Media and Sport. Beyond Parliament\, she has been a prominent advocate for social enterprise—founding and chairing what beca me Social Enterprise UK—and served as Chief Executive of the Young Found ation\, reflecting her long‑standing focus on health\, equality\, and so cial innovation.Dr Michael Weatherburn is Field Leader and Academic Fellow at Imperial College\, where he leads the Humanities and Social Sciences e ducation programme. Originally trained as a historian of science and techn ology\, Michael teaches history\, technology analysis\, ethics\, and futur es. Outside higher education\, Michael champions the value of humanities i n many contexts\, particularly through Project Hindsight\, through which h e has worked with the defence\, law\, civil service and banking sectors. H e is co-editor of forthcoming book Mind\, Machine\, Market. Within the Fab ians\, Michael is local societies convenor and national executive member\, honorary secretary of the Central London Fabians\, and is currently resea rching projects undertaken during the tenures of GDH Cole (1889-1959) and Margaret Cole (1893-1980).Hosted byLSE LibraryThe British Library of Polit ical and Economic Science (LSE Library) was founded in 1896\, a year after the London School of Economics and Political Science. It has been based i n the Lionel Robbins Building since 1978 and houses many world-class colle ctions\, including The Women's Library.The Fabian SocietyFabianism (noun) ‘the beliefs\, principles\, or practices of the Fabian Society’ – Co llins English DictionaryFounded in 1884\, the Fabian Society is an indepen dent left-leaning think tank and a democratic membership society with over 6\,000 members. No other think tank has an ‘ism’ of its own. We influ ence political and public thinking and provide a space for broad and open- minded debate. We publish insight\, analysis and opinion\; conduct researc h and undertake major policy inquiries\; convene conferences\, speaker mee tings and roundtables\; and facilitate member debate and activism across t he UK.Further informationAbout us The British Library of Political and Eco nomic Science\, known as LSELibrary\, was founded in 1896\, a year after t he London School of Economics and Political Science. It has been based in the Lionel Robbins Building since 1978 and houses many world class collect ions\, including The Women's Library and the Hall-Carpenter Archives.Acces sibility If you are planning to attend this event and would like details o n how to get here and what time to arrive\, as well as on accessibility an d special requirements\, please refer to LSE Events FAQ.LSE aims to ensure that people have equal access to these public events\, but please contact the events organiser as far as possible in advance if you have any access requirements so that arrangements\, where possible\, can be made.Access G uides to all our venues can be viewed online.Social media Follow LSE publ ic events on X for the latest updates on events and ticket releases.Video s of past LSE Library events and more are on our YouTube channel.Event up dates and other information about what’s happening at LSE can be found o n the LSE Facebook page. For photos from events around campus\, follow LS E on Instagram.Attending our events in-person or online? Join the conversa tion using #LSEEvents.WiFi access LSE has now introduced wireless for gues ts and visitors in association with 'The Cloud'\, also in use at many othe r locations across the UK. If you are on campus visiting for the day or at tending a conference or event\, you can connect your device to wireless. S ee more information and create an account at Join the Cloud.Visitors from other participating institutions are encouraged to use eduroam. If you ar e having trouble connecting to eduroam\, please contact your home institut ion for assistance.The Cloud is only intended for guest and visitor access to wifi. Existing LSE staff and students are encouraged to use eduroam i nstead.From time to time there are changes to event details so we strongly recommend that if you plan to attend this event you check back on this li sting on the day of the event.Whilst we are hosting this listing\, LSE Eve nts does not take responsibility for the running and administration of thi s event. While we take responsible measures to ensure that accurate inform ation is given here this event is ultimately the responsibility of the org anisation presenting the event.LSE holds a wide range of events\, covering many of the most controversial issues of the day\, and speakers at our ev ents may express views that cause offence. The views expressed by speakers at LSE events do not reflect the position or views of the London School o f Economics and Political Science. URL;VALUE=URI:https://www.lse.ac.uk/library/whats-on/events/lse-and-the-fa bian-society-130-years-of-partnership END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR