On June 9-11, 2011, we hosted a conference here at the American Enterprise Institute entitled “Purpose & Prosperity: Exploring the Confluence of Faith, Economics, and Public Policy.”
Over 60 students from 15 schools, 20 faculty members, 4 AEI staffers, and 2 pink flamingos gathered in DC to discuss the relationship between values and capitalism. From Thursday evening to Saturday afternoon, we discussed issues including environmental policy, social security, how trade works, and the morality of democratic capitalism.
The conference began with a lecture from AEI president Arthur Brooks, who spoke on making the moral case for the free enterprise system and the surprising data on human happiness. On Friday, AEI scholars Andrew Biggs, Steve Hayward, Ken Green, and others fielded questions such as: Why do we have Social Security and how does it work? Is free trade mutually beneficial? Where will our energy come from in the future?
We braved the DC heat to convene at the Capitol where we heard from Faith and Law’s Bill Wichterman and Mark Rodgers on the relationship between culture and politics. And we hosted guest speakers such as the Ethic and Public Policy Center’s Peter Wehner and Paul Kengor of Grove City College.
We look forward to seeing you next year at the second annual conference hosted by the Values and Capitalism project!
