Inequality is the crisis of our time. The growing gap between a few at the top and the rest of society damages us all. No longer able to deny the crisis, governments across the globe have pledged to address it – and yet inequality keeps on getting worse. In his new book, How to Fight Inequality: and why that fight needs you, international anti-inequalities campaigner Ben Phillips discusses why winning the debate is not enough: we have to win the fight. Drawing on his insider experience, and his personal exchanges with activists and leaders of successful movements, Phillips shows how the battle against inequality has been won before, and shares a practical plan for defeating inequality again.

Discussants Masana Ndinga-Kanga and Pedro Telles, both Senior Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity, will share their reflections on Phillips' book and also speak about their own work and experiences in fighting inequality. This event is organised under the auspices of the Politics of Inequality research theme based at the International Inequalities Institute, LSE.

Masana Ndinga-Kanga (@MasanaTweets) is Lead for the Crisis Response Fund, MENA and Women Human Rights Defenders, at CIVICUS, the global alliance for citizen participation, which brings together more than 4,000 NGOs from around the world. She works to ensure that civic liberties are respected for groups advancing human rights, with a specific focus on the Middle East and North Africa. Masana is a member of the inaugural 2017-2018 cohort of the Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity programme based at the International Inequalities Institute.

Ben Phillips (@benphillips76) is the author of How to Fight Inequality. He has combined the roles of NGO director, political advisor, civil society activist and writer. He has led programmes and campaign teams for Oxfam, ActionAid, Save the Children, the Children’s Society, the Global Call to Action Against Poverty and the Global Campaign for Education. He co-founded the Fight Inequality Alliance to campaign together for action on economic and social inequality. He has been the Hewlett Fellow of Public Policy at the Kellogg Institute at Notre Dame, the Resident Fellow on inequality at the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Center, and the guest lecturer on global inequality for the Cambridge University series and book Capitalism on the Edge.

Pedro Telles (@pedrortelles) is an advocacy, civic engagement and public policy expert and co-founder and director of Quid, a communications and mobilization lab for issues related to democracy and human rights, focused on the development of data-driven projects and campaigns built on a deep understanding of audience niches, contemporary digital culture and political contexts. He is an advocacy lecturer at Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV), a co-founder and lecturer at the Advocacy Hub, a Senior Facilitator at the THNK School of Creative Leadership, and a board member for several civil society organizations. Pedro is a 2018-19 Atlantic Fellow for Social and Economic Equity.

Dr Armine Ishkanian (@Armish15) is Associate Professor in Social Policy and the Executive Director of the Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity programme. Her research focuses on the relationship between civil society, policy processes, and social transformation. She is the co-convenor of the Politics of Inequality research theme based at the International Inequalities Institute.

The Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity programme is a funded fellowship that brings activists, policy-makers, researchers and movement-builders from around the world together at LSE's International Inequalities Institute.

The International Inequalities Institute (@LSEInequalities) at LSE brings together experts from many of the School's departments and centres to lead cutting-edge research focused on understanding why inequalities are escalating in numerous arenas across the world, and to develop critical tools to address these challenges.

This event will have live captioning and BSL interpreters.

Hashtags for this event: #PoliticsofInequality #LSEInequalities #AtlanticFellows 

Podcast & Video

A podcast of this event is available to download from How to Fight Inequality: and why that fight needs you - Book Launch

A video of this event is available to watch at How to Fight Inequality: and why that fight needs you - Book Launch

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