Contributor(s): Professor Rebecca Henderson | The world is on fire. Inequality is skyrocketing while climate change threatens to destabilize the entire economy. What can be done? Join us for this online public event at which Rebecca Henderson will talk about her new book, Reimagining Capitalism: How Business Can Save the World.

In her book Henderson argues that the private sector has a critical role to play in addressing the great problems of our time. Drawing on more than ten years of research she suggests that many firms have a compelling economic case for adopting a purpose beyond simple profit maximisation, and that authentically purpose driven firms are already driving the kinds of systemic change that are needed to build a truly just and sustainable society.

Rebecca Henderson (@RebeccaReCap) is one of 24 University Professors at Harvard, a research fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research and a fellow of both the British Academy and of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She is an expert on innovation and organisational change, and her research explores the degree to which the private sector can play a major role in building a more sustainable economy, focusing particularly on the relationships between organizational purpose and innovation and productivity in high performance organizations. She teaches “Reimagining Capitalism: Business & the Big Problems”, a course that has grown from 28 students to over 300. Rebecca sits on the boards of Amgen and of Idexx Laboratories. Her publication include Leading Sustainable Change: An Organizational Perspective, and Accelerating Energy Innovation: Lessons from multiple sectors. In February 2019 she was named one of three “Outstanding Directors of 2019” by the Financial Times.

You can order the book, Reimagining Capitalism: How Business Can Save the World, (UK delivery only) from our official LSE Events independent book shop, Pages of Hackney.

Nava Ashraf (@profnavaashraf) is a Professor at the Department of Economics and Research Director at the Marshall Institute, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). As the Research Director she leads the Marshall Institute’s effort to imbue private action for the public good with the science that illuminates how to maximise its impact.

The Marshall Institute (@LSEMarshall) works to improve the impact and effectiveness of private action for public benefit through research, teaching and convening.

This event forms part of LSE’s Shaping the Post-COVID World initiative, a series of debates about the direction the world could and should be taking after the crisis.

Twitter Hashtag for this event: #LSECOVID19