Date: 10/09/2006

Joseph E. Stiglitz, a Nobel laureate and economist whose new book challenges common assumptions about globalization, will speak at SJSU on Friday, October 13. Stiglitz is a Columbia University professor, former member of President Bill Clinton's Council of Economic Advisers and former chief economist for the World Bank. His book, "Making Globalization Work," "offers a searing critique of the conventional wisdom," according to Newsweek magazine. "While he is a proponent of free markets, he attacks the assumption that globalization is in fact operating according to Adam Smith's principles. What use is it to developing nations, he asks, if the G-7 nations open some of their markets but the poor countries don't have the roads and other infrastructure to get products there?" The 2006 Difficult Dialogues Initiative at SJSU is sponsoring Stiglitz's appearance. His speech will begin at 10 a.m. in Engineering 189. The event is free and open to the public, but seating will be limited. More on Stiglitz. More on Difficult Dialogues.