大象传媒

Professor Edmund Phelps is an economist and director of the Centre on Capitalism and Society at聽 Columbia University. He was the winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Economics. He explores why there are striking differences in job satisfaction within Western economies, and the link between the economic performance of a country and levels of innovation in the work place. His latest book is Mass Flourishing: How Grassroots Innovation Created Jobs, Challenge and Change.聽

Lars Svendsen is professor in the Department of Philosophy, University of Bergen, Norway. He is the author of several books, including A philosophy of Evil (2010),聽 A Philosophy of Boredom (2005), and Work (2008). He explores the part work and job satisfaction plays in the search for a meaningful life.

Dayanita Singh, is an artist/book-maker who works with photography. She is acclaimed for breaking away from the print-on-the-wall tradition of art photography and her images are bound or folded into books, or are contained in unique wooden book-case like furniture, which she calls 'museums'.聽 She was born in New Delhi where she continues to be based. She explores what creates job satisfaction for the artist.

Courtesy the artist and Frith Street Gallery, London. 漏 The artist 2013

Installation view, Dayanita Singh: Go Away Closer, Hayward Gallery, London, 2013.漏 the artist 2013 Photo: Stephen White.

Philosopher Lars Svendsen suggests whenever you are communicating with someone, you should regard what聽 they are saying in the most favourable way and assume that they hold 鈥済enerally reasonable beliefs鈥�.

In modern philosophy this is called the principle of charity, but it has聽a long history.聽 It has nothing to do with giving money to good causes,聽but with human communication.聽 By following this principle, you would also聽get straight to the core of the real disagreements.聽

We are taking the Forum to China. We鈥檒l be in Beijing to ask: 'How much does the internet empower the individual or the state?'