Week Four: July 13–20, 2024
Every summer Chautauqua Institution welcomes over 100,000 visitors, to celebrate community and prioritize personal growth. Many travel here to relax, renew and recharge on the shores of Chautauqua Lake. Join us for our historic 150 anniversary season and see for yourself why Chautauqua was, and continues to be, a cherished destination. Keep scrolling to explore Week Four’s Theme: Eight Billion and Counting: The Future of Humankind in a Crowded World.
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Chautauqua Lecture Series
Eight Billion and Counting: The Future of Humankind in a Crowded World
In November 2022, the world’s population reached 8 billion people — the most of us ever alive at the same moment in our world. That milestone of human development and growth came just 11 years after the previous billion mark, which itself came 12 years after the one prior. While the trend of accelerating growth is projected to plateau, even taper, with a slowing growth rate of humankind, we are still faced with unprecedented strain on our shared resources, both natural and created. What does this mean for our planet and our people? We look for ways to not just survive together, but thrive together — beyond borders and geopolitical constructs, to ensure that every child of the human family can flourish.
Jennifer D. Sciubba is one of the world’s leading experts on demographic trends and their implications; she opens the week on Monday, July 15, 2024, discussing the central themes of her book 8 Billion and Counting: How Sex, Death, and Migration Shape Our World. On Tuesday, July 16, 2024, Homi Kharas discusses his latest book, The Rise of the Global Middle Class: How the Search for the Good Life Can Change the World. Kharas is a senior fellow in the Center for Sustainable Development, housed in the Global Economy and Development Program at Brookings Institution. C.D. Glin, president of the PepsiCo Foundation and global head of philanthropy for PepsiCo, will speak Thursday, July 18, 2024, discussing the foundation’s work of creating equitable access to nutritious food, safe water, and economic opportunity, and its extensive efforts to anticipate and mitigate the negative downstream economic effects of climate-positive actions.
Jennifer D. Sciubba
Jennifer D. Sciubba is one of the world’s leading experts on demographic trends and their implications for politics, economics, and social relationships, and an advocate for policy-relevant research. Her work argues that a deeper understanding of fertility, mortality and migration trends points us toward the investments we need to make today to shape the future we want tomorrow, the central theme of her book, 8 Billion and Counting: How Sex, Death, and Migration Shape Our World, published in 2022. It is this book that frames her presentation for the Chautauqua Lecture Series as she opens a week on “Eight Billion and Counting: The Future of Humankind in a Crowded World.”
Sciubba is affiliated with the Wilson Center and the Hess Center for New Frontiers at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, both in Washington, D.C. She is formerly a tenured professor at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, one of the nation’s leading liberal arts colleges. She works to educate the broader public about the importance of population trends through writing in The Atlantic, Harvard Business Review, The Washington Post, and other publications, as well as publishing her research in numerous scholarly articles and edited books.
Sciubba has studied at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Rostock, Germany, and served as a demographics consultant to the U.S. Office of the Secretary of Defense (Policy). A member of Phi Beta Kappa and the Council on Foreign Relations, she is vice chair of the board of the Population Reference Bureau. Sciubba received her Ph.D. and Master of Arts from the University of Maryland and her bachelor’s degree from Agnes Scott College.
Homi Kharas
Homi Kharas is a senior fellow in the Center for Sustainable Development, housed in the Global Economy and Development Program at Brookings Institution. In that capacity, he studies policies and trends influencing developing countries, including aid to poor countries, the emergence of the middle class, and global governance and the G-20. He joins the Chautauqua Lecture Series to discuss his latest book, The Rise of the Global Middle Class: How the Search for the Good Life Can Change the World.
Prior to joining Brookings, Kharas spent 26 years at the World Bank, serving for seven years as chief economist for the World Bank’s East Asia and Pacific region, and director for Poverty Reduction and Economic Management, Finance and Private Sector Development, responsible for the Bank’s advice on structural and economic policies, fiscal issues, debt, trade, governance, and financial markets.
From 2012 to 2013, Kharas was the lead author and executive secretary of the secretariat supporting the High Level Panel, co-chaired by President Sirleaf, President Yudhoyono and Prime Minister Cameron, advising the U.N. Secretary General on the post-2015 development agenda. He has served as a member of the High Level Panel on the Reform of the Development Assistance Committee; the International Panel Review Committee on Malaysia’s economic and governance transformation programs; the post-Busan Advisory Group to the DAC co-chairs; the National Economic Advisory Council to the Malaysian Prime Minister; and a member of the Working Group for the Commission on Growth and Development. Kharas has also served as a nonresident fellow of the OECD Development Center.
A graduate of King’s College, Cambridge, Kharas earned his PhD in economics from Harvard University.
C.D. Glin
C.D. Glin is president of the PepsiCo Foundation and global head of philanthropy for PepsiCo. In this role, Glin leads the organization’s social- and community-driven impact efforts and a portfolio of global employee engagement programs. He oversees the foundation’s strategic direction, leading internal and external engagement around its three core pillars of creating equitable access to nutritious food, safe water, and economic opportunity. These pillars — along with the PepsiCo Foundation’s extensive efforts to anticipate and mitigate the negative downstream economic effects of climate-positive actions — will shape Glin’s remarks as part of the Chautauqua Lecture Series’ weeklong exploration of “Eight Billion and Counting: The Future of Humankind in a Crowded World.”
Prior to joining PepsiCo, Glin began his career as a Peace Corps volunteer in South Africa during the Mandela administration. He also served as president and CEO of the U.S. African Development Foundation, associate director of The Rockefeller Foundation and vice president for business development at PYXERA Global. Further, as an appointee in the Obama Administration, Glin was the first director of intergovernmental affairs and global partnerships for the Peace Corps. In 2011, he was honored as a Champion of Change in Civic Engagement and International Service by the White House.
Glin earned his B.A. from Howard University and a Master’s-level diploma in Strategy and Innovation from the Said Business School at the University of Oxford; he has also completed the Leadership for Senior Executives Program at Harvard Business School.
Interfaith Lecture Series
World Religion and a Shifting Population
While we consider the implications of our growing global population for climate, human rights and civil society, it is instructive to consider the changes in the religious landscape that result from a shifting population. While in the West, religiosity is on the decline by most measures, across the globe we see vibrant and growing religious movements. Together we will learn about the largest and newest expressions of world religion, examine the implications of extremism, and see some of the creative expressions of spirituality that are emerging in light of globalization, interconnection, and social change.
Confirmed Lectures
July 15 @ 2:00 pm Week Four (July 13–20)
Bob Roberts & Imam Mohamed Magid
Hall of Philosophy | CHQ Assembly
Bob Roberts & Imam Mohamed Magid
Dr. Bob Roberts Jr. is a pastor and renowned bridge builder who has dedicated his life to promoting and advancing religious freedom, peacemaking, and civil engagement. He is the founder of GlocalNet, a ministry dedicated to mobilizing the church to bring about transformation in the public square, co-founder of the Multi-Faith Neighbors Network (MFNN), an organization committed to promoting religious freedom through intentional cross-cultural relationships, and newly appointed president of the Institute of Global Engagement (IGE), an organization that catalyzes freedom of faith worldwide so that everyone has the ability to live what they believe. With decades of experience in peacemaking and international religious freedom, Dr. Roberts’ groundbreaking work has earned him respect and recognition from the United Nations, U.S. Department of State, World Economic Forum, ambassadors, international royal families, and policy leaders worldwide. His impressive contributions were honored by The White House in 2022 when he and the MFNN co-founders received the Uniter Award for their inspiring grassroots bridge-building work across faith groups throughout the US. For over 30 years, Dr. Roberts led Northwood Church near Dallas, Texas, where he is now the Founding Global Pastor. He is also a prolific author of six books and the host of the “Bold Love” podcast, where he shares stories of his journey and encouraging people to boldly love their neighbors. Dr. Roberts holds a Doctorate of Ministry from Fuller Theological Seminary, a Masters of Divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a BA from Baylor University.
Imam Mohamed Magid is the Executive Imam of All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS) Center in Sterling, Virginia. He is the Chairman of International Interfaith Peace Corps (IIPC) and the former President of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA). He is also the Chairman of Muflehun, a think tank which focuses on confronting violent extremist thought through research-driven preventative programs within a religious paradigm and one of the Co-Founders for Multi-Faith Neighbors Network. Imam Magid works with various think tanks such as the Atlantic Council, Aspen Institute, Brookings Institute, and CSIS Center for Strategic and International Studies. Imam Magid also has a long history of commitment to public service through organizations, such as The Peaceful Families Project. Imam Magid has co-authored three books: Before You Tie the Knot: A Guide for Couples, Reflections on the Qur’an, and Change from Within. He has helped in organizing training and workshops for Imams and religious leaders, domestically and internationally, on the issue of violence against women. Imam Magid is also leading an initiative to protect religious minorities in Muslim majority countries through seminars and Imam training workshops. He has written for the Washington Post and Huffington Post and has been profiled in Time Magazine and The Wall Street Journal. He is the recipient for the Washingtonian of the Year 2009 and the Human Rights Award 2005 from Fairfax County
Mahan Mirza
Dr. Mahan Mirza is a Teaching Professor in the Keough School of Global Affairs and Executive Director of the Ansari Institute for Global Engagement with Religion at the University of Notre Dame. An Islamic studies scholar, Dr. Mirza previously served as lead faculty member for the Madrasa Discourses, a project to advance scientific and theological literacy at the Keough School’s Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies. He also served as Dean of Faculty at Zaytuna College in Berkeley, California, America’s first accredited Muslim liberal arts college. Mirza holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from University of Texas Austin, an MA from Hartford Seminary in Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim Relations, and a PhD in Religious Studies from Yale University. He has taught a range of courses in Arabic-Islamic studies, western religions, history of science, and global affairs, along with foundational subjects in the liberal arts including logic, rhetoric, ethics, and politics. His doctoral research was on the intellectual world of al-Biruni, an 11th-century scientist from Central Asia. Dr. Mirza has edited two special issues of The Muslim World and served as assistant editor of The Princeton Encyclopedia of Islamic Political Thought. His recent articles include “Deed over idea: Toward a shared Caliphate” in The Routledge Handbook for Religious Literacy, Pluralism, and Global Engagement (2022) and “Between Tyranny and Anarchy: Islam, Covid 19, and Public Policy,” in Religions (2023).
Daniel Ramírez
Daniel Ramírez (Ph.D., Duke University; B.A., Yale College) is Associate Professor of American Religions at Claremont Graduate University where he chairs the Religion Department. He has previously taught at the University of Michigan and Arizona State University. His research interests include religious history of the Americas, with a focus on migration, transnationalism, and the borderlands. His award-winning book, Migrating Faith: Pentecostalism in the United States and Mexico in the Twentieth Century (University of North Carolina Press, 2015), follows the trajectory of Pentecostalism in the US and Mexico, examining this through the prism of migration, culture, and music. His over 25 publications include a recent co-edited book (with Lloyd Barba and Andrea Johnson), Oneness Pentecostalism: Race, Culture, and Gender (Pennsylvania State University Press, 2023). Dr. Ramírez has lectured widely in Latin America and the Caribbean and has served as an Observer of the International Roman Catholic-Pentecostal Dialogue. His scholarly associations include the Red de Investigadores del Fenómeno Religioso en México, the American Academy of Religion, and the Society for Pentecostal Studies. From 2019-2022 he served as president of the American Society of Church History, the nation’s oldest religious history guild.
Audrey Truschke
Audrey Truschke is Professor of South Asian History at Rutgers University in Newark, New Jersey. Her research focuses on the cultural, imperial, and intellectual history of medieval and early modern India as well as the politics of history in modern times. She is the author of three books and is currently working on a single volume history of India for Princeton University Press, supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholars grant. Audrey believes in talking about history, human rights, and more outside the ivory tower, and so you can find her on social media and in public-facing venues.
Conrad Hackett
Conrad Hackett is associate director of research and senior demographer at Pew Research Center. His expertise is in international religious demography, sociology of religion, and how religion relates to characteristics including gender, fertility, and education. Hackett received his doctorate from Princeton University’s Department of Sociology and Office of Population Research and was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the University of Texas at Austin’s Population Research Center. He also earned two graduate degrees from Princeton Theological Seminary. He is an author of “The Future of World Religions: Population Growth Projections, 2010-2050,” “Religion and Education Around the World,” “The Global Religious Landscape,” “The Gender Gap in Religion Around the World,” “Global Christianity,” “The Global Catholic Population” and various other studies of religious demography. Hackett frequently presents demographic research at scholarly conferences in the United States and abroad. He has discussed global religion with numerous media outlets, including BBC, CNN, NPR, MSNBC, The Financial Times, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal.
Weekly Chaplain
Announcement coming soon!
Explore Performing and Visual Arts
The arts can sometimes bridge differences and illuminate perspectives as no other method can. Artistic expressions at Chautauqua — including professional and pre-professional offerings in classical and contemporary music, theater, opera, dance, visual arts and literary arts — aim to inspire, educate, entertain and engage a diverse and growing audience.
Places to Stay
If you love the events you see in Week Four, ensure you have accommodations. Space on the ground is limited, and accommodations go fast find reservations at the Hotel or Private Accommodations.
Dining & Shopping
Make your Chautauqua experience memorable! Share a delicious meal at one of our many restaurants. Or take piece of Chautauqua home with you from our unique shops.