2014 International Conference

The Decline of the Middle Classes Around the World?

In the wake of the 2008/2009 financial crisis have come increasing concerns that we may be witnessing the decline of the middle classes across the developed world. The forces underlying this uneasiness, of course, were at work before the crisis, but it seems to have hastened and aggravated their impact. Is the decades-long period of relative middle-class affluence at an end? Or will current difficulties pass as national economies strengthen?

In order to explore these and related issues, the Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED), the University of Maryland School of Public Policy (UMD), and the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM) will hold a conference in Segovia, Spain, September 29–30, 2014. (An opening reception will take place the evening of September 28.) 

Because of the large number of submissions and in order to provide a more congenial atmosphere for scholarly discussions, the location of the conference has been moved to Segovia, about 25 minutes outside of Madrid via high-speed train.

Use the following links to go to specific information about the conference:

Download the final conference agenda

Publication information

Visa requests and Hotel information

Conference schedule

Sessions and poster listing

Presenter information

Conference registration

There will be on-site registration available for the conference. Registration can be paid for via Euros (no U.S. or other currency) or credit card.

 

Visa Requests

If you require a visa letter or have any questions about visas for the conference, please contact Tanya de Sousa.

Hotel

The official conference hotel will be the Parador La Granja. All conference events will be held at the Parador La Granja, unless otherwise specified.

Completed Bookings

If you have made a reservation at the Parador La Granja, no changes will be made to your reservation. If you have made a reservation at the Parador de Segovia, your reservation will be automatically moved to the Parador La Granja at no extra cost.

Package Rate

You can purchase a special package rate for the nights of September 28-30 at the Parador La Granja for 495€. The package includes breakfasts, coffee breaks and lunches, a gift, and a tour of the Jardines de la Granja. You will also have the option to purchase additional nights, including breakfast, for 115€ (double occupancy) or 100€ (single occupancy). This package price will be available through September 28 or until the hotel sells out.

Meal Package

Attendees not staying at the Parador La Granja can purchase a meal package for 140€. It includes the welcome cocktail reception, coffee breaks, and lunches.

How to Book

You can book your hotel package and find more information on this website. At the time of hotel booking you will be given the option of adding a ticket to the closing dinner (40€) as well as a free bus tour of Segovia.

Tour of Segovia

A free bus tour of Segovia will be offered to all conference attendees on September 29 6:15-8:15 pm. You must register for this tour in order to ensure availability. Anyone who booked a place on the previously available 5:00 tour has been moved to the 6:15 tour.

Transportation

Conference attendees may take advantage of free shuttle transportation between the Segovia train station and the Parador La Granja, 2:00-10:00 pm on September 28 and 7:00 am-noon on October 1.

Conference schedule

An opening reception for all registrants will be held on the evening of September 28. There will be an optional dinner for program participants on September 29, which has a separate charge of 40€. Payment for the dinner is made with your hotel booking. Coffee and light lunches will be provided during the conference.

Download the final conference agenda.

See the complete session and poster list.

Keynote speakers

• Amitai Etzioni, University Professor and Professor of International Affairs; Director, Institute for Communitarian Policy Studies, Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University
• Georg Fischer, Director for Analysis, Evaluation, External Relations, Directorate General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission
• José Antonio Martínez Alvarez, General Director of Fiscal Studies Institute, Madrid
• Kumar Venkatesh, Professor and Chairperson, Centre for Public Policy and Governance, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai
• Dimitris Kyriakou, Chief Economist, European Commission's Institute for Prospective Technological Studies
• Antonio López Peláez, Professor, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia; Editor, Comunitania: International Journal of Social Work and Social Science

Program co-chairs

• Antonio López Peláez, Department of Social Work, Faculty of Law, National Distance Education University (UNED); Director of the University Center of UNED at Segovia; Editor, Comunitania: International Journal of Social Work and Social Science
• Douglas J. Besharov, School of Public Policy, University of Maryland; Chair, International Activities Committee, Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management; Coeditor, International Policy Exchange Series, Oxford University Press

Program committee

• Sandra Archibald, Dean, Evans School of Public Affairs, University of Washington
• Andrés Arias Astray, Vice-Chancellor of Institutional Relationships and International Relationships, Universidad Complutense de Madrid
• Richard Burkhauser, Professor, Department of Policy Analysis and Management, Cornell University
• Kenneth Couch, Professor, Department of Economics, University of Connecticut; Editor-designate, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management
• Angela Evans, Professor, Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, University of Texas at Austin; President, APPAM
• Jorge M. L. Ferreira, Professor, Political Science and Public Policy Department, University Institute of Lisbon; Executive Editor, Intervençao Social
• Neil Gilbert, Professor, School of Social Welfare, University of California, Berkeley
• Mercedes Gómez Adanero, Dean, Faculty of Law, UNED
• David Johnson, Chief, Social, Economic and Housing Statistics Division, U.S. Census Bureau
• Robert Lerman, Professor, Department of Economics, American University; Labor and Social Policy Fellow, Urban Institute
• Samuel Myers, Jr, Professor, Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota
• Enrique Pastor, Dean, Faculty of Social Work, Universidad de Murcia; Executive Editor, Azarbe: Revista Internacional de Trabajo Social y Ciencias Sociales
• Sagrario Segado Sánchez-Cabezudo, Director, Gregorio Marañon Center, UNED; Department of Social Work, Faculty of Law, UNED
• José Felix Tezanos Tortajada, Professor and Director, Department of Sociology III, Faculty of Political Sciences and Sociology, UNED; Executive Editor, Sistema: Revista de Ciencias Sociales
• David Weimer, Professor, Robert M. La Follette School of Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin

Post-conference publication

Papers from the conference will be considered for publication in the Oxford University Press International Policy Exchange Series.

In addition, all relevant conference papers may be submitted for consideration to the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management. 

Language

Abstracts, papers, and presentations should be delivered in English or Spanish. There will be a separate Spanish language track of panels.

Presenter Information

If you are presenting at the conference, please note the following:

Paper Submission

Papers should be submitted by September 15 to Kimberly Bills. The papers will be posted on the conference website as they are submitted. Submitting your papers several weeks ahead of this date is encouraged as it will allow colleagues on your panel and other conference participants to review your work in advance. Therefore, we strongly encourage that you submit your paper by September 1, if possible. Please write "PAPER" as the email's subject and include your full name in the filename of the document.

Paper Format

All papers will be considered for publication in JPAM and in an Oxford University Press volume on possible decline of the middle class around the world. Therefore, please follow the Oxford guidelines for formatting your papers. You can find the guidelines here.

Presentation Sessions

You will be placed on a panel that includes 5 papers and a discussant. You should plan to speak for 10-15 minutes. The chair will strictly enforce this limit.

Presentation Submission

If you desire to use presentation slides, please submit them before the conference to Kimberly Bills. You should plan to bring your presentation file to the conference on a thumb drive in ppt or pdf format. The chair of your session will coordinate loading the files just before the session starts. Computers will be provided. Again, please include your full name in the filename.

Additional information

Please contact Mesalina Garcia Pulido or by phone at 913-867-301.

Thanks to the founding sponsor of the International Conference, the Evans School of Public Affairs, University of Washington.