International Karl Polanyi Society

We, the International Karl Polanyi Society (IKPS), the Institute for Spatial and Social-Ecological Transformations (ISSET) and the Institute for Law and Governance cordially invite you to join our webinars in preparation for the 2027 conference “Democracy under Pressure.” After the discussion of texts by Friedrich Hayek and Carl Schmitt and their understanding of freedom and democracy, of the state and markets and of fascism and liberalism in our Reading Circle, the webinars will further engage in discussions about alternatives to the current radicalization of neoliberal thought.

The webinars will take place via Zoom on the following dates,  starting at from 6pm (CET=:

• Mon, April 13^th, 2026, 6pm:
  “The Law of Capitalism and How to Transform It”
   The first webinar  will present and discuss Katharina Pistor’s new book “The Law of Capitalism and How to Transform It” and its implications for understanding and overcoming the erosion of democratic institutions across the globe.
  In her book, Katharina Pistor argues that capitalism is not just an economic system; it is a deeply entrenched legal order that enables private wealth accumulation and shields it from democratic oversight. She demonstrates how legal codes privilege capital and corrode social cohesion by favouring certain assets, markets, and property relations, with far-reaching implications for democracy and the climate crisis. This places law at the centre of any response to these converging challenges.
  The webinar will explore if and how legal and economic structures need to be transformed to counteract these challenges. What roles can lawyers, economists, legislators, and civil society play in reshaping the legal foundations of capitalism? And, how feasible is such a transformation in the current political conjuncture?
  

   

  Katharina Pistor is Edwin B. Parker Professor of Comparative Law at Columbia University. She is a leading scholar and writer on corporate governance, money and finance, property rights, and comparative law and legal institutions.

  Anne Sanders holds the Chair of Civil Law, Corporate Law, Family Business Law and Judicial Research at Bielefeld University. Her research focuses, among other things, on legal issues of sustainable entrepreneurship and the concept of steward ownership.

  Verena Madner, Head of the Institute for Law and Governance at WU, will moderate the discussion with Katharina Pistor and Anne Sanders.

  Please register via this form by April 10th in order to receive a link to participate.

• Mon, May 18^th, 2026, 6pm:
  “Global Finance and Fascism: Yesterday and Today”
  

   The second webinar will discuss learnings from the great transformation following the Great Depression after 1929 for better understanding and combatting the emerging far-right reactionary movements today. The focus of the exchange will be on identifying differences and similarities of the respective manifestations of economic liberalism and reactionary political-cultural movements and parties in both moments, including the joint attack on democratic and egalitarian institutions by economic liberals and cultural reactionaries. 

  The webinar will start discussing the political consequences of the demise of the gold standard in the 1930s and the resultant increased national policy space – for fascism as well as reformism. Of special interest are similarities and differences in the center and on the periphery of the world economy. The webinar will continue by discussing the implications for the current conjuncture: What are the prospects for global finance given the current crisis of neoliberal globalization? How does the ongoing dominance of global financial markets in the 2020s contribute to the proliferation of far-right movements and what would be the prospects for progressive politics of a recurrence of disintegrating global financial markets? 
  Andreas Novy will moderate the discussion with Ann Pettifor and Bruno De Conti.
  Please register via e-mail for a link to participate.

The webinars are being held in preparation for the conference on “Democracy Under Pressure: Lessons From Past Authoritarian Crises” which will take place 24 to 26 May 2027 in Vienna, organized by the Institute for Law and Governance, the Institute for Spatial and Social-Ecological Transformations (ISSET), and the International Karl Polanyi Society (IKPS). Please find the save the date for the conference here. 

We are looking forward to your participation and to an exciting exchange!

Andreas Novy, Verena Madner and Stefan Mayr