Overview

This tour and the audio you will hear is based on an walking event held in The City on April 14, 2018, organized by Dr Aris Komporozos-Athanasiou and Dr Max Haiven with over 15 speakers who, collectively, mapped out some contours of the history and present of "financialization" through the navigation of these historic streets.

This audiotour has been prepared thanks to the support of University College London Urban Laboratory and the ReImagining Value Action Lab (RiVAL) based at Lakehead University, Canada.

Interactive map

This interactive Google Map can be navigated on your smartphone. Just select the tour locations and follow the Soundcloud links to listen to a roughly 15-minute presentation at each station. Alternatively, download the audio to your smartphone via the file links of the podcast below and take them with you.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=1ooBtTdhd3_o3BXu9by68dBEvRgVQR2tP&ll=51.51292114566424%2C-0.0877727499999792&z=14

Listen to or download the audio

Below, you can find links to the audio from each individual section of the tour, which you can download or stream. You can also listen to them all on Soundcloud at the following link: https://soundcloud.com/uclurbanlab/sets/counterspeculations/

Speakers and talks

Conrad Moriarty-Cole, "Machine Learning and the Financial Imaginary.": Does artificial intelligence have an imagination? In this presentation, originally recorded at the headquarters of the investment bank Goldman Sachs, Conrad Moriarty expands our understanding of the hyper-development of data analytics, machine learning and algorithmic trading in today's financial worlds. Moriarty-Cole is a PhD Candidate and associate lecturer in cultural studies at Goldsmiths, University of London. https://soundcloud.com/uclurbanlab/counterspeculations-01-conrad-moriarty-cole
Aris Komporozos-Athanasiou, "The Speculative Spirit of Finance": The sphere of finance declares itself to be a secular, rational and even scientific domain of risk management and competitive calculation. But in this presentation, originally recorded on the steps of Saint Paul's Cathedral, Aris Komporozos-Athanasiou suggests that, from a sociological perspective, the world of speculative capital has many affinities to religions past and present. Komporozos-Athanasiou is an assistant professor of social theory at University College London where he also heads the Sociology and Social Theory Research Group. https://soundcloud.com/uclurbanlab/counterspeculations-2-aris-komporozos-athanasiou
Robbie Richardson, "North American 'Indians' and British Modernity": How did 18th century British myths and fantasies about Indigenous people in the Americas inform and shape the growth of its financialized empire? In this episode of the Counterspeculations audio tour, originally recorded at the base of the statue of Queen Anne which stands in front of St. Paul's Cathedral, Robbie Richardson presents on "North American Indians and 'British' Modernity." Richardson is a lecturer in 18th century literature at the university of Kent and a member of Panieau First Nation in what is currently Canada. https://soundcloud.com/uclurbanlab/counterspeculations-3-robbie-richardson/
David Benque, "The Monistic Almanac" : For centuries, the peculiar form of publication known as an almanacs has provided eager readers with a tantalizing mixture of advice and speculation based on a combination of worldly and metaphysical information. In this presentation, designer David Benque presents his experimental project the Monistic Almanac, a reflection on and guide to the digital arcana of financialization. Benque is a critical designer living and working in London, where he is also a PhD candidate at the Royal College of Art. https://soundcloud.com/uclurbanlab/counterspeculations-4-david-benque/
Ed Mayo, "The Origins of Mutuality.": Today, the Square Mile of the City of London is home to financial corporations that lionize the virtues of competition and profiteering. But in a bygone age it was an area organized by and around guilds that laid down roots of mutuality and cooperation still bear fruit today. In this presentation, which was originally recorded in a small part across the street from the Goldsmiths' Hall, Ed Mayo, who is Secretary General of Co-operatives UK, speaks of "the origins of mutuality." Mayo is also a former director of the New Economics Foundation and the author of a recent book on values in business and leadership. https://soundcloud.com/uclurbanlab/counterspeculations-5-ed-mayo/
Judith Suissa, "'No Gods, No Masters'; Antisemitic Tropes and Utopian Ideals in Imagining and Resisting Financialization.": The history of finance capital is replete with anti-Semitic conspiracy theories that associate Jews with a socially corrosive cosmopolitanism. But in this presentation, Judith Suissa demonstrates that Jewish anarchist societies in London present another history of internationalism from below. It was originally recorded at Grocers' Hall in the heart of the City of London, near the site where the Great Synagogue once stood. Suissa is a professor of Philosophy of Education at University College London. https://soundcloud.com/uclurbanlab/counterspeculations-6-judith-suissa/