MIT Starr Forum: Rethinking Globalization: America First, The World Last?

The Trump administration has reversed decades of U.S. support for globalization by pulling out of multilateral trade deals, imposing tariffs, restricting immigration, and sidelining global institutions. Join us for a conversation with MIT experts on the impact and potential outcomes of such policies for our nation and the world.

Please RSVP .

SPEAKERS:

Suzanne Berger is an Institute Professor at MIT. She serves on faculty at the Department of Political Science and is affiliated with the Center for International Studies. Her research focus is on politics and globalization. Additionally, she co-directs the newly launched Initiative for New Manufacturing (INM) which brings engineers, social scientists, and economists together to work on how to transform manufacturing. She also led the MIT Production in the Innovation Economy project (Making in America: From Innovation to Market, 2013). She founded the MIT International Science and Technology Initiative (MISTI) program, which sends hundreds of MIT students abroad each year for internships in labs and companies.

Simon Johnson is the Ronald A. Kurtz (1954) Professor of Entrepreneurship at the MIT Sloan School of Management, where he is head of the Global Economics and Management group. At MIT, he is also co-director of the Stone Center Initiative and a research affiliate at Blueprint Labs. In 2024, he received the Sveriges Rsbank Prize in Economic Sciences in memory of Alfred Nobel, joint with Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson, “for studies of how institutions are formed and affect prosperity.”

MODERATOR:

Richard Locke is the John C Head III Dean at the MIT Sloan School of Management. A scholar of international labor standards and comparative political economy, Locke began his appointment as dean in July 2025. Prior to this, Locke served as the dean of Apple University, which focuses on internal leadership and management education for Apple, Inc. and was Brown University’s provost, a position he held for nearly eight years. Earlier at MIT, he served as the Class of 1922 Professor of Political Science and Management and the Alvin J. Siteman Professor of Entrepreneurship, as well as the head of the political science department and MIT Sloan’s deputy dean.

Free & open to the public.
A recording will be posted on YouTube following the event.

MIT is committed to providing an environment that is accessible to individuals with disabilities. If you need a disability related accommodation to attend or have other questions, please contact us at .

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Host or Publisher MIT Center for International Studies