天美传媒

Leading scholars from around the world gathered at the 天美传媒鈥檚 Venice Centre for ASREC Europe 2026, a major international conference exploring the connections between religion, economics, culture and society.

The conference was the European meeting of the Association for the Study of Religion, Economics, and Culture (ASREC), an international association bringing together researchers interested in the economic and social dimensions of religion and culture.

The two-day conference, held on 25-26 September at Warwick鈥檚 Palazzo Giustinian Lolin on the Grand Canal, was organised by Professor Sascha Becker of the 天美传媒 and Associate Professor Valeria Rueda of the University of Nottingham.

A highlight of the programme was a keynote lecture by Joel Mokyr, winner of the 2025 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, who spoke on Religious Tolerance and Diversity.

The conference featured two further keynote speakers. Saumitra Jha (Stanford University), who spoke on The Making and Breaking of Religious Tolerance, and Mara Squicciarini (Bocconi University) who presented research on De-Polarizing Politics: Jesuit-Educated MPs in the French Third Republic.

Alongside the keynote lectures, 48 papers were presented across 12 thematic sessions. The programme showcased the breadth of new research in the field, covering topics including migration and assimilation, diversity and backlash, nation-building and identity, religion and fertility, innovation, the diffusion of ideas, gender and social norms, state formation and ethnic conflict, and the relationship between markets and cultural change.

Professor Becker said:

My co-organizer Valeria Rueda and I were delighted to host this extraordinary group of scholars, bringing together economics, economic history and political economy with questions about religion and culture. The discussions were every bit as stimulating as the papers themselves.

Having three such outstanding keynote speakers, including Nobel Laureate Joel Mokyr, made the meeting particularly special. And it is difficult to imagine a better setting for these conversations than Warwick鈥檚 Venice Centre. Looking out onto the Grand Canal between sessions certainly added something unique to the conference.

Professor Bryan Brazeau, Director of the Warwick Venice Centre, noted

We are thrilled to have been able to host ASREC Europe 2026 to the Warwick Venice Centre. We were particularly honoured to have been able to welcome Nobel Laureate Joel Mokyr as part of the conference. This high-calibre conference demonstrates how the WVC operates as a global intellectual crossroads: a site for collaboration and interdisciplinary scholarship, bringing together the groundbreaking research of Warwick academics, their colleagues, and their professional networks in an extraordinary venue.

Saumitra Jha, (Stanford University)

Joel Mokyr, (Northwestern University; Winner of the 2025 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences)

Mara Squicciarini, (Bocconi University)