This project centers around interviews with professional and/or personal acquaintances of Elinor and Vincent Ostrom. Every interview explores a unique relationship with the Ostroms and the continuing impact of the Ostrom Workshop at Indiana University. Elinor (Lin) and Vincent Ostrom founded the Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis in 1973.The Ostrom Workshop has been the catalyst for worldwide collaboration in the field of public policy and environmental issues. "Coming Together" is an interdisciplinary exploration of the legacy and impact of Elinor (Lin) and Vincent Ostrom. Major topics include; academia, "the commons", cross-disciplinary collaboration, Elinor Ostrom's Nobel Prize, the Ostrom Workshop, political science, political theory, and the Workshop on the Ostrom Workshop (WOW) conference. The project was created to assist in the dissertation research of Sara Catherine Clark, who was a doctoral candidate within the School of Education, pursing a Ph.D. in History, Philosophy, and Policy in Education, at Indiana University Bloomington. Sara Catherine Clark's dissertation was completed in 2019 and is cited as follows: Clark, S. C. (2019). Elinor ostrom: A biography of interdisciplinary life.
Dr. Paul Dragos Aligica is a professor in the Economics Department in Politics and Economics at Mercatus Center at George Mason University. Dragos Aligica first met Elinor and Vincent Ostrom at the Workshop but was familiar with their work before arriving there. He discusses the way academic institutions work and the way the Ostroms didn't conform to those rules. Later he discusses collaborating with the Ostroms through the Ostrom Workshop. Dragos Aligica also recalls Elinor Ostrom as a teacher and her humor. He goes on to discuss how the Ostroms intellectual lineage will be looked at in the future. The interview concludes with talk about the Workshop on the Ostrom Workshop (WOW) Conference and a more in-depth talk about the Ostrom Workshop.
Anonymous begins the interview by explaining their connection to Elinor Ostrom as a student in the political science department. This leads to discussion of Ostrom as a teacher, working with her on the Health Commons Research Project, and experiences with her at the Ostrom Workshop. They speak of the Occupy Movement as an important part of their academic career and the connection to Ostrom's work. Anonymous goes on to discuss how they would tell the Ostroms' story which includes discussion of the Nobel Prize in Economics. Then Anonymous is asked to discuss lingering research questions, those questions deal with power and the colonial experience within the commons. The interview closes discussing the Ostrom Workshop and Elinor Ostrom's work on language.
Mansee Bal is a Research Entrepreneur with the Environmental Design Consultants in India. Bal first discovered Elinor Ostrom when she began reading for her PhD program at Erasmus University. Bal's research focused on urban lakes, mainly in India with a multidisciplinary focus. After this initial introduction Bal had the opportunity to work with Ostrom at the Ostrom Workshop. Throughout the interview she fondly recalls having Elinor Ostrom as a teacher, Ostrom winning the Nobel Prize, Workshop on the Ostrom Workshop (WOW) Conference and personal memories with Ostrom.
The American Foundations Oral History Project consists of a series of interviews with prominent American philanthropists, each of whom relates their background, the development of their values, and their philosophies of philanthropy. The purpose and state of American philanthropy, including those family foundations and corporate foundations, form a central topic, as do the recent trend of increasing diversity and opinions on grant evaluation and philanthropic assessment. In addition, many interviewees comment on the role of government in philanthropy and the system of ethics at play in American philanthropy.
Indiana University Center for Documentary Research and
Practice
Scope Content:
This collection consists of forty-two interviews collected over the course of two years. Interviews range from fifty to one hundred-fity minutes. All interviews consist of audiotapes and typed transcripts.
In this interview, William Aramony discusses his career in philanthropy and social work which has culminated in his ascension to the position of president of the United Way of America. Aramony speaks about the organization and mission of the United Way, the changes it has undergone, some of its main functions and beneficiaries, and the central issue of fundraising, especially in the context of the growing number of government-supported not-for-profit organizations increasing competition for a limited amount of available funds.
Philip Bernstein discusses the beginning of his interest in philanthropy and traces his career at the Jewish Community Federation in this interview. He discusses Jewish and non-Jewish philanthropy, values, and social welfare, and he speaks of the ease and importance of cooperation between these groups. In addition, Bernstein speaks of the impact of the rise of Hitler and Nazism on Jewish philanthropy, of philanthropic involvement with the Independent Sector, and the impact of the Great Depression and World War II on social ideals and social welfare.