Lorenzo Fioramonti

Lorenzo Fioramonti (born 29 April 1977, in Rome) is a political scientist and Former Minister of Education, University and Research of the Italian Republic. Fioramonti is a professor at the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences of the University of Surrey (UK), where he directs the Institute for Sustainability. Prior to joining the University of Surrey, Fioramonti was a professor of political economy at the University of Pretoria and an associate fellow of the Centre for the Study of Governance Innovation (GovInn).

Lorenzo Fioramonti
Minister of Education, University and Research
In office
5 September 2019 – 25 December 2019
Prime MinisterGiuseppe Conte
Preceded byMarco Bussetti
Succeeded byLucia Azzolina (Education)
Gaetano Manfredi (University)
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
Assumed office
23 March 2018
ConstituencyLazio
Personal details
Born (1977-04-29) 29 April 1977
Rome, Italy
Political partyFive Star Movement (2018–19)
Green Italia (2020–present)
Alma materUniversity of Rome Tor Vergata
University of Siena

Career

In 2017, two books by Fioramonti were published Wellbeing Economy: Success in a World Without Growth and The World After GDP: Economics, Politics and International Relations in the Post-Growth Era, in May and March respectively. According to the Financial Times, Fioramonti argues that GDP is "not only a distorted mirror in which to view our increasingly complex economies, but also an impediment to building better societies."[1]

Publications

Fioramonti has co-authored and co-edited a total of ten books. Fioramonti's books include the bestselling Gross Domestic Problem: The Politics Behind the World’s Most Powerful Number and How Numbers Rule the World: The Use and Abuse of Statistics in Global Politics. According to the Hedgehog Review, Gross Domestic Problem is one three most influential books on the gross domestic product published in the 21st century.[2]

According to Public Books, Fioramonti’s research shows that “the reliance on GDP derives from a technocratic worldview that glorifies experts, corrodes communal values, and devalues the natural world.”[3]" For the LSE Review of Books, his research is a kind of “psychopath’s guide to bullying the world by numbers”, unmasking the pretension that “everything is ‘rational’, ‘independent’ and ‘objective’ and building fortresses of power around these intentional misrepresentations[4]” . Fioramonti’s work has been endorsed by public intellectuals such as Vandana Shiva, Susan George, Raj Patel and Kumi Naidoo, the former executive director of the environmental organization Greenpeace. Fioramonti is also the first Jean Monnet Programme Chair in Africa and the president of the European Union Studies Association of Sub-Saharan Africa.[5] By 2014, he also holds the UNESCO/UNU Chair in Regional Integration, Migration and Free Movement of People.[6]

Positions
Lorenzo Fioramonti in 2013

He is a fellow of the Centre for Social Investment of the University of Heidelberg, of the Hertie School of Governance and of the United Nations University. His articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, the Harvard Business Review, Die Presse, Der Freitag, the Mail & Guardian, Foreign Policy and openDemocracy. He has a monthly column in the Business Day, South Africa’s leading financial newspaper.[7]

Politics

Fioramonti was nominated in January 2018, as a candidate for the Five Star Movement in the 2018 Italian general election.[8]

On 5 September 2019, Fioramonti was named Italian Minister of Public Education.[9] On 5 November 2019, Fioramonti announced that next year Italy will be the first country in the world where the study of climate change and sustainable development will be mandatory for students.[10] On 18 November 2019, he stated that if there was no €3 billion fund in the 2020 budget law for the Ministry of Education, he would resign as Minister.[11]

On 25 December 2019 Fioramonti resigned from government in protest. He objected to the government not providing significant extra funding in the 2020 budget for the Ministry of Education. His decision was faced with strong criticism from his colleagues in the government and in the Five Star Movement, causing his resignation from the M5S on 30 December 2019.[12]

Personal life

He is married and has two sons.

References
  1. "Has GDP become an impediment to a better society?". Financial Times. 17 March 2017. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
  2. "What's the matter with GDP". The Hedgehog Review. IASC Culture. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  3. "Our misleading indicators". Public Books. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  4. "How numbers rule the world". LSE review of books. 21 February 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  5. "The European Studies Association of SubSaharan Africa". www.governanceinnovation.org. the Centre for the study of Governance Innovation. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  6. "Meet the new Chairholder: Lorenzo Fioramonti". www.regionswithoutborders.org. UNESCO-United Nations University Chair in regional integration, migration and free movement of people. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  7. "World needs a new Bretton Woods with Africa in the lead". www.bdlive.co.za. Business Day. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  8. Osborne, Simon (29 January 2018). "'EU is STRANGLING Italy's economy' 5-Star candidate attacks bloc's financial rules". Express. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  9. "Who's who in Conte 2 - English". 5 September 2019.
  10. "Italy to become first country to make learning about climate change compulsory for school students". cnn.com. 6 November 2019.
  11. "Fioramonti: 3 miliardi per l'istruzione o confermo le mie dimissioni -". 18 November 2019.
  12. "M5s, l'ex ministro Fioramonti lascia il Movimento: "Troppi attacchi dai Cinque stelle, delusione è un sentimento diffuso"". la Repubblica (in Italian). 2019-12-30. Retrieved 2020-01-12.
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