Research in Social Justice
Las Casas Institute
“To think clearly is a necessary first step towards political regeneration” – George Orwell
Why does a passion for social justice mean asking hard questions?
What does a Dominican Institute bring to today’s problems?
Much is obviously wrong at every level in society, locally, nationally, and globally, but advancing social justice requires hard thought about difficult problems. Nor is thinking well best done in isolation.
Our Inspiration
Present-day Dominicans take inspiration from the 16th-century friar Bartolomé de Las Casas who championed the rights of indigenous peoples in the Americas in part by drawing on the academic fire-power and support of fellow friars at the University of Salamanca.
Our Community
The Las Casas Institute brings together a growing academic family or community of scholars, mainly lay women and men, who draw on the rich tradition of Catholic social thought, teaching, and practice.
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Current Research Interests
Women Religious Project
Recovering the voices of sisters who have conducted challenging ministries in conflict zones
Re-thinking Economics
Why has classical economics failed us? How do we put morality at the heart of economic reasoning?
Peace-building and non-violence
What happens after the protests end? How do we build a more just and peaceful society?
Climate Justice
How do we safeguard human dignity, sustainable access to resources, and the natural environment?
Human Rights Education
What empowers us to defend Human Rights disregarded or at threat in a fast-changing world?
War and Humanitarian Aid
How can we best help those afflicted by the varying forms of modern warfare and armed conflict?
Defending the Vulnerable
What does it take in today’s world to take proper care of the vulnerable? With whom does the buck stop?
Dignity in the Religious Traditions
How do different religions understand human dignity? Where do they challenge secular values and vice versa?
A Future for the Humanities
How can Arts and the Humanities help promote social justice and human dignity?
Politics and Freedom of Speech
How do we advance free debate in the age of information wars?
Humanitarian resistance: its ethical and...
Article by Hugo Slim. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the return of military dictatorship in Myanmar have reminded the world of the importance of ...
Solferino 21
This year is the 160th anniversary of the publication of Henri Dunant’s seminal humanitarian text A Memory of Solferino in 1862. Dunant’s powerful...
Hugo Slim to join the Las Casas Institut...
Blackfriars Hall is delighted to announce that Dr Hugo Slim will be joining the Las Casas Institute for Social Justice in July as a Senior Research Fe...
The Bede Jarrett Scholarship for Women i...
Blackfriars Hall is offering a one-year scholarship of £15,000 per annum towards fees and maintenance, to a doctoral student in the Faculty of Theolo...
Christian Shakespeare: Question Mark ...
It seems a life-time away, but in a pre-social-distancing-era we held our last talk of Hilary Term 2020, which included a round-table discussion and a...
E. F. Schumacher: Small is Beautiful
Small is Beautiful, first published in 1973, has become a classic text for critics of the massive scale and environmental depredations of the modern i...
The War in Ukraine: Catholic Theological and ...
A panel of five Catholic theologians will reflect on the Ukraine-Russia war that began on 24 February 2022. They will share their thoughts about the w...
E. F. Schumacher: Small is Beautiful
Small is Beautiful, first published in 1973, has become a classic text for critics of the massive scale and environmental depredations of the modern i...
E. F. Schumacher: Small is Beautiful
Small is Beautiful, first published in 1973, has become a classic text for critics of the massive scale and environmental depredations of the modern i...
Dr Clare Broome Saunders Talk: Phoebe Anna Tr...
Dr Clare Broome Saunders is giving a talk by Zoom on the artist Phoebe Anna Traquair. This event is sponsored by the Future of the Humanities Project;...