Rethinking Public Value in the Age of DOGE
Join UCL IIPP for a panel discussion, taking place on Wednesday 18th June at 14:00 - 15:00 BST.

About the session
Join UCL IIPP Founding Director and Professor of Economics Mariana Mazzucato and Visiting Professor of Practice in Labour Markets and Innovation, Damon Silvers, for a timely public conversation with Rohit Chopra, Former Director of the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (2021–2025) and Former Commissioner of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (2018–2021).
This event will reflect on the founding and evolution of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)—the groundbreaking U.S. regulatory agency established in 2010 as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, following the 2008 global financial crisis. The conversation draws on Damon Silvers’ work alongside Senator Elizabeth Warren to help design and establish the CFPB, Rohit Chopra’s leadership at the Bureau from its inception through his term as its third Director, and Director/Professor Mazzucato’s role as an adviser to several progressive governments, including serving as a special adviser to the South African 2025 G20 Presidency, Brazil’s 2024 G20 Presidency, and member of the COP30 Economic Advisory Council.
Chaired by:
- Nai Lee Kalema, PhD candidate and Research Fellow (Public Sector Capabilities Index), UCL IIPP; and ‘24-’25 Tech and Human Rights Research Fellow at the Carr-Ryan Center for Human Rights and Policy, Harvard Kennedy School
Featured speakers:
- Rohit Chopra, Former Director of the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (2021-2025)
- Professor Mariana Mazzucato, UCL IIPP Founding Director and Professor of Economics and Innovation, UCL IIPP
- Damon Silvers, Visiting Professor of Practice in Labour Markets and Innovation, UCL IIPP.
Key information
- When: Wednesday 18th June at 14:00 - 15:00 BST.
- Where: UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose, 11 Montague St, London, WC1B 5BP
IIPP's Forum 2025 - Rethinking the State
The Rethinking the State Forum is UCL IIPP’s flagship annual event, convening global thinkers, policymakers, students, and practitioners to examine how states can build the capacity to drive inclusive, green, and digital transformations. Taking place from 18–20 June 2025, the Forum offers a space for critical reflection and exchange on the evolving role of the state in tackling today’s complex challenges. Through public panels, interactive workshops, and cross-sector dialogues, the event explores themes such as decolonising public administration, rebuilding public institutions, and reconfiguring governance for the common good.

The third director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and previous member of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Prior to this, served as assistant director of the CFPB and as the agency's first Student Loan Ombudsman, an office created by the Dodd–Frank Act. Chopra is a vocal critic of the mounting levels of student loan debt in the United States. In 2012, he released analysis revealing that outstanding student debt exceeded $1 trillion.
Nai Lee Kalema is a PhD candidate in Innovation and Public Policy at the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose (UCL IIPP). Her research is supervised by Prof. Rainer Kattel, Professor of Innovation and Public Governance, and Dr. Kate Roll, Associate Professor in Innovation, Development, and Purpose.Nai's doctoral research looks at the global political economy of digital transformation.

Founding Director and Professor in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value
UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose (UCL IIPP)Mariana Mazzucato is Professor in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value at University College London, where she is Founding Director of the UCL Institute for Innovation & Public Purpose (IIPP). Her previous posts include the RM Phillips Professorial Chair at the Science Policy Research Unit at Sussex University. She is a member of the UK Academy of Social Sciences (FAcSS) and the Italian Academy of Sciences Lincei.

Visiting Professor of Practice in Labour Markets and Innovation
UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose (IIPP)Damon A. Silvers a Visiting Professor in Labour Markets and Innovation at the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose (IIPP). He is on sabbatical from the AFL-CIO where is has served as the Director of Policy and Special Counsel for the AFL-CIO. He joined the AFL-CIO as Associate General Counsel in 1997.