The Unassuming Economist

Taking first prize in this year’s exhibition is OED Administrative Assistant Gerde de Corte, for her work entitled “Stars, Stripes and a Turban.” The photograph shows a man in a turban against the background of an American flag taken outside a church in New York.

De Corte was among the 12 photographers who received awards at a reception held earlier this month. The jury consisted of three local photographers, including National Geographic magazine’s Sherry Brukbacher, who spoke briefly at the reception. The other two judges were Theo Adamstein, founder of FotoDC, and Ron Aira, a commercial photographer.

High praise

Praising the work of the IMF staff, Brukbacher said the judges “had walked a couple of miles” going around the exhibit several times to decide on the winners. The entries were so good that the jury decided to also give three special honorable mentions to photographs that they considered very close to the top three winners.

Outgoing IPS President Mary Wilson was among those winning an honorable mention for her picture of her father’s shocked expression after a ride on a roller coaster, while his grandsons roared with laughter. “He had no idea what he was getting into,” said Wilson. “I’m glad I was there with camera at the ready.”

Nature and animals loomed large as popular subjects of the prize-winning entries. Michele Egan’s “Sad Captive in Miami Zoo” is a haunting image of a gorilla, his sadness reflected in the faces of the young girls looking at him from the other side of the cage. In contrast Yuan Xiao’s “Zebra Portrait” presents a dignified zebra in the wild.

A winning combination

Founded in 1966 as the IMF Camera Club, the IPS is one of the oldest and most popular clubs of the IMF and World Bank Group. Veterans attribute its success to its combination of instruction, competition, and fun.

The format of the monthly meetings has remained much the same as in the early days. The group meets each month after work to socialize over wine and cheese and listen to a guest speaker. Then there is a friendly photo competition, with the guest speaker serving as the judge. Winning photographs from the monthly competitions are featured in the annual exhibition.

Photography prize winners at the IPS reception. From left to right: Raja Kundu, Michele Egan, Jean Boyd, Gerda de Corte, Mary Wilson (IPS President), Manorama Rani, Carmen Machicado, Angela Lumanau, and Stephan Eggli (IPS Vice President).

IMF BOOK FORUM 

Presents

DANIEL YERGIN 

The Quest: 

Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World 

Monday, May 21, 2012 

3.30 to 4.30 pm 

Room: HQ1 R-710 (Red Level, Auditorium)

Please send an email to ploungani@imf.org if you’d like to attend 

About the Presenter: 

Time Magazine called Pulitzer Prize-winner Daniel Yergin one of the “hundred people who mattered” worldwide in 2011, saying, “If there is one man whose opinion matters more than any other on global energy markets, it’s Daniel Yergin.”

Dr. Yergin is Chairman and Founder of IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates, one of the leading energy advisory firms in the world, and he serves as CNBC’s Global Energy Expert.

Dr. Yergin is known for his book The Prize: the Epic Quest for Oil Money and Power, which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize. It became a number one New York Times best seller. Both The Prize and Commanding Heights, Yergin’s next book, were made into award-winning television documentaries for PBS and BBC.

The New York Times said recently that “Mr. Yergin, operating as a kind of one-man think tank, has had a virtual monopoly on the subject of energy and geopolitics. Such is his influence that one half expects his competitors to file antitrust litigation against him.”

About the Book:
The Quest tackles “three big and longstanding fears: energy scarcity, energy security and, more and more, the environmental ruin that energy can cause.” (The Economist).

• Will we run out of oil? Will enough energy be available to meet the needs of fast-growing economies, at what cost, and with what technologies? 
• How can the security of the world energy system be maintained? Since World War II, many crises have disrupted energy supplies. Will the next crisis come from the cyber vulnerability of energy systems? 
• How will energy development affect the environment? Will the world be able to shift in time toward a new age of energy, a radically different mix that relies more on renewables and alternatives? 

What the Reviews Say:

• New York Times: “Mr. Yergin is back with a sequel to The Prize. It’s an even better book. It is searching, impartial and alarmingly up to date.” 
• Financial Times: “it is impossible to think of a better introduction to the essentials of energy in the 21st century … the value of The Quest is in the clarity and fair-mindedness of Yergin’s thought. 
• The Economist: “The Quest is a masterly piece of work and, as a comprehensive guide to the world’s great energy needs and dilemmas, it will be hard to beat.” 

Also, read an interview with Daniel Yergin.