The first in a new series of lectures on Science and Technology for Sustainable Development will begin tonight with a presentation from Mancur Olson of the University of Maryland.

Olson, a professor of economics, will be at the Sun Room of Memorial Union at 8 p.m. to speak on the topic of “Why Sustainable Development Is Too Modest a Goal.”

As the principal investigator and chair of the Center on Institutional Reform and the Informal Sector at the University of Maryland, Olson conducts research and provides technical assistance dealing with the role of institutional factors in economic development and the transition of formerly communist countries.

Olson’s work is some of the most cited in economics today.

His work concerning collective action has also led to changes in the way social sciences view group behavior, influencing thinking in the fields of political science and sociology.

Two major contributions of Olson’s are “Logic of Collective Action” and “The Rise and Decline of Nations.” Olson has also authored more than 100 other publications.

Olson has been a faculty member at the University of Maryland since 1969.

He also taught at Princeton University from 1963-1967.