A three-day conference about the impact of rising middle classes in emerging markets is being organized by Georgia State University’s Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER) to be held Sept. 26-28 in Atlanta.

While the ascension of the middle class in East Asia, Latin America and Africa has prompted a multitude of studies about the development of new consumer patterns, a comprehensive overview of the phenomenon is less well understood.

The Georgia State CIBER conference is to consider other factors including educational and professional achievement, political attitudes and participation, lifestyles, cultural values and self-identification.

The conference also is to explore the effects of the correlation between the rise of the middle class and rapid urbanization resulting in new pressures on housing and real estate as well as patterns of unequal access to infrastructure including transportation.

Additionally, changes on societal values will be addressed including new attitudes toward savings and spending, borrowing, definitions of success, and religion.

Speakers from a wide range of disciplines are to be featured ranging from anthropologists and architects to historians, sociologists and specialists in urban studies and many other fields.

C. Tamer Cavusgil, GSU CIBER’s executive director and the Fuller E. Callaway professor at the Robinson College of Business, told Global Atlanta that he considers the conference “a landmark” and is especially pleased because it will be a collaborative effort drawing on speakers from many of the university’s fields of expertise.

He also said that it is to coincide with the university’s centennial year celebrations.

“As we enter our university’s second century, we are pleased to provide greater focus to fundamental issues of the global society, and expand our reach to the five emerging markets highlighted in the university’s strategic plan,” he added.

These are: Brazil, China, South Korea, South Africa, and Turkey and researchers from several of these countries are expected to attend.

The conference is to be held at the GSU Buckhead Center at 200 Tower Place.

To learn more about the conference, click here. For questions about attendance, call Dawn Foster at (404) 413-7431 or send an email to dawnfoster@gsu.edu