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Together, organizational behavior professor Matthew Feinberg and sociologist Robb Willer have extensively studied why liberals and conservatives so rarely succeed at persuading each other — and how to overcome these challenges. They find that people tend to make arguments that appeal to the ethical code of their own side, rather than the values of those they are trying to...
David Skorton became the 13th secretary of the Smithsonian Institution on July 1, 2015. A board-certified cardiologist who previously served as president of Cornell University, Skorton entered the institution at a time of transition and renovation, with new museums like the National Museum of African American History and Culture slated to open soon and major overhauls on o...
The alt-right, or alternative right, is largely an online movement, politically defined as very far right, and often described as white nationalist or white supremacist. In recent years, sentiments among those who affiliate with this extreme side of the right have percolated in ugly, often violent, and sometimes deadly ways. To the chagrin of most in the Republican establi...
The relationship between business and society in America has always been close. Today, it is perhaps closer than ever. Catalyzed by events like the murder of George Floyd and inspired by powerful social movements, many corporations have moved from tacit to far more open positions on hot-button social issues. Society, in turn, has largely moved to embrace corporations whose...
Institutions and communities across America are divided over politics, culture, identity, and the overall direction of the country. Are religious congregations any different? How do religious leaders today navigate deeply divisive issues — like the “Muslim ban” and terrorism, new American actions in the Middle East, gay marriage, abortion, the administration’s handling of...
Authoritarian populists are gaining power from Ankara to Athens, from Warsaw to Washington. Meanwhile, popular support for democratic values is sliding in many countries around the world. Is our political system in existential danger? And what can we do to save it?
In their new book, co-authors and Stanford professors Rob Reich and Mehran Sahami argue that big tech’s obsession with optimization and efficiency has sacrificed fundamental human values. In this conversation, they outline steps we should take to change course and renew democracy.
From the skewed impact of climate change on the nations that have contributed least to the problem to financing mechanisms that allow primary care services to languish in the poorest countries, inequitable patterns in global health and development are all too evident. To radically reimagine healthcare systems, we need to acknowledge lingering colonialism and commit to exti...
This is not a moment to take democracy for granted. The 2016 emergence of Donald Trump and his populist counterparts in Europe didn’t signal the start of something new. Rather, they announced a long simmering, troubling trend away from liberal democracy in the United States and elsewhere. How did we get here? How are Western values shifting? What might the future hold?
Spend an hour with two of America’s best teachers, exploring the ups and downs of their experiences on the front lines of American education. What brought them to the classroom—and why did they stay? What do they wish parents and policymakers understood better about the life of a teacher? What’s changed the most about their jobs in the last few years? How do they focus on...
Bipartisanship is as rare a commodity in Washington as perhaps it has ever been. But as we look to transition from several decades of incarceration-focused criminal justice, Democrats and Republicans often find themselves on the same page. What are the driving values of each party’s proposals for reform? What priorities, ideas, and solutions are the bases for consensus—and...
In a recent book review, Wall Street Journal critic Bart Swain asks a penetrating question: “Isn’t the great problem of our politics precisely that so much of it can’t be conducted face to face?” Innumerable factors, ranging from the bubble culture of social media to the geographic distributions of population — north versus south, coasts versus middle America, urban versus...
Cities’ identities are made and remade over time by their cultures, but is a city’s cultural identity integral to its survival? When infrastructure is crumbling, public education funding has flagged, and the world of art and culture is accessible on any device with an Internet connection, is there still a specific, irreplaceable value inherent in the cultural identity of a...
World order is never in stasis for too long. And indeed, we seem to be witnessing a historic shift now. The relatively stable decades after World War II saw gains for global democracies, rapid economic growth fueled by globalization, and the birth of the Internet. But they also saw the speeding of global warming, widening inequality, and the scourge of transnational terror...
The dramatic rise in suicides, violence, and addiction signal a society disconnected from meaning and a social fabric fraying at its seams. With participation in organized religion on the decline, and fewer traditional places to do the work of fellowship and ritual, what other places are people turning to to define their values and explore the big questions? To probe what...
With their flights to DC snowed out and votes imminent on the House floor, these two Texas congressmen took to the road to travel the 1,600 miles to the nation’s capital in a rented Chevy Impala. They invited America to join them via Facebook live, and through their spontaneous town hall on wheels, they learned a lot about the issues Americans are dealing with, each other’...
Clothing and recreational equipment company Patagonia has sued the Trump administration over its resolution to reduce the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monument. CEO Rose Marcario says she’s acting according to the company’s values, and customers buy its products because it protects public lands, develops sustainable fabrics, and invests in sustainable...
The Democratic majority in Congress hangs by a thread, and with it the Biden administration’s ability to accomplish much of its agenda. What the past two years have shown us is a party with aging leadership, held hostage by two senators, and divided by different visions of its core mission and values. With the 2022 midterms just around the corner and questions already bein...
For the last twenty years, technology has been the most powerful force of globalization, but it now appears that the next decades will be defined by how the world splinters into different tech camps—changes driven by societal values, human rights, and nationalistic interests. Advanced technologies—from 5G to semiconductors to quantum computing—are the new currency of power...
In this new Aspen Ideas format, all attendees gather each morning to kick off the day by exploring a current issue of deep complexity. Debates over the content of our historical narrative and cultural values have Americans of differing ideologies engaged in heated battle, with educators and students caught in between. Meanwhile, have we failed to meaningfully educate o...