Sterling Speirn served on the 35-member Academy commission and talks about his life's work and this initiative of "civic, cultural and political reforms that could inspire a democratic renaissance at this crucial moment."

In this Washington Post column, Danielle Allen identifies state ballot initiatives that can help Americans rebuild a civic culture of commitment to one another and our democracy.

The last remaining bilateral nuclear arms treaty between the United States and the Russian Federation is set to expire in 2021. Then what happens? Discussions and essays explore the new nuclear territory.

Stephen Heintz, Co-chair of the American Academy's Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship, participates in a panel on Strengthening U.S. Democracy hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations.

The Academy's Statement on Anti-Racism acknowledges the organization's unique history and commits to anti-racism as a fundamental part of the Academy's mission to advance the public good.

In a new release today, the American Academy reports on the first broad national survey on the humanities, which asked Americans about their engagement in a variety of humanistic activities, as well as their beliefs about the personal, societal, and economic benefits of the humanities.

A new report provides data and insights about how Americans engage in the humanities and what their views are on the benefits of pursuits such as studying or participating in activities related to art history, languages, literature, history, and philosophy.

Listen to Seamus Heaney read his poem “From the Frontier of Writing” along with commentary about its inspiration. This is an excerpt from a compete transcript and recording of his evening at the Academy.

Just over half of Americans agree strongly with the statement that “the humanities should be an important part of every American’s education,” according to a new survey from the American Academy’s Humanities Indicators project.

Civic science literacy is key to our democracy, and the current science literacy of American citizens is a concern to many scientists and scientific leaders. An Academy event on “Communicating Science in an Age of Disbelief in Experts” shed light on the growing gap between the scientific community and civilians.

What would it take to pull American politics out of the fire and make Americans feel, in any real sense, that we are all in this together? Evan Osnos, in The New Yorker, cites the recommendations in Our Common Purpose as a possible path forward.

As part of the Chicago Humanities Festival, members of the Academy's Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship Eric Liu, Hahrie Han, and Pete Peterson participated in a panel on the future of democracy.

This fall the Academy Archives embarks on a new project to clean, repair, rehouse, and digitize many important documents from the Academy's early years, as well as a unique collection of records to related to the family of Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford.

A new study from the American Academy's Humanities Indicators project reveals trends among U.S. residents, and the impact of respondents’ political leanings, socioeconomic status, gender, and race.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, an economic crisis, and a political climate dominated by fear, resentment, and division, the cochairs of the Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship find reason to be optimistic about America’s faith in democracy: the civic heroism of our 2020 election workers.

Stephen Heintz, cochair of the Academy’s Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship, says Biden’s single most important step in his first 100 days is to establish a White House Office for Democracy.

PBS and the Academy are partnering for a PBS AMERICAN PORTRAIT storytelling project to develop a crowdsourced poem curated by Academy member and Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Natasha Trethewey.

This has been an extraordinary year, marked by a historic pandemic, bitter political strife, and unsettling civil unrest, and capped by a presidential election unlike any before. The new administration faces daunting challenges—uniting a deeply divided country, marshaling science and public health expertise to quell the coronavirus pandemic, improving relationships with international allies, striving for racial equity, addressing climate change, and making our economy work for all citizens. Members of the American Academy will play important roles in these efforts, both through public service and through the work of our organization. I believe we are as relevant and important now as at any other mo­ment over the past two hundred and forty years.

As we reach the end of a year like no other, I hope this message finds you well and safe. As you know, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected every aspect of the Academy’s work. Our staff has been working remotely since the middle of March 2020 and will continue to do so until at least July 2021. We have had to adapt quickly to a year in which we have become a truly “virtual” community. And yet, this was a year that also demonstrated the enduring strength of that community.