An Academy discussion brought together leaders in clinical care, regulation, and industry to analyze and understand the impact of the administration's changes in vaccine policy. The panelists shared insights on the volatile situation, assessed the impact, and spoke about what can be done to protect the nation’s long-term capacity to develop, test, and deliver vaccines.

Danielle Allen, who cochairs the Academy's bipartisan Commission on democratic citizenship, writes "We need a new social compact." In this column, she writes about why it's time and what it might include - with examples drawn from the Commission's report Our Common Purpose.

"I remember Steven Marcus as a wonderful talker: superb conversationalist, superb public speaker. In both roles, he often articulated unexpected truths. He could talk about anything, and he knew about everything, as a result of his constant, omnivorous, intense reading."

The Academy’s new strategic framework presents four animating principles and seven strategies that are designed to ensure that the Academy continues to produce high-quality, interdisciplinary work that addresses urgent societal challenges. In 2025, the Academy’s programmatic work laid the groundwork for new projects and initiatives that will implement this framework and built on ongoing efforts to increase impact and raise the visibility of the institution with external audiences. These audiences include policymakers at the federal, state, and local level; leaders in philanthropy, higher education, nonprofit organizations, and business; scholars and students; advocacy groups; professional groups and practitioners; and the public.

The Legacy Recognition Program, an important part of the Academy’s overall effort to address and reconcile our history regarding racism and inequality, highlights the contributions of scholars, researchers, writers, artists, business leaders, community leaders, and others whose accomplishments have been overlooked or undervalued due to their race, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation.

Building a more just society has become a unifying theme for much of the Academy’s work, and we are addressing issues of justice and equality as they relate to our past, present, and future.

In an effort to place the job advertisements in the broader context of the humanities field, staff members at the Humanities Indicators gathered up the numbers reported by the larger societies back to 2001.

Richard Saller, Elaine Treharne, Franco Moretti, Joshua Cohen, and Michael A. Keller discussed the humanities in the context of rapidly developing new technologies.

Jack Fuller reflects on the speeches of Edward H. Levi, who "helped restore the belief that the Department of Justice was committed to the rule of law" and served as President of the American Academy from 1986-1989.

George Packer, in The Atlantic, considers whether America might now repair our broken democracy by entering an era of major reform - including the Academy's recommendations in Our Common Purpose.

States across the country took steps to advance and impede recommendations in the Academy's crosspartisan publication, Our Common Purpose: Reinventing American Democracy for the 21st Century. Learn more about which issues - including civics education, redistricting commissions, and voting regulations - were addressed and where.

Although global child mortality has dropped by 50 percent since 1990, neonatal mortality has declined much more slowly. Newborns now represent more than 40 percent of under-five deaths, and preterm birth is the world’s leading killer of children.

David Victor, who cochaired the Academy's Commission on Climate Action, released a study of climate change coverage in "elite" and "heartland" news sources between 2011 to 2022 . His analysis of the disparity (far greater likelihood of coverage in the "elite" sources) explores the effect of coverage on developing an engaged and supportive public and highlights that "a politically durable climate policy" must be more attuned to national sentiments.

Academy Publications

Science during crisis has distinctive requirements. A rich literature and extensive practical experience in preparing for crises exist, but strategic deployment of scientific expertise and application of scientific information during crisis events must be improved and enhanced.

A new book from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, examines the impact of providing high-quality education to every child in the world between the ages of 6 and 16.