$5.6 million gift to fund The Morton L. Mandel Program for Civic Discourse and Membership Engagement. Funds designated for fellowships, lecture series, and technical enhancements for communication

Ernst Bamberg, Ed Boyden, Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, Gero Miesenböck, and Georg Nagel will receive a storied science prize in recognition of their extraordinary contributions related to the invention and refinement of optogenetics. The Rumford Prize has been awarded previously to Thomas Edison in 1895 for his work in electric lighting; Edwin Land in 1945 for his applications in polarized light and photography; Enrico Fermi in 1953 for his studies of radiation theory and nuclear energy; and Federico Capasso and Alfred Cho in 2015 for their contributions to the field of laser technology.

Jeanne Gang, founding principal and partner of Studio Gang, is known for her forward-looking approach to design. She creates spaces that connect people with each other, their communities, and the environment. Her projects range from cultural centers to public projects that connect citizens with ecology to high-rise towers that foster community. At a virtual Stated Meeting, Jeanne Gang discussed how the design of physical spaces supports social, civic, and democratic infrastructure – a recommendation offered in Our Common Purpose, the final report of the Academy’s Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship.

On January 22, 2014, Robert J. Birgeneau, Mary Sue Coleman, Philip Bredesen, Don M. Randel, and Frank D. Yeary participated in a conversation on the future of America’s system of public higher education.

A new report from the Commission on the Arts - Art for Life’s Sake: The Case for Arts Education - sets forth recommendations to reverse the persistent decline in access to arts education in America. The report offers local, state, and national elected leaders recommendations in six areas, including elevating the arts, ensuring equitable access, and supporting educators.

The United States is spending tens of billions of dollars annually – far more than all other countries combined – to acquire advanced military space capabilities. However, for technical and economic reasons, that investment is unlikely to yield the government’s stated military goals.

What challenges confront U.S. courts as democratic institutions in the twenty-first century? And what does the changing role of courts teach us about our conceptions of justice? The Summer 2014 issue of Dædalus explores the complex shifts occurring in U.S. courts and the implications for the citizens that rely on them.

Martha Abbot, member of the Academy's Commission on Language Learning, speaks to Wisconsin Public Radio about language learning and global education.

In today’s high-tech and hyperconnected world, threats from insiders go far beyond leakers and lone-wolf shooters. How can we better protect against the enemy within, no matter what it is that needs to be protected?

Timothy J. Colton and George Breslauer gave a presentation on “Russia Beyond Putin,” the subject of the upcoming Spring 2017 issue of Dædalus.

The Academy’s founders understood well the dangers of concentrated power and authoritarian rule. They recognized that a representative government needs checks and balances, the separation of powers, individual rights, and an independent judiciary–“a government of laws, not of men,” in the words of John Adams, one of the Academy’s founders. They also grasped the essential role of free inquiry in sustaining democracy, as well as the importance of liberty as a precondition for the pursuit of knowledge. That vision is captured in the Academy’s seal and motto, Sub Libertate Florent: the arts and sciences “flourish under freedom.”

Targeted programs and policies to support early-career investigators and high-risk, high-reward research are needed to preserve U.S. leadership in science and technology.

The Spring 2023 issue of Dædalus on “Delivering Humanitarian Health Services in Violent Conflicts” features essays, poetry, fiction, and visual art to illuminate the dilemmas facing humanitarian health actors and the potential for innovation in humanitarian health delivery.

The Academy has announced the members elected in 2023. The American Academy of Arts & Sciences is both an honorary society that recognizes and celebrates the excellence of its members and an independent research center convening leaders from across disciplines, professions, and perspectives to address significant challenges.

Academy member Arthur Kleinman discusses his intellectual journey and personal odyssey for the Bulletin’s new feature, “On the Professions.”

Weekend events include panel discussions on the Constitution (with retired Associate Supreme Court Justice David Souter) and the American Military (with Maj. Gen. Gregg Martin, Commandant, U.S. Army War College)

The Spring 2015 issue of Dædalus on “Successful Aging of Societies” explores the opportunities and challenges facing the United States as it undergoes an unprecedented demographic transformation.

At the 3rd Meeting of the Academy held on August 30, 1780, Academy members voted to appoint “a Committee to confer with the Reverend and Honorable Corporation of the University of Cambridge upon pursuing measures to procure an accurate observation of the Solar eclipse...”