When looking at American politics at the national level, it is easy to become cynical about the future of our democracy. High levels of polarization persist, and the headlines all too often are dominated by stories of government dysfunction.

For the 235th time, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences has inducted its newest class of members. One of the nation’s oldest learned societies and independent research centers, the Academy includes among this year’s 147 inductees prominent scientists, artists, literary figures, and leaders of academic, business, philanthropic, and cultural institutions from across the United States and internationally.

NAPA and the American Academy’s Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship led a four-part series on public governance and civic engagement, covering topics such as civic culture, media, and trust in government.

By Poul Erik Christiansen, former Raymond Frankel Nuclear Security Policy Fellow at the Academy

As of January, less than half of Americans made intentional use of artificial intelligence tools (AI) to perform a variety of common tasks, but a substantial minority used AI for humanities-related tasks.

Norm Augustine and Neal Lane, cochairs of Academy project on “New Models for U.S. Science and Technology Policy,” argue for a coherent national roadmap to strengthen U.S. R&D, basic research in particular, and to drive American innovation throughout the 21st century.

At events in Phoenix hosted by local supporters of civic work, there were opportunities for the leaders of the Our Common Purpose project to share progress on recommendations in the report and for discussions that showcased local initiatives strengthening democracy in Arizona.

A Belated Inauguration for Daniel Day-Lewis

The events of Induction Weekend 2019 feature artists, scholars, activists, and leaders in business, philanthropy, and public service.

The Academy is launching the Our Common Purpose Communities Project - a national coalition of municipalities committed to strengthening American democracy. Lexington, Kentucky is the first city in the nation to join this effort and identify two recommendations from the Our Common Purpose report to advance at the local level.

A distinguished group of artists and leaders from all fields demonstrate the need for the humanities and social sciences to America’s future in a new film, "The Heart of the Matter," released today.

Over the past eighteen months, the Academy has partnered with the Northeast Document Conservation Center to repair, clean, and digitize six bound volumes of letters and other documents related to early Academy member and donor Benjamin Thompson (Count Rumford) and his daughter, Sarah.

We have entered a new nuclear era. The Cold War world dominated by only two nuclear superpowers no longer exists (even if Russia and the United States still possess the lion’s share of nuclear weapons); it has grown into a multipolar nuclear environment.

Capitalist democracy needs rethinking and renewal. Our current political economic framework is fixated on GDP, individual achievement, and short-term profit, all the while heightening barriers to widespread prosperity. Faced with mounting climate crises and systemic discrimination, how can we reconfigure our systems to secure economic well-being for all? What steps must we take to ensure our new approaches are (and will remain) sustainable?

Members of the Catalyst Collaborative@MIT performed a staged reading of Paradise, a play by Laura Maria Censabella. The program included a panel discussion featuring Paula T. Hammond, Rebecca Saxe, and Saba Valadkhan.

Carolyn Lukensmeyer – an expert in deliberative democracy and a member of the Academy’s Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship – describes the historical development of hyper-partisanship in the U.S., the opportunities that innovative political engagement offers, and suggests ways of healing the divides in our country in order to chart a collective path forward.

Citing a forthcoming Academy report, Neal Lane testifies in front of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and says America’s future as a global leader depends on a robust and expanding science and technology research and development agenda by the federal government.