In New York, millions of civil litigants each year fight for the necessities of life without the aid of a lawyer because they are unable to afford one. While the state courts strive to provide access to justice for all constituents, this ideal becomes a promise unfulfilled due to the lack of available civil legal services for low-income populations. In this essay, I discuss access to justice in the state courts from the perspective of my role as Chief Judge of the State of New York.

The world is about to be full. Within two or three generations, our global population – currently seven billion people – will level off between ten billion and eleven billion. Although humanity steadily increased in size as it spread from Africa across the habitable lands of Earth, it was not until the 1920s that this growth turned explosive.

A national survey by the Academy's Humanities Indicators reveals considerable public engagement in a range of humanities activities at home and in the workplace, as well as wide support that the humanities confer personal, societal, and economic benefits.

This report from the Commission on the Arts calls on parents, teachers, and governments at the national, state, and local level to recognize the value of arts education and put in place changes that will assure access to every student.