DeKALB – The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences will host its annual Rebuilding Democracy Lecture Series, which highlights the role of the liberal arts and sciences in maintaining a healthy and promising democracy.
The series, which will begin Sept. 23 with NPR’s Steve Inskeep, explores various ways to rebuild democracy and unite a society at odds. The lectures cover a wide range of topics regarding issues in our society.
Paula Meyer, the director of communications and marketing for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, discussed how the lecture series got started in the first place.
“We started the series in the middle of the pandemic,” Meyer said. “To many, that didn’t seem like it was a great time to start a series, but for us it was. And it was right around the time of the first Trump administration, and there was a lot of anxiety.”
In tandem with exploring democracy and its issues, the series also showcases the purpose of liberal arts and sciences in a democracy by incorporating natural and social sciences along with interdisciplinary approaches to understanding various institutions.
The series speaks on how social justice and human rights are important for rebuilding democracy and speakers are firmly committed to including diversity in their lectures.
Meyer discussed the importance of the lecture series and its overall purpose.
“It’s more of a continuing conversation about democracy and its current state. How we can improve democracy, but it’s an extension of what students learn in the classrooms,” Meyer said.
The lectures are meant to be free and accessible and have offered a wide range of speakers over the years. Guest speakers Naomi Klein — an award-winning journalist and New York Times bestselling author — and Christine Todd Whitman, former EPA administrator and governor of New Jersey, were both featured in last year’s lecture series.
“We’ve been blessed to have really, really fabulous people join us for Rebuilding Democracy and I learn something new with every single guest,” Meyer said. The lectures are fully virtual, and a full lineup for the upcoming series will be released in the near future. The first lecture is at 7 p.m. Registration is required and can be found here.
