In memory of Drew Days

Below are the remarks I gave at the Memorial Service for my dear friend.

Drew Days: A life well lived

April 24th, 2022

Drew and I first interacted when he was Director of the Orville Schell Center for Human Rights, and I was chair of the Human Rights Watch Committee for Europe and Central Asia. Drew served on several important boards including Hamilton College, The Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, and the Bank Street College. But we came to know each other at the MacArthur Foundation. During my time as President, Drew was one of the trustees I most valued for thoughtful comments and honest advice on opportunities and challenges. 

He chaired our committee on Human and Community Development and took the lead in crafting MacArthur’s juvenile justice program, affordable housing initiative and neighborhood improvement work. But he was also a lead trustee in MacArthur’s international initiative in Human Rights, conservation, women’s health, and peace and security. He and Ann traveled with me to Russia, Nigeria, India, Australia, Fiji, Bhutan, Mexico, and more. On those trips we forged a relationship which brightened my life for years to come and continues in my friendship with Ann. 

He saw more of MacArthur’s work firsthand than any other trustee. He talked with local human rights activist in provincial cities in Russia, with indigenous conservationists in Fiji, women’s health workers in Northern Nigeria and Mexico. He always listened, showed empathy and respect, built bridges across cultures, made constructive suggestions about how to advance our common goals.

And he brought his perceptive insights about our work back to the MacArthur board room in Chicago. Our chair Sara Lawrence Lightfoot described his importance to his colleagues. “Drew’s voice was one of restraint, listening attentively, using a language of precision and understatement … offering deft and probing analysis, bringing to bear the weight of judgement and critique when we considered programs…”

I recall a conversation he had with Sara about her book, “Exit the Endings that Set Us Free”. He said, “when I exit, I just don’t want to feel celebrated and admired for what I did I want to feel known for who I am”. When I think about Drew, the letter c comes to mind. He was courageous, compassionate, curious, collegial, congenial, complex, and comprehensive about his views for the world. 

I am reminded of a conversation we had smoking a cigar under the moonlight in Havana after a hard day’s work looking at MacArthur’s Conservation work. He talked about the complexity of working in Castro’s Cuba, the ethical dilemmas, the openness of some high-ranking officials to our values, the conflict between our conservation work and the rights of people living on the land and fishing the sea. And where we stood in the arch of history and why it was important to conserve biodiversity before Cuba opened up. I learned a lot from Drew that evening, not so much from answers he was giving but questions he was asking that stimulated me to think more deeply and appreciate the complexity of our work.

I last visited Drew at Mariner’s Point just before the Covid shutdown. We talked about our time together at the American Academy for Arts and Sciences where he helped me think through our project on Access to Justice. Alas, the conversation was not easy, but we were connected, and I felt the warmth, love, and respect that we shared. As I left, we locked eyes, he smiled, and we said what I felt would be our last goodbyes. As I walked to my car, I thought of a reflection from Yale Chaplain, William Sloane Coffin. 

“The one true freedom in life is to come to terms with death, and as early as possible, for death is an event that embraces all our lives. And the only way to have a good death is to live a good life. Lead a good one, full of curiosity, generosity, and compassion, and there’s no need at the close of the day to rage against the dying of the light. We can go gentle into that good night.”

Drew lived a good life and has gone gently into the good night. But his life will continue to inspire us to fight for a more just and humane world at peace. 

International Anti-Corruption Court

Momentum is building to support the creation of an international anti-corruption court, led by Integrity Initiatives International (III), of which I am a board member. Please share the declaration, linked below, with your networks. It has a impressive list of signatories supporting the effort.

Declaration in Support of the Creation of an International Anti-Corruption Court

Please also see the accompanying press release, copied below.

30 Nobel Laureates Join Calls for An International Anti-Corruption Court

April 20, 2022 05:48 AM Eastern Daylight Time

BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Integrity Initiatives International (III) announced today that 30 additional Nobel laureates have signed the Declaration calling for the creation of an International Anti-Corruption Court (IACC).

The Declaration, first released in June 2021 with the signatures of more than 100 world leaders from 45 countries, has now been signed by over 200 eminent persons from more than 60 countries. Since June 2021, working with international partners to establish the International Anti-Corruption Court has become official foreign policy in both Canada and the Netherlands.

Earlier this month, Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra asked his European Union counterparts to work with the Netherlands to establish the IACC. He said, “Corruption among public officials isn’t just a financial problem; it also undermines democracy and the rule of law in a country and exacerbates inequality among its people. And of course, it’s a form of criminality. Not only does the country itself suffer, but other countries’ interests are harmed too.”

Foreign Minister Hoeksta continued: “By establishing an anti-corruption court, the Netherlands aims to strengthen the international legal order. But to make this happen, we will need the support of many other countries.”

To obtain that support, the Netherlands, Canada, Ecuador, and other partners will hold a conference of ministers from many countries later this year on international efforts to tackle corruption, with particular focus on the International Anti-Corruption Court.

The Declaration advocates for a new international court to punish and deter grand corruption – the abuse of public power for private gain by a nation’s leaders (kleptocrats) – which thrives in many countries and has devastating consequences for climate change, human rights, human health, and international peace and security, as has been made tragically evident by the war in Ukraine. New signatories to the Declaration being announced today include:

  • Jody Williams, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate from the U.S. and founding Coordinator of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines
  • José Ramos-Horta, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and former President and former Prime Minister of Timor-Leste
  • Leymah Roberta Gbowee, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate from Liberia
  • Tawakkol Karman, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate from Yemen
  • Rigoberta Menchú Tum, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate from Guatemala
  • Muhammad Yunus, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate from Bangladesh, founder of the Grameen Bank, and recipient of the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom

The Declaration and full list of signatories can be found here.

The new signatories have voiced their support for the IACC because they recognize that the global community needs innovative tools to combat corruption.

“Tackling corruption is fundamental to bolstering democracy around the world. New international institutions are also critical elements of strengthening multilateralism and the rule of law which have been under attack in recent years,” said Jody Williams.

“I am impressed by the quality of world leaders who have expressed their support for this initiative, reflecting growing awareness of the extent to which corruption undermines human progress and democracy. I am confident that we can find the political will to make this happen,” said Augusto Lopez-Claros, former Chief Economist at the World Economic Forum and current Executive Director of the Global Governance Forum. Lopez-Claros now serves as a Co-Chair of the newly formed International Coordinating Committee for the IACC campaign.

The Declaration in support of the IACC and the broader campaign for the IACC have been organized by Integrity Initiatives International (III), a non-profit with the mission of strengthening the enforcement of criminal laws against kleptocrats.

United States District Judge Mark L. Wolf, the Chair of III and a Co-Chair of the International Coordinating Committee for the IACC, stated that, “III has long focused on Vladimir Putin as epitomizing the kleptocrats who are the worst abusers of human rights yet enjoy impunity for their crimes in the countries that they rule. Tragically, as former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown recently wrote, ‘Every day Putin continues to hold power, the case for an International Anti- Corruption Court grows.’ If the IACC had been established years ago, it is more likely that Putin would now be in prison, rather than criminally killing Ukrainians.”

Ukraine

Below is a statement from World Refugee and Migration Council of which I am a member.

STATEMENT
World Refugee & Migration Council Calls for UN Peacekeepers to Protect Humanitarian Corridors in Ukraine
The World Refugee & Migration Council is appalled by Russian barbarism in violation of international humanitarian law and human rights in Ukraine, which is causing the worst refugee crisis in modern European history. Russia has shown a total disregard for Ukraine’s sovereignty and independence, and its leadership must be held accountable for the crime of aggression.
Adhere to Humanitarian Principles
The parties to the conflict in Ukraine must adhere to international humanitarian law by ensuring the protection of the civilian population and detainees and refraining from unlawful attacks. Weapons such as cluster bombs and thermobaric munitions should not be used because of their indiscriminate effects. The critical infrastructure necessary for basic human survival, such as water, gas, and electricity, should not be targeted by kinetic or non-kinetic, i.e., cyber, means. Humanitarian and aid workers should be protected so that they can assist civilians in dire circumstances.

Well-recognized humanitarian principles also dictate that assistance should be distributed impartially based on need. Since women-headed households with children represent the majority of the displaced, humanitarian relief and efforts must pay close attention to their particular needs and vulnerabilities and ensure that children are not exploited but afforded proper protection.

Because the United Nations’ relief agencies and other organizations with global reach are already strained by humanitarian operations in other parts of the world, it is vital that the critical needs of refugees and displaced persons there are not ignored as attention focuses on Europe.
Deploy UN Peacekeepers to Safeguard Humanitarian Corridors
A Uniting for Peace resolution should be passed by the UN General Assembly, providing for the deployment of a UN peacekeeping force to safeguard humanitarian corridors in Ukraine.
Repurpose Frozen Assets to Help Ukrainians through a Global Trust Fund
Accountability begins by confiscating the funds of Russia’s leadership that are held overseas and placing them in a global trust fund to help the Ukrainian people. The Frozen Assets Repurposing Act (FARA) before the Parliament of Canada is a valuable model for other countries to emulate. NATO countries and other democracies should convene a meeting of their foreign ministers to collaborate on creating such a fund.

As the plight of Ukrainians inside the country and those forced to flee across Ukraine’s borders worsens by the hour, the international community must greatly intensify its efforts to assist the people of Ukraine and those countries hosting refugee populations.
Responsibility Sharing
Responsibility sharing principles in the UN Refugee Compact must apply to this unprecedented crisis. Assistance must be given on equal terms to all those forcibly displaced regardless of their nationality. There must be an effective degree of harmonization of relief and resettlement programs.

We applaud the generosity of Ukraine’s neighbours in keeping their borders open for Ukrainians and third-country nationals so they can find a safe haven. We also applaud the European Union’s decision to invoke the Temporary Protection Directive to enable Ukrainians to remain and work in the EU for three years and provide third-country nationals time to relocate.

The international community must ensure that Ukraine’s neighbours, especially Poland, receive the assistance they need to help the refugees and local communities hosting them.
A Global Conference & Action Plan on Food and Health Security
We are seeing the ripple effects of this conflict on other countries worldwide. Many developing countries are destined to experience critical food shortages as Russia and Ukraine’s production and other grains are affected by this conflict. Food shortages in North Africa and the Middle East can be expected to contribute to further flights of people from this region to Europe. Accordingly, we urge the United Nations’ World Food Program (WFP) and the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) to convene a conference of all major food producers immediately and develop a concrete plan to assist those countries suffering from food shortages.

As a new strain of COVID emerges in Europe, the impact on the health requirements of refugees and their host communities should also be central to humanitarian relief and resettlement efforts.
Ending the War in Ukraine
The top priority for the United Nations, Ukraine and Russia, and other members of the international community must be the immediate resolution of this conflict. We urge the Secretary-General to use his good offices to press Russia to withdraw from Ukraine and engage in good faith efforts to resolve the crisis.
About the World Refugee & Migration Council
The World Refugee & Migration Council was formed in May 2017, initially as the World Refugee Council, under the leadership of former Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy and with the support of the Government of Canada. The Council is an independent global body composed of more than 20 political leaders, policy advisers, academic experts, a Nobel prize winner, civil society actors, and human rights activists worldwide. In its major report, A Call to Action: Transforming the Global Refugee System, the Council seeks to strengthen the global response beyond the United Nations and its Global Compacts on refugees and migration.

Farewell to a Democratic Opening in Myanmar

This trip report, written February 2020, reflects the challenges and the aspirations for a democratic Myanmar. There was no forewarning of the military takeover that would come within months of our visit. I remain committed to supporting the courageous civil society leaders with whom I met.

Myanmar January 15-26, 2020

Background

My wife Cynthia and I took an Abercrombie and Kent tour of Myanmar which started in Yangon then on to Bagan, a 2 day trip up the Irrawaddy to Mandalay and finally 2 glorious days on Inle Lake. There, we visited villages and met with local artisans working on silver, weaving, cigar making. Earlier we visited a lacquerware workshop. In Yangon, we visited the Shwedagon Pagoda, the most sacred Buddhist site in Myanmar. In Bagan, we took a balloon ride to see the 2,500 Buddhist pagodas and temples the first of which was built by King Anawrahta in 1044. A special treat was seeing a novitiation ceremony, “a coming of age ritual celebrating an aspiring young monk’s first entry to the monastery.” The trip up the Irrawaddy exposed us to rural villages and the lifeline the river plays in transporting timber and minerals, two keys to the Myanmar economy. Mandalay was the last royal capital of the Burma Kingdom and the cultural center of the country. We visited the ancient Teak Monastery, Shwenandaw, which survived World War II bombings. Our two days on Inle Lake were beautiful and peaceful. We saw real life close up. The floating farms and villages on stilts are amazing. 

On either side of the tour, I arranged visits with civil society groups including Free Expression Myanmar, Equality Myanmar, Athan, Smile, the Institute for Strategy and Policy, and the local HRW representative. Of special interest was our conversation with Thant Myint-U, grandson of former UN Secretary General U-Thant. Thant’s recent book The Hidden History of Burma, is a widely read analysis of the way forward for Myanmar given its complicated history. He has led the restoration of his grandfather’s house into a museum and is a leader in preserving historical buildings in downtown Yangon.  

Myanmar is a country of 51.4 million people, twice the size of Germany but smaller than Texas. It has over 100 ethnic groups, the largest of which are Shan, Karin, Kachin, Kayah, Chin, Mon, and Rakhine. Burmese are 68% of the population. The country is divided in 7 states and 7 regions. Yangon is the largest city with 5 million; Mandalay has 700,000. The capital is a new city Naypyitaw, which feels deserted. 90% of the population are Buddhists, 5% Christian, 4% Islamic. The economy is fueled by timber, tin, copper, jade, ruby, rice and other agricultural products. Most foreign trade is with China (38%), Thailand (25%), India (8%), and Japan (6%). 

The British were in control 1824-1948 followed by a challenging period of independence (1948-62) and then military rule (1962-2011).  

Observations

Myanmar is more open than I had expected. Civil society leaders spoke their minds freely. Their organizations are monitoring elections and free expression, have reform agendas on the economy, ethnic relations, social services. Although there is sharp inequality across the country, Myanmar is more modern than I expected: a new airport, construction of new high-rise apartments in Yangon, car dealerships for Volvo, Mercedes, Toyota, technology stores across Yangon. The streets in the places we visited were well paved, electricity widespread, modern hotels and tourist amenities available. 

I felt safe in Myanmar. People of all walks of life are warm and friendly. I think of our boat ride through villages in Inle Lake and the young children sitting in the windows of the stilted houses smiling and waving as we passed by. I am not naive about the poverty, inequality, and still controlled society. But the people impressed me with their resilience, hard work, and openness. I have an instinct of affection for Myanmar that I have not felt so strongly in most places around the world I have visited for the first time. 

With that said, the intellectuals and activists with whom we spoke are to a person disappointed with State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi. They recognize she faces a daunting challenge of leading a new era when the military is still all-powerful. A constitutional provision prevents someone married to a foreigner from holding the Presidency thus she has de facto leadership though this special position. 

Yet people who supported her in her period of house arrest report she is not accessible to them. And she did not continue staffing key agencies with experts brought in by the last military leader, Thein Sein. Instead, she has turned to old guard bureaucrats who do not challenge her. She is criticized for being narcissistic, even dictatorial, in her interactions with people around her. According to people with whom we spoke, she has not articulated a positive vision for the country and has not reached out to ethnic minorities. The peace process with the key groups in the North has stalled. Nor has she taken a progressive stand on the Rohingya issue. That was clear in her defense of the military in the ICJ at the Hague. As one person told us, “she is not building a cohesive nation. She needs to connect to non-privileged groups like the Shan, Muslims, and other ethnic groups”. 

With that said, most everyone expects her party, NLD, to win the 2020 election. And most of her critics will vote for her. Some observers predict the NLD will lose seats in Parliament as the ethnic parties gain traction. Some think it possible the NLD will not have a majority and will need a coalition. Still most with whom we spoke think her continued leadership is the best alternative and real change will happen only after she retires, perhaps 5 years hence. No one could name a list of possible successors except to express the hope it would be a member of the younger generation.  

Among the people with whom we spoke, there is a mature understanding that it takes time to build a healthy and sustainable democracy. Intellectuals and activists are thinking in at least a 10 year horizon focusing on incremental improvements. Not surprising, the younger generation is more optimistic about the future than their elders who suffer from unfilled rising expectations. The growth of civil society organizations is an encouraging sign. 

Athan (voice in Burmese) was founded in January 2018 to promote free expression through research, advocacy and education. It issues periodic reports on the status of Freedom of Expression. It advocates a revision of the Telecommunications Law which criminalizes defamation which is the key tool the government uses to punish journalists it believes too critical. It has issued reports on how Parliament violated freedom of expression, compiled an inventory of 2019 protests (constitutional reform and labor rights are the top 2 issues), and monitors hate speech on Facebook which is the widely used social media platform in Myanmar. Athan has 17 staff (all under 30) and support from the National Endowment for Democracy and the Netherlands. It is central to a network of 30 civil society organization working on freedom of expression throughout Myanmar. 

Equality Myanmar involves 65 people (not all full time) and works on human rights training throughout Myanmar and helps build a network of local community based organizations. Among the issues it is focused on are forced relocations, domestic violence, forced labor and child soldiers. It aims to mitigate conflict among ethnic communities. It also advocates policy positions, for example, pushing Myanmar to sign the International Covenant on Human Rights. It will participate in monitoring of the 2020 elections. It has support from NED, Norway, Netherlands, and Open Society. 

Another group, SMILE, promotes freedom of religion and ethnic minorities; it monitors hate speech, including rating 2020 campaigns on hate speech. It has support from USAID and the Polish government and a fund of $500,000 a year for 28 staff. 

Free Expression Myanmar (FEM) has a staff of 10-15, a budget of $110,000 which comes from Sweden, UK, US governments. FEM prioritizes gender. It monitors the fate of journalists posting on Facebook with 50% of journalists saying some content has been taken down. Facebook is a key source of information for people living outside of Yangon and Mandalay where there are few print papers and radio is controlled by the government. 

I was particularly interested in learning about a CSO, Yone Kyi Yai (Belief), which aims to train people to be active citizens in a democracy. It works to bring local community leaders together with local government officials to talk about issues like the conditions of roads and access to safe water. At first, it is a shouting match but eventually both sides learn to talk in a civil fashion. This promising institution needs to expand. 

The Institute for Strategy and Policy has 20 researchers and a budget of $400,000 a year provided by NED, USAID, and Sweden. It has a quarterly journal and a quarterly TV show with 13 million viewers and a project “Myanmar 2050: What is the Vision”. Topics for its journal include: the development of civil society, social justice, electoral system reform, the growing influence of China and the future of federalism, all key issues. 

I have introduced the Institute and several other CSO’s to the New School’s Democracy 2.0 project. During the 1980’s the New School had a network of underground seminars in East and Central Europe, Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and other locations. When the revolutions of 1989/90 opened a path to democracy for the region, our members were hopeful about the future. Now there is backsliding in most of the countries which raises the question of what went wrong? A new project, Democracy 2.0, will be a network of scholars in these countries plus Turkey and India. I think Myanmar would benefit from participation in the project, which seeks to understand the complex and uneven process of building a healthy and sustainable democracy. The naive notion that an election equals democracy needs to be replaced by a more nuanced understanding of how to build the cultural and political prerequisites of a democracy over time.  

Thant Myint-U’s The Hidden History of Burma ends with an epilogue that calls on Aung San Suu Kyi to articulate a comprehensive vision for the future of Myanmar during the 2020 election campaign. Among the key points is the need to find a middle ground between crony capitalism and the neo-liberal faith in free markets. He makes a powerful case that the future of a sustainable democracy in Myanmar depends on reducing inequality. And reinvigorating the peace process with ethnic minorities. In conversation, Thant mentioned other key issues like the direction of relations with China, the need to repair relations with the West, give Muslims greater access to education and public health, repatriate refugees, and resolve the Rohingya issue. 

I asked all with whom we spoke about their advice to the United States in helping Myanmar to a better future. People recalled with great affection Barack Obama’s visit to Myanmar in 2012 and the support that came from the US government. Most people feel the current US administration is at best indifferent, perhaps hostile to Myanmar. People believe that general sanctions over the years have been counterproductive. One thoughtful scholar urged US help to strengthen the education system, expand student exchange programs, support the development of civil society, increase private investment, and limit sanctions. Several advocated targeted sanctions targeting perhaps 100 individuals by freezing their assets and boycotting companies they control like Myanmar beer. Also, they urge requiring US companies active in Myanmar to adhere to high standards in labor rights and protecting the environment. 

The ruling by the International Court of Justice came out while we were in Myanmar. It requires Myanmar “to take all measures within its power” to prevent any further acts of violence against the Rohingya. Myanmar is required to submit regular reports to the Court within four months and thereafter every 6 months. Myanmar’s own Independent Commission of Enquiry (ICOE) found that crimes against humanity were committed in Rakhine “but did not find” genocidal intent. 

Aung San Suu Kyi responded to the ICJ ruling in a letter to the Financial Times basically saying Myanmar’s own investigation had found evidence of “killing of civilians, disproportionate use of force, looting of property and destruction of abandoned houses of Muslims.” The right course now, she argues, is to give the Myanmar justice system time to bring those responsible to account. “An informed assessment of Myanmar’s ability to address the issue of violations in Rakhine can only be made if adequate time is given for democratic justice to run its course. Justice can help us overcome distrust, fear, prejudice and hate, and end the longstanding cycle of intercommunal violence. This has always been my goal.”

There was little discussion of the ICJ’s ruling among the people we talked to and her statement seemed to have strong support in the country.

Our 10 days in Myanmar were certainly eventful. Chinese President, Xi Jinping also made his first visit to Myanmar while we were in country to inaugurate 2020 the year of Tourism and Culture between China and Myanmar. It is also expected that China will increase its infrastructure investment in Myanmar as part of its belt and road initiative. China is Myanmar’s largest trading partner with exports to China worth $5.5. billion and imports worth $6.2 billion. The withdrawal of Western support and interest has forced Myanmar to be more dependent on China which is not the surest path to the kind of democracy we hope for. I believe this is a critical moment in Myanmar’s history with the possibility, but not certainty, of a positive evolution towards a more democratic future. There is an appetite among many civil society leaders and intellectuals, especially younger people, for interaction with the West. So I will be advocating that universities, foundations, businesses, civil society groups become more active in Myanmar. I say this with a sense of modesty and realism. The US and other Western nations are not the answer, but rather play a supporting role as the drama of Myanmar’s future unfolds. I think of the young man whose novitation we witnessed. At age nine or so he has a long future ahead and I hope it will be in a more democratic, peaceful, and prosperous Myanmar. I care about Myanmar and its people and I want to help them realize their enormous potential.

The Broadest Possible Education: The Future of Global and International Studies

These remarks were given at “International Education at the Crossroads,” a conference held at Indiana University on October 26, 2018. Dr. Fanton was the keynote speaker at the event.

Thank you President McRobbie, Dean Feinstein, Dean Kahn, and Professor Cohn.

I have had a wonderful tour of your beautiful campus. As I watch the students and faculty at work and play, the words that come to mind are happy, healthy, supportive, confident, optimistic about the future. It is an honor to be with you today, at the beginning of a symposium dedicated to one of the great challenges of higher education in the twenty-first century: how to adapt most effectively to a world that is, increasingly, at our fingertips; in some ways smaller and in other ways more difficult to comprehend; and at a time when our campuses, our research teams, our businesses, and our communities are becoming more international with every passing year.

Continue reading The Broadest Possible Education: The Future of Global and International Studies

Introductory Remarks for “All Legislative Powers…”: Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution, Then and Now

On October 15, 2018, the American Academy co-hosted a panel discussion on Article One of the United States Constitution along with the Massachusetts Historical Society. The panel was broadcast on C-SPAN. Dr. Fanton gave the following remarks as introduction.

Good evening. I am Jonathan Fanton, President of the American Academy. It is my pleasure to welcome you this evening to the first of a series of annual programs offered in partnership with the Massachusetts Historical Society. As many of you here tonight will know, the Academy was founded in 1780, and the Historical Society was founded in 1791.

We felt that a partnership between our two institutions would be not only logical but appropriate, and that there would be no better topic for a collaborative program than an event that took place between the founding of our two institutions: the writing of the U.S. Constitution.

The Academy and the Historical Society have a long history together. 17 of the 29 signatories to the Society’s Act of Incorporation were Academy members. And in fact Jeremy Belknap founded the Historical Society in part because he felt that the Academy’s early focus was too heavily slanted towards the sciences and natural history, and that a new institution was necessary to “establish a library to house historical sources.” Our two institutions, with their distinct missions and common values, came together in the 1890s to share space at the Boston Athenaeum for two years while the Society’s current building on Boylston Street was being built. In return, the Society generously housed the Academy as a tenant from 1899 to 1906 and again for a period of time in 1911. More recently, in 1991, we hosted the bicentennial meeting of the Society in the Academy’s Cambridge headquarters, which featured a keynote address by Senator Edward Kennedy, who presented the Kennedy Medal to the distinguished Harvard historian and Academy member Oscar Handlin. So we are delighted to be partnering with MHS yet again. Continue reading Introductory Remarks for “All Legislative Powers…”: Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution, Then and Now

Speech on Undergraduate Education at Miss Porter’s School

These remarks were given at an October 12, 2018 event for the parents, trustees, and STEM Advisory Board of Miss Porter’s School in Farmington, CT. The remarks introduced keynote speaker Dr. Ashley Finley of the American Association of Colleges and Universities.

Good evening Trustees, members of the STEM Advisory Board, and parents. I want to thank Kate Windsor for inviting me here this evening and for her recognition and active use of a recent report published by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences entitled The Future of Undergraduate Education, The Future of America. And I want to thank my wife, Cynthia Greenleaf, a proud “Ancient” and member of the STEM Advisory Board for ALSO inviting me to be here this evening.

I greatly admire Miss Porter’s for the high-quality education it provides to young women, helping them to develop into future leaders for our country and the world. Your mission to educate your students to become informed, bold, resourceful and ethical global citizens is one that our current national and global situation surely needs. I am especially impressed with your recent curricular enhancements which challenge students to work collaboratively, make connections across disciplines and contexts, and apply what they learn to real-world issues. I also think it is important that all juniors spend time living abroad in immersion experiences to gain an understanding of another culture.

Kate Windsor recently wrote these inspiring words: “When young women have the opportunity to explore all aspects of their personalities, to have access to real-life career experiences, and to engage with the global community, they develop insights into themselves, their relationships, and the world. When coupled with ambitious goal setting, hard work, and resilience, all honed over their four years, their options are limitless.” Continue reading Speech on Undergraduate Education at Miss Porter’s School

Annual David M. Rubenstein Lecture: A Conversation with Justice Sonia Sotomayor

These remarks were given by Jonathan Fanton as an introduction to the Second Annual David M. Rubenstein Lecture with Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor. The lecture was held on Sunday, October 7 as part of the Academy’s 2018 Induction Weekend.

Good morning and welcome to the final session of our Induction Weekend. I now call to order the 2072nd Stated Meeting of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

It has been a wonderful weekend.  I hope you have found it as inspiring as I have.  As you have heard, there are many ways to participate in the life of the Academy. We encourage your active engagement and we would like to hear from each of you in the years ahead.

Our Induction Weekend is an elaborate undertaking, requiring a very precise choreography. I want to take a moment to thank the Academy staff for making the weekend as welcoming, as substantive, and as seamless as possible.  Would the staff who are here please raise your hands so we can recognize your extraordinary efforts?  In particular, I would like to thank Kristin Josti, our events coordinator, who has been your point of contact for the past six months. Kristin has done a terrific job to ensure the weekend’s success.

As the defense attorney for the British soldiers who fired into the crowd of colonists during the Boston Massacre, John Adams, the most prominent Boston lawyer of his era, described what he considered the ideal operation of the legal system: “The law no passion can disturb.” Adams continued, “‘Tis void of desire and fear, lust and anger…[W]ithout any regard to persons, [it] commands that which is good and punishes evil in all, whether rich or poor, high or low.”

As we know, Adams would soon lead a revolution against the very people he was representing when he spoke these words, and his image of justice—objective, impersonal, the same for everyone regardless of financial means or social status—would become an essential aspect of his vision for the new nation. What Adams proposed in his defense was that all persons—angry colonists and frightened soldiers alike—should have equal access to justice.

Continue reading Annual David M. Rubenstein Lecture: A Conversation with Justice Sonia Sotomayor

2018 Induction Ceremony Remarks

These remarks opened the 2018 Induction ceremony of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, in which the 238th class of new members were welcomed to the Academy. The class included 150 US-based Fellows and 25 International Honorary Members.

Let me add my warm welcome to the Class of 2018, and to your families and friends who have joined us to celebrate this special occasion.

The Academy benefits from the wise and dedicated leadership of its Officers and members of the Academy Board, Council, and Trust.  As a result of their efforts, the American Academy is a thriving institution. We are grateful for all that they do for the Academy, and especially for the leadership and encouragement of our Chair, Nancy Andrews.

The Academy was founded in 1780, during the American Revolution, by John Adams and 62 other scholar-patriots who understood that the new republic would require new institutions to gather knowledge and advance learning in service to the public good. Their determination to create this Academy, at a time of such peril to themselves and their families, is a sign of their confidence in their cause. It is also a testament to their faith in the free exchange of ideas as the basis of a thriving democracy.

In the Preface of the Academy’s first publication, the Memoirs, published in 1785, the Founders reflected upon their brave decision:

“[T]o the honor of our political Fathers be it spoken, that although the country was engaged in a distressing war, a war the most important to the liberties of mankind, that was ever undertaken by any people, and which required the utmost attention of those who were entrusted with our public concerns—they immediately adverted to the usefulness of the design, entered into its spirit, and incorporated a society…to promote most branches of knowledge advantageous to a community.”

Today, as members of the Academy, we preserve this legacy for future generations by working together to fulfill our Charter mission “to cultivate every art and science which may tend to advance the interest, honor, dignity, and happiness of a free, independent, and virtuous people.” We do this through our major initiatives to advance scientific research, humanistic inquiry, education, international security, and the vitality of our civic institutions; through our lectures and programming around the country; through our publications including Dædalus; and through our fellowship programs fostering the next generation of scholars.

Members of the Class of 2018, I invite you to join in our current endeavors but also to think about new challenges and opportunities in our quest for a more just, humane, and peaceful world. I look forward to meeting each of you, to hearing your ideas, and to finding new ways to include you in the work of this important fellowship. Once again, congratulations on your election.

Celebration of the Arts and Humanities

These remarks preceded and concluded the Friday, October 5 Celebration of the Arts and Humanities, the first event of the 2018 Induction weekend. 

Welcome

It is wonderful to welcome our new members and to be with so many friends and colleagues.

I would like to acknowledge the Academy Officers and the very dedicated members of our Board, Council, and Trust. The work of the Academy would not be possible without your vision, guidance, and support.

Those of you who are being inducted tomorrow join an institution rich in tradition, but also an institution that is always looking forward, toward the future, to the production of new knowledge and new forms of expression.  Distinctive among learned societies, the American Academy draws together leaders from the sciences, social sciences, arts, and the humanities; from law and medicine; and from business, public affairs, and philanthropy.  By combining the insights of this broad range of disciplines and professions, the Academy offers fresh ideas and new perspectives in its mission to serve the common good.  Each of you is now invited to participate in this important work, to add your particular talents and expertise to a greater cause—in the words of our Charter, to advance “the interest, honor, dignity, and happiness of a free, independent, and virtuous people.”

In 1941, the distinguished philosopher and metaphysician Alfred North Whitehead delivered an address to the Academy entitled “Statesmanship and Specialized Learning.” In that address, he praised the wisdom of our founders, who created an organization through which all of the disciplines and professions come together in productive collaboration:

“The comprehension of existence requires the combination of Arts and Sciences. In concrete human action, there is always a Science lurking behind an Art and there is always an Art stimulating a Science. This is the reason why one Academy should include both.”

Over the course of this weekend, we will explore together the ways in which the arts and sciences are combined in this Academy, through our projects, our publications, our programming, and our efforts to connect members from every discipline and profession, from around the country and the world, to share ideas and experiences in service to the public good.

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