SUMMER SCHOOL OVERVIEW
Our three-day residential school takes place in London on 11 to 13 July and is open to anyone aged 18 to 30, regardless of whether you are based in the UK or beyond.
Anyone interested in getting to grips with issues of freedom and free speech is welcome to apply and we aim to bring together attendees with a wide range of interests and diverse views.
Attendees will hear talks from experts on the history and philosophy of freedom, including revisiting ideals and classic texts. You will have the chance to explore complex moral and ethical issues, debate contemporary hot topics and discuss the limits to freedom. There will be plenty of time to meet, network and socialise with speakers and your peers, as well as attending the annual Living Freedom dinner.
A full topic guide including outline descriptions of all talks and debates, speaker biographies and links to specially collated readings, podcasts and videos will be provided in advance. To gain an idea of the experience you can expect at Living Freedom Summer School, including testimonials from attendees and speakers, please see our special Living Freedom Summer School 2023 review, including the programme, readings, photos and links to videos and podcast recordings, here.
SCHOLARSHIPS
The cost of providing a place at the summer school is £500. This includes accommodation in central London and attending the annual Living Freedom dinner.
However, each attendee will pay just £50, a massive reduction of £450.
This is because Living Freedom uses a targeted scholarships programme funded by our donors and partners, which will ensure that we can select attendees on merit, irrespective of their financial circumstances.
PROVISIONAL PROGRAMME
PLENARY LECTURES & DEBATES
- War on the past: is there a ‘right side of history’?
- Death of privacy: is the internet and social media to blame?
- Have we given up on sexual freedom?
- Lab Babies to Transhumanism: what’s wrong with overcoming biological limits?
- How can Gen Z win its freedom?
TALKS: MORAL MAZE OF FREEDOM
- Defending civilisational values
- The decolonisation debate
- Maestro or evil genius? Defending artistic freedom today
- Religious freedom: where do we draw the line?
- Hate marches to school exclusion zones: what are the limits to protest?
DEBATES: FREEDOM AND ITS LIMITS
- Deepfakes to smartphones: arguing for freedom in a digital age
- Tolerate or ban? Anti-Semitism on campus
- Artistic freedom in an age of boycotts
- Misinformation, impartiality and the media
- Should academics be activists?
THE CLASSICS: SHORT TALKS AND SEMINARS
- Hannah Arendt: What is freedom?
- Immanuel Kant: What is Enlightenment?
- Primo Levi: If This Is a Man
LETTERS ON LIBERTY: SHORT TALKS AND SEMINARS
- Toleration and gay liberation
- Pubs: defending the free house
- Beyond the Harm Principle
SPEAKERS INCLUDE
Dr Jennie Bristow sociologist; co-author, The Corona Generation
Dr Alka Sehgal Cuthbert director, Don’t Divide Us
Neil Davenport writer; author, Letter on Liberty: Pubs: Defending the Free House
Claire Fox director, Academy of Ideas
Professor Frank Furedi sociologist and social commentator
Dr Julius Grower Ann Smart Fellow in Law, University of Oxford
Timandra Harkness journalist, writer and broadcaster
Ryan Hoey author, Letter on Liberty: Toleration and Gay Liberation
Inaya Folarin Iman journalist and commentator; director, Equiano Project
Dr Tiffany Jenkins author, Strangers and Intimates: The Rise and Fall of Private Life
Helen Joyce journalist; director of advocacy, Sex Matters
Rob Lyons author, Letter on Liberty: Beyond the Harm Principle
Abhishek Saha, professor of mathematics, Queen Mary University of London
Max Sanderson assitant managing editor, The Guardian
Ella Whelan journalist; co-convenor, Battle of Ideas festival
Dr Joanna Williams author, Why Woke Won
Yair Zivan editor, The Centre Must Hold
HOW TO APPLY
If you will be between 18 and 30 years old on 11-13 July 2024, then complete the application form here by Monday 3 June. Successful applicants will be notified by Wednesday 12 June, at which time a fee of £50 will be payable.
SUPPORTED BY
ENQUIRIES
Should you need further information, please email the Living Freedom convenor, Alastair Donald, at info@livingfreedom.org.uk or call +44 (0)20 7269 9234.