Who gets to tell the American story? On July 30, presidential historian Lindsay Chervinsky and SNF Agora Institute faculty member Leah Wright join moderator Eugene Scott to examine myth, memory, and democracy’s future. buff.ly/bMGhElg @harvardash.bsky.social

U.S. history may be polarizing Americans more by generation than by race or ideology, according to new research from SNF Agora Institute's Peter Pomerantsev and Millions of Conversations. Read more. buff.ly/3dZ4yZz

SNF Agora Sr Fellow Peter Pomerantsev examines how power is shaped by narrative as much as territory. In a new piece for the Financial Times, he unpacks how Russia’s story works, where it fractures, and what states can do now. Read the story: buff.ly/ziMSk36

Now accepting applications for a 2026–27 Artist in Residence. Focus area: Democracy and the Media. We welcome artists working across visual, performance, musical, and interdisciplinary forms. Stipend up to $25,000. Apply by March 2 snfagora.jhu.edu/vf

SNF Agora is recruiting Visiting Fellows from diverse sectors, disciplines, backgrounds, and ideologies to work with our faculty, researchers, and students during the 2026-2027 academic year. The focus area is democracy and the media. For info, or to apply, visit snfagora.jhu.edu/vf.

SNF Agora Institute Professor of International Affairs Henry Farrell joined The Ezra Klein Show for a wide-ranging conversation on global power and economic leverage. buff.ly/lg8CyQT

Welcome Back! Join us for cocoa and conversation! The SNF Agora Institute is hosting a low-key, drop-in welcome for students, faculty, and staff interested in democracy, civic life, and public dialogue at JHU. January 29, 6-7:30 pm, Bloomberg Student Center, Room 216 All are welcome.

When the Wolves Came, hosted by SNF Agora sociologist Ruth Braunstein, has been named one of The Atlantic’s 20 Best Podcasts of 2025. The series examines Christian nationalism in American evangelicalism with a focus on how people change their beliefs and identities over time. buff.ly/Z6jD1r5

Help us understand how SNF Agora research is being used. Please take a short survey to share how our work has informed your thinking, teaching, or practice. Participants will be entered for a chance to receive SNF Agora swag.

SNF Agora Institute Research Use Inquiry

This short survey asks how you have used SNF Agora research in your work or community. Your responses will help us understand where our research is reaching people, how it is being applied, and what…

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During Intersession, the SNF Agora Institute brings research into the classroom through short, intensive courses that connect democratic theory with real-world practice. Students explore democracy as something lived, debated, and practiced. buff.ly/fSQoUBS

SNF Agora Institute Intersession courses invite students to explore democracy through media, theatre, innovation, and global action

Held during the two weeks before the spring semester, Johns Hopkins University’s Intersession program invites undergraduates to immerse themselves in concentrated, discussion-based learning in short,…

snfagora.jhu.edu

The Democracy Jukebox Is Live! Looking for thought-provoking podcasts? The Democracy Jukebox features SNF Agora voices on issues from community power to democratic resilience. Tune in, learn, and join the conversation. Start listening: buff.ly/N34ZqmF #Democracy #SNFAgora #Podcasts

Democracy Jukebox

SNF Agora faculty and fellows contribute to vital public conversations not only through research and writing, but also through the spoken word. This page features selected podcast appearances, both…

snfagora.jhu.edu

Congratulations to SNF Agora faculty member Martha S. Jones. Her book The Trouble of Color: An American Family Memoir has been named one of TIME’s Top 10 Best Memoirs of 2025. We are proud to see her work reach such a wide audience. buff.ly/pnEoSRo

The 10 Best Memoirs of 2025

Author Nicole Chung picks the top memoirs of the year, from "Careless People" to "Things in Nature Merely Grow"

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Live today at 12 PM ET / 7 PM GR: The SNFCC lights up for a festive celebration hosted by Evgenia Samara, with Loop Quartet, Nina Mazani, and holiday performances across the Agora and Canal. Watch the livestream: buff.ly/oaClEPJ

The SNFCC Christmas World Comes to Life

On Saturday, 29 November, at 7:00 PM, the SNFCC will light up for a dazzling celebration hosted by actress Evgenia Samara. Towering, beautifully decorated Christmas trees will take center […]

snfagora.jhu.edu

Most Americans say U.S. democracy faces serious challenges. New SNF Agora and Public Agenda data show clear divides among Republicans. Explore the data: buff.ly/cN70XY1

Understanding Evolving Republican Attitudes Towards Democracy

Survey from SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins and Public Agenda Pinpoint Distinct Divides Within Republican Party

snf-agora.shorthandstories.com

Congratulations! SNF Agora Senior Fellow Anne Applebaum wins Hillary Clinton award, recognizing people who are advancing peace and justice around the world: www.georgetown.edu/news/2025-hi...

Georgetown Honors Women Protecting Democracy at 2025 Hillary Clinton Awards - Georgetown University

The Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace & Security and Hillary Rodham Clinton celebrated women working to protect democracy.

georgetown.edu

Philanthropy has the potential to defend democracy or to destabilize it. In his new op-ed, Daniel Stid issues a simple injunction: First, do no harm. He offers 5 concrete steps that philanthropic funders can take to support pluralism and strengthen liberal democracy. Read it here: buff.ly/io27Ucu

Now accepting applications for the 2026–27 SNF Agora Institute Postdoctoral Fellowships. We especially welcome sociologists and economists. $70,000 stipend • Start July 1, 2026 • Residency in Baltimore–DC area Apply by Thu, Nov. 6 • buff.ly/hBTRDId

Postdoctoral Fellows Program

Apply now!  Deadline November 6, 2025 SNF Agora Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship The SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University is an academic and public forum dedicated to strengthening global…

snfagora.jhu.edu

Hahrie Han, director of the SNF Agora Institute, has been named a 2025 MacArthur Fellow—the award often known as a “genius grant.” Her research explores how people organize, act collectively, and strengthen democracy. buff.ly/6wMr9AI buff.ly/PL1FvHE

Hahrie Han | 2025 MacArthur Fellow

Meet Hahrie Han, a political scientist and 2025 #MacFellow addressing critical questions about how and why people participate in civic and political life. Employing a range of ethnographic,…

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Free Speech for Me, But Not for Thee. SNF Agora's Lilliana Mason discusses what data we have on how Americans think about political violence. Listen to On the Media. www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm...

It's not too late to register to watch the live stream of tonight's @Opentodebate. Learn the Legacy of the COVID Pandemic tonight at 6:30 buff.ly/3WJlQU6

Political violence on the rise: SNF Agora faculty member Ruth Braunstein talks about the heated political climate and what the shooting death of Charlie Kirk reveals. www.ktvu.com/video/1706011

Political violence on the rise: What Charlie Kirk's shooting death reveals

Ruth Braunstein, Johns Hopkins University associate professor of sociology, talks about the heated political climate and what the shooting death of Charlie Kirk reveals.

ktvu.com

The Hopkins Forum continues with a live debate in Baltimore on the legacy of COVID-19. Leading voices in public health and medicine reflect on what went wrong, what we learned, and how we can prepare for the next crisis. With Tom Frieden, Jerome Adams, Dara Kass, Doctor Mike RSVP buff.ly/ko8fLQd

From “Red Plenty” to “Dark Abundance,” competing visions shape how we think about growth, governance, & opportunity. SNF Agora faculty member Steven Teles traces the rise of different “abundances” in his latest analysis. Explore the varieties of abundance: buff.ly/rpYm6Eo

The age of weaponized interdependence is here. Henry Farrell (SNF Agora) and Abraham Newman argue that the U.S. is no longer the only power able to turn global finance, tech, and supply chains into tools of coercion. In Foreign Affairs: buff.ly/HYhtRV2

The Weaponized World Economy

When Washington announced a “framework deal” with China in June, it marked a silent shifting of gears in the global political economy. This was not the beginning of U.S. President Donald Trump’s…

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In TIME, SNF Agora Senior Fellow Peter Pomerantsev warns that Russia’s war on Ukraine is also a war on identity and calls for action to confront both the visible and hidden tools of occupation. Read more: buff.ly/SC2oqOg

The Real Danger of the Trump-Putin Summit

It's crucial that Russia's occupation of eastern Ukraine is never normalized, writes Peter Pomerantsev.

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What if complexity isn’t a problem to eliminate—but a reality to understand? In Carnegie India’s review, Suyash Rai reflects on Yuen Yuen Ang’s Adaptive Political Economy—a new paradigm and method for studying development as nonlinear, co-evolutionary. buff.ly/H2XbYsE

SNF Agora faculty Yuen Yuen Ang appears in Forbes, where her research helps reframe crisis as complexity. Her adaptive political economy model invites leaders to engage systems, not just fix them. buff.ly/LDUr182

We’re Not In Crisis. We’re In A Complex Opportunity. Stop Treating The World Like A Toaster.

We’re not in crisis—we’re in a complex opportunity. Stop fixing like it’s a toaster. Lead adaptively, morally, and systemically to thrive in a polycrisis.

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‘Can the system hold? Has it ever actually worked?’ asks Scott Warren, #SNFAgora fellow at Johns Hopkins, in his seminar on democratic erosion. buff.ly/4ktCuiK

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore campus) is seeking a Managing Director to help advance its mission to strengthen global democracy through civic engagement, inclusive dialogue, and applied research. Learn more and apply: buff.ly/uYuKtlj

Managing Director for SNF Agora Institute

Managing Director for SNF Agora Institute

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Why is politically motivated violence on the rise in the U.S.? SNF Agora political scientist Lilliana Mason explains how political violence is eroding American democracy and changing who participates in politics

Why is politically motivated violence on the rise in the U.S.?

Johns Hopkins political scientist Lilliana Mason explains how political violence is eroding American democracy

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