Funded Programs

Guest speakers are invited to campus to debate topical issues such as freedom of expression on university campuses, social media companies censorship, among others.

Funding supported ESS-related costs of debate

As we face a challenging time in our country's history that drives Higher Education into a state of reflection, this HUA event invited the student body to discuss Harvard’s role as the oldest U.S. university in these uncertain times, paying specific attention in reflecting on how Harvard’s spot in the limelight impacts our experiences as students at the College. Through individual and group Q&A followed by discussion, the hope is to foster real conversation about what it means to be a Harvard College student today. 

Together with students from varying academic courses, including Hebrew language, Gen Ed, History, as well as scholars from the Israel/Palestine Research Forum and members of relevant student groups, the community will come together to celebrate Momouna a North African Jewish tradition that marks the end of Passover and the beginning of spring with an open-door celebration of abundance, hospitality, and intercommunal friendship. The celebration will include dishes from North Africa and Israel and culminate in discussion about the history of Mimouna and its cultural relevance, the meaning of hospitality across Jewish and Mulsim cultures, and how traditions like Mimouna can inspire dialogue and mutual understanding today. 

Jewish and non-Jewish students were invited to participate in a seder, and to take part in the tradition of offering an open space to explore the traditional meaning of the seder through collective storytelling and reflection.

Through dinner at the Faculty Club, the five major campus publications (The Crimson, The Independent, The Lampoon, The Advocate, and The Salient) came together to celebrate the installation of door boxes across the residential communities. The leaders of each publication were given an opportunity to address the faculty and student attendees, presenting their group's mission and how they engage with free speech and freedom of expression on campus.

Through the THINK dinners, students are asked to cultivate an impulse to listen to those with whom they disagree the way that they would ask those who listen to them. The aim is to push against a polarizing cultural climate where curious listening across ideological divides is rare. Ideally, participants leave each THINK dinner having experienced some sustained periods of human connection with someone whom they disagree on big, important worldview questions, and leave with mutual respect for one another. 

Weekly discussion series at Mather House, where students are invited to grapple with difficult conversations and speak vulnerably with one another. Facilitated by a Mather House Resident Tutor who is trained in negotiation and mediation, student are able to engage in insightful discussions with others relevant to college life and our role in the broader community.

During this dinner series, philosophical and religious ideas are explored, with the goal of better understanding each others' perspectives and shared appreciation for truth. Once each dinner concludes, notes taken during the meal are shared on a group chat, leading to a record of the intellectual contributions made through discussions. Many students enjoy the dinners as community is built around a shared interested in exploring topics not often discussed outside of a close-knit friend group. 

Through building on the University's efforts to facilitate dialogue between its diverse community members, this series aims to bring students from across perspectives, religions, and ideologies together for dedicated learning and exploration of themselves and the Middle East. 

Through a relaxed coffee chat environment with faculty, the Harvard Ethics Society hopes to make ethics approachable and relevant, allowing participants to gain unique perspectives and tools for ethical reasoning that can be applied in their personal and professional lives. 

People are less inclined to develop organic connections with the people around them because they can be active in a community of people who share their views digitally, which can be more comfortable than making new connections with people with whom they might disagree. Through short, private conversations about a topic provided to them randomly, Insight Spheres facilitates and cultivates organic 1-on-1  conversations between people to reinforce the value of direct, in-person connections with the people around you, even if (especially if) they don't share your views.

Funds supported seven students' participation in an intercollegiate leadership seminar for religiously committed/traditionally observant Jewish students who are working towards a future of freedom, equality, and safety for all Palestinians and Israelies. Upon return, the students organized a series of programs, including a Shabbat dinner, and interfaith dialogue event, and a discussion series about Israel/Palestine within their respective Houses.

Dinner and dialogue around the evolution of civil discourse.

Collaborative programming between Forward-Thinking Jewish Union and the Israel/Palestine Research Forum, including lecture and discussion series, dinner and dialogues, etc., with the goal of strengthening partnerships.

Improve interpersonal communication skills with a focus on critical thinking and exposure to different thoughts and perspectives.

Dinner and dialogue around immigration policy.

Faculty-Student discussion series around privatization in post-Soviet Russia, with comparative discussion of other post-Soviet or post-socialist European countries.

Funding supported Gen Ed 1197: Grimm’s Fairy Tales: Echoes of the Past, Reflections of the Present trip to attend a screening of the Snow White movie, followed by class discussion around the contemporary debates on storytelling, representation, and adaptation.

Funding supported Harvard College Women’s Center student and staff participation in the UN Commission on the Status of Women in NYC. Through this event, students were able to engage in public service at an international level, fostering a commitment to address global challenges, such as gender equality and the climate crists; witness and participate in global policymaking processes, expanding their undersatnding of international diplomacy, multilateral negotiations, and coalescing around a common goal; offered opportunities to dvelop students’ leadership, advocacy, and communication skills; and inspired students to engage with global perspectives and bring shared lessons back to the communities of which they are a part. Read more about the 2025 visit here. 

A continuation of a spring 2025 semester debate at Harvard, the two groups came together in Washington, DC to debate the resolution of: “There is No Such Thing as a Selfless Act.” Funding supported travel for Union Society members to travel to DC.

Speaker series led by seven Harvard College students seeking to foster dialogue about the most pressing issues in public policy, entrepreneurship and academia. Speakers have included Harvard Law School professors, the Icelandic Trade Ambassador, and various high level CEOs.

This event asked invited panelists and participants to engage in critical discussion on the intersection of religion, race, and human rights in Brazil, specifically, the historical and contemporary challenges faced by Afro-Brazilian religious traditions. The conversation also explored the complex relationship between religious freedom, law, and politics, exploring varying perspectives on whether the state should actively protect such feedoms by law, or whether religious practices should be left to develop independently of political intervention.

Through exposure to diverse cultural arts including fine art, dance, and cuisine, exposure to new ideas and perspectives were highlighted, questioned, and respected. The weekend-long event culminated in open dialogue about participants’ perspectives on each and how they connected specifically to one or more of the arts they were exposed to.

Public event, including a moderated conversation and discussion with writer Grazie Sophia Cristie and literary critic and essayist Becca Rothfeld, where topics including the ethics of exclusionary romantic preferences, the nature of beauty, whether the value of Harvard for women is proximity to eligible bachelors, the role of age in romatic relationships, and what an individual’s role in an an unjust world is, were discussed. The event culminated with open Q&A and discussion. 

With the goal of four seminars each semester, the Harvard Ethics Society hopes to highlight, educate, inspire, and provoke thought and intellectual vitality among participants through faculty presentations, Q&A sessions with students, and group discussions around questions big and small, and to navigate the moral complexities of the modern world. 

Together with students from varying academic courses, including Modern Hebrew 120, 130, and 240; GenEd 1008: Power and Identity in the Middle East; History 1018: Coffee and the Nighttime: History and Politics 1400-2020; and History 1008: One Land, Two Peoples: The Modern History of Israel Palestine, as well as scholars from the Israel/Palestine Research Forum and members of relevant student groups, the community will come together to celebrate Momouna a North African Jewish tradition that marks the end of Passover and the beginning of spring with an open-door celebration of abundance, hospitality, and intercommunal friendship. The celebration will include dishes from North Africa and Israel and culminate in discussion about the history of Mimouna and its cultural relevance, the meaning of hospitality across Jewish and Mulsim cultures, and how traditions like Mimouna can inspire dialogue and mutual understanding today. 

Tel Aviv University History Professor, Iris Rachamimov facilitated a lecture and workshop on the ongoing developments regarding transgender status and rights in the United States. Prof. Rachamimov’s lecture provided critical reflection on the insights, potentials, and blind spots of  key approaches to queering Jewish and Israeli Studies, and how this field can be profoundly fruitful for anyone, not just those who identify as queer.

Aubrey de Grey, a leading figure in the field of human life extension, led a discussion on the future of human health, the societal implications of extended longeivity, and the ethical considerations of such advancements. Students were encouraged to engage in dialogue and to critically explore competitng viewpoints, and to openly ask questions to deepen their understanding of these topics. 

Together with invited guest, Nancy Folbre, UMass Economics Professor, and leading feminist economist known for her heterodox approaches to labor and care work, participants were able to engage in conversation around their experience with economic ideas that challenge dominant paradigms, further exposing them to heterox thinking and ideas not present in Harvard Economics 10a and 10b courses.

Through a panel discussion with local politicians, State policy makers, lawyers, and the Harvard Black Students Association representatives, participants engaged in conversation around what the case to end legacy admissions preferences really means for Harvard and higher education. 

Dinner and dialogue with HKS faculty member Dara Kay Cohen and Yale Professor, Elisabeth Wood. The discussion presented students with both the standard approaches to the scholarship of war– which have tended to exclude substantive focus on the topic of gender and their critiques. A particular emphasis was placed on presenting contrasting approaches in a sufficiently robust manner for students to walk away without uniform views.

Speaker Series on “Economics Across the Aisle: Dialogue in a Divided Age,” with Harvard faculty, Gregory Mankiw and Douglas Elmendorf.

Publication for the YARID, a journal which explores the future of Jewish thought and culture through curating and publishing collegiate voices.