Why Do the Humanities Matter?

At the Stanford Humanities Center, we believe that the direction humanity takes depends entirely on which questions we choose to ask—and that humanities scholars are uniquely equipped to frame these fundamental questions.

Through the study of history, philosophy, the arts, religion, and more, preeminent and emerging experts come together at the Stanford Humanities Center to look back and press forward. This is what humanities study is. And undertaking this essential work is how we discover who we have been and imagine the possibilities of who we might become. Only through this exploration—and your support of the Stanford Humanities Center—will the world be ready for needed change.

Our best future stands before us. Help us reach it.

Funding Priorities

We need you to illuminate the path forward for humanity.

The Stanford Humanities Center is the world’s largest hub for advanced research in the humanities and creates an intellectual community for scholars at all stages of their academic careers. It’s one of the very few places in the world where a visiting art historian, a graduate student in philosophy, and an undergraduate literature major can conduct research side by side and have conversations to understand and inflect one another’s work.

In our increasingly complex world, we all need the capacity to see things from the perspective of others.

The best humanities research—such as that made possible by the Stanford Humanities Center—enables us to see the world, and ourselves, through different eyes.

Reawaken Humanity

Which questions matter?

The Stanford Humanities Center creates the time and space scholars need to dig deep into the questions that drive and define us. It’s important for us to address these questions from a grounded place, and in our own way, just as generations before us have done.

This research makes a difference. The Stanford Humanities Center has a pivotal role to play in the world, but we must have the necessary funding to keep pace.

Your investment will re-engage Stanford and the world in the common good of the humanities.

You can give to change the world, or you can give so the world understands it needs to change.

The Stanford Humanities Center has the potential to lead us in bringing the ideas of today’s most adventurous thinkers to new audiences.

Your gift will help fund:

● A public profile unique among the nation's humanities centers
● Digital resources for scholars to share insights with each other and with the public
● Yearlong fellowships for leading faculty from around the world
● A supportive intellectual community for scholars at all stages of their careers
● Workshops and public lectures on topics imperative to our lives today
● Career-launch fellowships for Stanford’s most promising PhDs

Reawaken human understanding by investing in the humanities of the future.

Illuminate the Path

Can you change how you see the world?

Our fellows challenge us to consider the things we know—or think we know—in new ways.

Humanities research, whether concerned with past, present, or future, uncovers fundamental truths about who we have been and who we are. These truths shift our perspectives—and our reality—freeing our imagination in the pursuit of a better future.

This is what the humanities are for and why the Stanford Humanities Center exists.

What’s your vision for humanity?

The Stanford Humanities Center is revitalizing and reinforcing the purpose of humanities research.

We are expanding our programs and sharing the work of humanities scholars with the world in new, approachable, and engaging ways.

Partner with us as we bring this vision to fruition by investing in the Stanford Humanities Center today. Only by understanding our world—and ourselves—can we confidently lead humanity to its best future.

For more information, please contact Assistant Director Susan Sebbard at sebbard@stanford.edu or 650-723-3053.

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