Socrates Seminars

For three decades, the Aspen Institute’s Socrates Program has hosted intimate, text-based seminars that gather people from every sector and corner of the world to sit around a shared table and wrestle with some of the most complex issues of our time. More than 10,000 leaders, innovators, and curious thinkers have joined these conversations—each one adding to a tradition built on inquiry, debate, and the power of dialogue.

What sets the Socrates seminars apart is not only the diversity of participants, but the way the curriculum takes shape. Every seminar is directly informed by feedback and insights from alumni who are living and working on these issues daily—public servants navigating crises, entrepreneurs scaling ideas, artists reshaping culture, technologists confronting global challenges. Their lived experience helps sharpen the readings, questions, and themes that guide each seminar. Our moderators, chosen for their expertise and intellectual rigor, don’t simply follow headlines; they dive into the deeper tensions. Their role is to provoke reflection, challenge assumptions, and create space for meaningful debate.

Each seminar brings together approximately 25 participants around a single table for three days of discussion. The experience is immersive: participants read a curated selection of texts—ranging from classical philosophy to contemporary essays—before the seminar, and then unpack them collectively in guided conversation. Sessions are held under Chatham House Rule, ensuring confidentiality and fostering an atmosphere of honesty, candor, and trust. This format encourages participants to move beyond prepared talking points and into genuine engagement with one another. And, when not around the table, participants enjoy time in nature and shared meals.

This February 6-9, our Winter Seminars take on a set of themes that are both timely and perennial. Together, participants will explore the boundaries of free speech in a polarized era, the evolving nature of leadership and the risks we are willing—or unwilling—to tolerate, and the deeply personal question of whether AI should play a role in raising the next generation. 

The stage is set once again—and the questions are as urgent and unsettled as ever. The upcoming Winter program will dive into three concurrent seminars — each led by a distinguished moderator:

• “Can We Ever Speak Freely Without Consequence? — Disagreement, Civil Discourse, and the Boundaries of Freedom” — moderated by Clea Conner, CEO of Open to Debate
• “Can You Lead If You’re Afraid To Fail? — Leadership, Failure, and Taking Risks” — moderated by Richard Phillips, Jr., Senior Fellow at the Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative
• “Should We Let AI Raise Our Kids? — AI, Childhood, and the Future of Human Development” — moderated by Stephen Balkam, Founder and CEO of Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI).

These are not discussions with predetermined answers. In fact, Socrates isn’t concerned with arriving at answers, but with the quality and courage of the questions.

Participants leave with something rare: new perspectives, new relationships, and entry into a vibrant global alumni community that continues the conversation long after the seminar ends.

If you’re ready to engage deeply, think critically, and join a community committed to reflection and dialogue—we invite you to join us at the 2026 Socrates Winter Seminars.