Politics & Society

Watch this 5 Minute Life Lesson interview with Bernadette Jiwa, global authority on the role of story in business, innovation and marketing, and author of “Hunch: Turn Your Everyday Insights Into the Next Big Thing”. These bite-sized interviews offer backstage access insights – with brand new, updated questions, hear about what makes Bernadette happy, who

This exclusive, backstage access short interview with Instructor of Psychology at Harvard Medical School, Susan David reveals how a childhood teacher inspired her to write journals to cope with her father’s terminal illness and acted as an impetus for her career today. Subscribe now to get these bite-sized interviews straight to your inbox. Speaker: Susan

How do we build a future that doesn’t leave humans behind? Erik Brynjolfsson, co-author of Machine, Platform, Crowd argues that ‘deep learning’ technologies can do much more than routine work. So how do we harness technological progress to benefit the many, not just the few? Watch Erik Brynjolfsson, Co-founder and Director of MIT Initiative on

Safe thinking is everywhere. It defines our everyday routines, work habits and ideas. There’s just one problem with it: in a world of constant change, it ultimately lets us down. Creativity guru and viral video pioneer Jonah Sachs argues that the most remarkable individuals, are those who dramatically reject what they know. Sachs reveals how

“Academic magician” Professor Todd Landman reveals how successful people make their good decisions. Listen to the audio from the full event: http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2011/rational-intuition-strategic-thinking-and-gut-instinct-for-successful-leadership

A distinguished panel share key insights and new ideas emerging from the Global Education Leaders’ Program, a community of education system leaders from twelve cities and countries collaborating to transform education in their contexts. ‘Redesigning Education’ captures the journeys of cities and countries around the world as they travel from the education systems they have

Animator: Arthur Kearns Voice: Sam Conniff Allende BRIEF: Moving Pictures, conceive and produce an animation to accompany one of two selected audio files that will clarify, energise and illuminate the content AWARD: RSA Legacies fund £500 Visit the RSA Student Design Awards website: http://sda.thersa.org/ Follow the RSA on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RSAEvents Like the RSA on Facebook:

Animator: Charlie Griffin Voice: Tiffany Dufu BRIEF: Moving Pictures, conceive and produce an animation to accompany one of two selected audio files that will clarify, energise and illuminate the content Visit the RSA Student Design Awards website: http://sda.thersa.org/ Follow the RSA on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RSAEvents Like the RSA on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theRSAorg Listen to RSA podcasts: https://soundcloud.com/the_rsa

Journalist and trend forecaster James Wallman explains why more and more of us are suffering from “stuffocation” — where instead of feeling enriched by the things we own, we are stifled and overwhelmed by them. Follow the RSA on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/thersaorg Like the RSA on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thersaorg Our events are made possible with the support

LRN CEO and author of ‘How’, Dov Seidman visits the RSA to outline the implications for living and working in what he calls the ‘Era of Behaviour’, where the source of competitive advantage has dramatically shifted from what we do, to how we do it. Listen to the podcast of the full event including audience

Edgar Cahn, the visionary founder of the global TimeBanking movement, calls for urgent reform of our economic and social systems, policies and practices. Listen to the full audio: http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2011/building-the-core-economy

Benedict Dellot discusses a new RSA report looking at the living standards of the self-employed. It touches upon issues such as earnings, mortgages, pensions and welfare, and makes the case for why we need to take the living standards of the self-employed more seriously. For more information about the report visit https://www.thersa.org/discover/publications-and-articles/reports/boosting-the-living-standards-of-the-self-employed/ RSA Insights, videos

RSA Spotlights – taking you straight to the heart of the event, highlighting our favourite moments and key talking points. Employers are talking more and more about wellbeing and resilience, but few are really clear on how to invest in the minds of their staff. Stress and anxiety levels are continuing to rise – affecting

AI with Demis Hassabis, co-founder and CEO of DeepMind. How far can AI really take us? Demis Hassabis offers a unique insight from the frontiers of artificial intelligence research, and shares his latest thoughts on AI’s potential to help solve our biggest current and future challenges. Watch Demis Hassabis, co-founder and CEO of DeepMind, in

Mental health is one of the greatest challenges of our time. Vikram Patel, director of the Centre for Global Mental Health, calls for a model of community-based intervention that empowers ordinary individuals to plug the resource gap and provide quality health care for their peers. Listen to the podcast of the full event including audience

Acclaimed author and one of the world’s most extraordinary minds, Daniel Tammet visits the RSA to give us a unique perspective on how mathematics can help us to make sense of the world and our place in it. With Simon Ings, novelist, reviewer and editor of Arc, magazine of futures and fiction from the New

Manuel Lima, senior UX design lead at Microsoft Bing, explores the power of network visualisation to help navigate our complex modern world. Listen to the full audio: www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2011/the-power-of-networks-knowledge-in-an-age-of-infinite-interconnectedness

Journalist and author Oliver Burkeman offers an alternative “negative path” to happiness and success that involves embracing the things we spend our lives trying to avoid. Listen to the podcast of the full event including audience Q&A: http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2012/the-antidote Our events are made possible with the support of our Fellowship. Support us by donating or applying

John Gray, one of Britain’s most provocative and stimulating philosophers, visits the RSA to discuss the ideas raised in ‘The Silence of Animals’ – the much-anticipated sequel to the best-selling ‘Straw Dogs’. Chair: Jonathan Derbyshire, culture editor, New Statesman Listen to the podcast of the full event including audience Q&A: http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2013/the-silence-of-animals-on-progress-and-other-modern-myths Follow the RSA on

James Timpson OBE is taking his family business to new heights with an innovative recruitment and staff development approach which achieves commercial and social goals. Watch the full replay here: https://youtu.be/okLDBi2BGE8 RSA Spotlights – taking you straight to the heart of the event, highlighting our favourite moments and key talking points. In this excerpt from

Academic philosopher and author Simon Blackburn explores the history of self-regard from Narcissus to “the selfie”, and asks – is self-love to be deplored or is it a healthy and necessary part of life? For more information about the event go to the RSA event page http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2014/from-the-self-to-the-selfie Listen to the podcast of the full event

For more information about the event and to listen to the podcast go to the RSA event page: http://bit.ly/1jGN6C3 How will the ‘collaborative commons’ transform our lives? Jeremy Rifkin, one of the world’s most popular public thinkers and political advisors, argues that capitalism will no longer be the dominant paradigm in the second half of

Author and consultant Nicholas Lovell offers a new approach to engaging with followers, fans and customers, and a new way of understanding pricing and value in the 21st century internet economy. Listen to the podcast of the full event including audience Q&A: http://www.thersa.org/__data/assets/file/0005/1534478/20131031NicholasLovell.mp3 For more information about the event go to the RSA event page

Economy for the Common Good with economist and writer Christian Felber. Can businesses have both endless growth and be fair and sustainable? Is it possible to conceive an economic model that’s not tainted by our current financial system? Christian Felber’s initiative ‘Economy for the Common Good’ started in 2010 and is now supported by more

Pioneering medical scientist Dr Kevin Fong shows how our exploration of the physical world has run in parallel with advances in our understanding of the human body’s capacities and limits. But can human exploration go much further? Listen to the podcast of the full event including audience Q&A: http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2013/extremes-exploring-lifes-limits Follow the RSA on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/thersaorg

Professor Simon Baron Cohen presents a new way of understanding what it is that leads individuals down negative paths, and challenges all of us to consider replacing the idea of evil with the idea of empathy-erosion. Listen to the full audio: http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2011/zero-degrees-of-empathy

Renowned economist Mariana Mazzucato urges us to reconsider where wealth really comes from, and how we determine value in our economy. Watch Mariana Mazzucato, director at UCL Institute for Innovation & Public Purpose, in our latest RSA Spotlight – the edits which take you straight to the heart of the event! Enjoyed this snippet? Watch

Acclaimed popular psychologist Richard Wiseman joins celebrated RSA Animate illustrator Andrew Park to unveil new evidence that shows that RSA Animate videos not only entertain, but educate in a surprisingly effective way. The RSA would like to make the following correction. The audio editing of the RSA Animate under discussion featuring Roman Kraznaric’s work was

The importance of mental health to human wellbeing and the prosperity of the country has been well established – but what are the best preventative strategies to encourage a flourishing, healthy society? Chris Ruane, formerly Vale of Clwyd MP, Dr Jo Cook, lecturer in medical anthropology at UCL, and Jamie Bristow, director of the supporting

With Richard Thaler, Professor of Behavioural Science and Economics at the University of Chicago. Thaler urges us to recognise our “human-ness” as a given and to use the way we think to our advantage.

Stats guru and political forecaster Nate Silver reveals why most predictions fail, and shows how we can isolate a true “signal” from a universe of increasingly big and noisy data. Speaker: Nate Silver, statistician and political forecaster at The New York Times. Chair: Dara O Briain, award-winning comedian, writer and broadcaster. SUBSCRIBE to our channel!

Radical philosopher Nassim Nicholas Taleb offers a blueprint for how to live – and thrive – in a world we don’t understand, and which is too uncertain for us to even try to predict. Discussant: Rohan Silva, senior policy adviser to the Prime Minister at No 10 Downing Street. Chair: Fraser Nelson, editor, The Spectator

People seem to fit into Four Tendencies: Upholders, Questioners, Obligers, and Rebels, but which one are you?! Bestselling author Gretchen Rubin believes that using the Four Tendencies will help shine a spotlight on hidden patterns in our behaviour in a way that can allow us to be happier, healthier, more productive and more creative. Watch

Authors Mark Earls and Alex Bentley explore how ideas, behaviour and culture spread through the simple means of doing what others do. Listen to the audio file of the full event: http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2011/ill-have-what-shes-having-mapping-social-behaviour

Renowned psychotherapist, author and broadcaster, Philippa Perry visits the RSA to give tips for any parent looking to navigate their past, avoid repeating their own parents’ mistakes, and ensure they don’t saddle their children with life-long issues. Watch psychotherapist and author, Philippa Perry in our latest RSA Spotlight – the edits which take you straight

How have we achieved so much despite understanding so little? Whilst individuals know very little, the collective mind knows a lot. Acclaimed cognitive scientist Steven Sloman explains how we survive and thrive despite our mental shortcomings, because we live in a rich community of knowledge. The key to our intelligence lies in the people and

Renowned leadership specialist Khoi Tu identifies the essential elements of the route to excellence in team-building, from finding a common purpose to mastering conflict and managing change. Chair: Matthew Gwyther, editor, Management Today Listen to the podcast of the full event including audience Q&A: http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-and-past-events/2012/the-secrets-of-superteams Follow the RSA on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/thersaorg Like the RSA on

Ruby Wax – comedian, writer and mental health campaigner, visits the RSA to explain how and why our busy, self-critical thoughts drive us to anxiety and depression, and to provide ways of taming our out-of-control minds. Listen to the podcast of the full event including audience Q&A: http://www.thersa.org/__data/assets/file/0017/1532411/20131003RubyWax.mp3 For more information about the event go

In 2013 David Graeber, professor of anthropology at LSE, wrote an excoriating essay on modern work for Strike! magazine. “On the Phenomenon of Bullshit Jobs” was read over a million times and the essay translated in seventeen different languages within weeks. Graeber visits the RSA to expand on this phenomenon, and will explore how the

David Cameron MP and best-selling author Nassim Taleb discuss what measures need to be taken, in the wake of the economic crisis, in order to create a more Black Swan-robust society.

Clinical psychologist Jordan Peterson has built a following of tens of millions of viewers with his online lectures on topics from ancient mythology to modern relationships. In an era of often disorienting change and divisive politics, his message, emphasising individual responsibility and ancient wisdom, has resonated around the world, especially with young people. Drawing examples

Can we really trust the work of social change to the ‘winners’ of global capitalism? Can our most urgent challenges be truly addressed by an unelected elite, whose ‘win-win’ solutions do little to question the root causes of systemic inequality and injustice? Anand Giridharadas offers an analysis of the global elite who claim to be

Work hard, play by the rules, and you’ll go as far as your talents will take you. Right? But so often this isn’t how the system works. In this powerful new RSA Minimate, political philosopher Michael Sandel confronts our age of stalling social mobility and entrenched inequality, and asks: what would it take to give

All of us fail in myriad ways almost every single day and yet, we live in an age where it is very difficult to be honest about failure, where it seems as if everyone else is nailing their life. Award-winning author and journalist Elizabeth Day explains how failure can teach us lessons we would never

Legendary producer and QI mastermind John Lloyd visits the RSA to share the culmination of a life’s reading — that it’s what we don’t know that really matters. Find out more about QI: http://www.qi.com/ Follow the RSA on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/thersaorg Like the RSA on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thersaorg Our events are made possible with the support of