Current Theme

This year's theme is the challenge of viewing traditional cultures from a Western perspective. 

The article for the Leaders' Day essay is  The Tenacity of Custom  by Linda Simon.

Past Themes

Recent themes have included:

The conditions of the working poor in the United States:
Nickel and Dimed – Barbara Ehrenreich

The effect of the prison system on corrections officers as well as inmates:
Newjack – Ted Conover

The need to disaggregate ethnic groups:
The Accidental Asian – Eric Liu  

The wide spread effects of the fast food industry:
Fast Food Nation – Eric Schlosser  

The long term effects of industrial pollution:
A Civil Action – Jonathan Harr

The conflict between western medicine and eastern family values:
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down – Anne Fadiman