November 2026

Meetings of the American Philosophical Society are held each April and November for elected Members, their families, and distinguished guests. Most sessions will be available to watch via web streaming and links will be shared closer to the event. This program is a draft and is subject to change. 

Thursday, November 19, 2026 

10:00 a.m.
Philosophical Hall, 2nd Floor
New Member Orientation

1:00 p.m.
Benjamin Franklin Hall
Opening Remarks

Induction of Members Attending Their First Meeting*

Harvey V. Fineberg, Vice President, in the Chair

Jefferson's Wolf: A Founding Father's Troubling Answer to the Problem of Slavery 
Christa Dierksheide
Brockman Foundation Jefferson Scholars Foundation Professor of History, University of Virginia
Nicholas Guyatt
Professor of North American History, University of Cambridge
Moderated by Brent Staples
Pulitzer Prize-winning Journalist

The Foundational Role of Botanical Collections to Biodiversity Knowledge on our Rapidly Changing Planet: Insights From the Harvard University Herbaria
Jeannine Cavender-Bares
Director, Harvard University Herbaria
Professor of Organismal and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University

To Pin a Butterfly: Fugitive Religion and the 1890 Ghost Dance
Tiffany Hale
Assistant Professor of Religion, Barnard College

Awarding of the Karl Spencer Lashley Award
The Lascaux Rectangle and the Cognitive Origins of Geometry
Stanislas Dehaene
Professor of Experimental Cognitive Psychology, Collège de France, Paris

Recognition of Member Service

4:30 p.m.
Philosophical Hall, 2nd Floor
Stated Meeting of the Society's Council

6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Museum of the American Revolution
Cocktail Reception

* New Members are inducted at the beginning of each Meeting session

Friday, November 20 

7:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.
Benjamin Franklin Hall
Breakfast

9:00 a.m. 
Benjamin Franklin Hall 

Induction of Members Attending Their First Meeting

Nina G. Jablonski, Vice President, in the Chair

The American Experiment at 250: A Conversation
Mike Pence
48th Vice President of the United States
Patrick Spero
Chief Executive Officer, APS

Law, Power, and Indigenous Sovereignty
Matthew Fletcher 
Professor of American Culture and the Harry Burns Hutchins Collegiate Professor of Law, University of Michigan
Lance Morgan
President and CEO, Ho-Chunk, Inc. 
Angela Riley
Carole Goldberg Endowed Chair of Native American Law, UCLA School of Law 

The War for America: How the Revolution Was Fought
Rick Atkinson
Author and Historian

Socio-Economic Systems: From the Individual to the Collective
Jean-Philippe Bouchaud 
Chairman and Head of Research, Capital Fund Management 

Awarding of the Benjamin Franklin Medal
Carla Hayden 
14th Librarian of Congress

Librarians and Useful Knowledge: A Conversation
Carla Hayden 
14th Librarian of Congress
Sarah Thomas
Vice President for the Harvard Library and University Librarian (2013-2019)

Luncheon

Report on the State of the Society
Patrick K. Spero
Chief Executive Officer, APS

Awarding of the Jacques Barzun Prize
Francesca Rochberg
Professor Emerita of Assyriology and Catherine and William L. Magistretti Distinguished Professor Emerita of Near Eastern Studies, University of California, Berkeley

Awarding of the Benjamin Franklin Medal
Justice Sonia Sotomayor
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States

A Conversation
Justice Sonia Sotomayor
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
Judge David S. Tatel
(Ret.)

Awarding of the Patrick Suppes Prize
How the Human Brain Hears Speech
Edward Chang
Margaret Liu Collins and Edward B. Collins Distinguished Professor in Neurological Surgery, UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences 

Thomas Jefferson Prize
William Christie
Conductor and Harpsichordist

Concert
Featuring William Christie and Les Arts Florissants

5:00 p.m.
Philosophical Hall
Stated Members' Business Meeting

6:30 to 8:00 p.m.
Benjamin Franklin Hall
Cocktail Reception and Dinner Buffet

Saturday, November 21 

7:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.
Benjamin Franklin Hall
Breakfast

9:00 a.m. 
Benjamin Franklin Hall 

Induction of Members Attending Their First Meeting

Jacqueline K. Barton, Vice President, in the Chair

AI, Biosecurity, and Bioweoponry
David Relman
Thomas C. and Joan M. Merigan Professor in Medicine, Professor of Microbiology & Immunology, and Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University

Why We Die: The New Science of Aging and the Quest for Immortality
Venki Ramakrishnan 
Group Leader, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology

The Possibility of Rejuvenation
Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte 
Founding Scientist and Senior Vice President, Altos Labs

Learned Academies in the 21st Century
Frederick Lawrence
Secretary and Chief Executive Officer, Phi Beta Kappa
Laurie Patton
President, American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Patrick Spero
Chief Executive Officer, APS
moderated by Roger Bagnall
President, APS

Luncheon

1:00 p.m.
Library Hall
Reading Room Open House