Human beings face a number of catastrophes today, including climate collapse, never-ending, ends-less war, social injustice, and the rise of fascism. There is much to despair, but there are also reasons for hope. In the return of the Paterno Fellows Contemporary Issues Forum, two leading scholars of rhetoric and democracy contemplate how the ideas, the theories, the habits, and the practices associated with the humanities and with democratic culture can help us to meet the wicked problems we face.

The forum will feature Ira Allen, associate professor of rhetoric at Northern Arizona University, and Nathan Crick, professor of communication at Texas A&M University, and will be moderated by students in the Paterno Fellows Program. It is free and open to the public.