“We are facing profound challenges to civil society through the rise of populism, oligarchic capitalism and fascism. Although the intensity of the threat is acknowledged by many, the avenues to survive and resist collectively are a source of conflict and divisions which further challenge social cohesion. This Advanced Study Institute will explore resistance strategies in two very different milieus that are directly affected by the present storm, but involve contrasting relations to institutional power: youth, who face an uncertain future, and mental health practitioners of cultural psychiatry, who face an ongoing crisis, torn between the safety of silence and the duty to speak up.”

This ASI workshop and conference will bring together an international and interdisciplinary group of scholars and researchers from psychiatry, psychology, the social sciences, and philosophy — including our director, Ghayda Hassan — to address these vital questions.