Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty

Education: The Programs and Education Department of the Acton Institute equips current and future leaders in education, religion and business through quality educational programming by articulating the moral basis for a free economy that creates an environment in which all have the opportunity to flourish. These programs are open to all who are interested, but special consideration is given to those with a proven track record of effectuating change and influencing those in their institutions, communities, and denominations both nationally and internationally. The Institute's educational programming includes both large and small conferences. Acton's flagship event, Acton University, an annual four-day conference that explores the foundations of a free society, draws over 800 participants from nearly 90 countries. Many of those who attend Acton Institute conferences, including Acton University, receive financial support to cover expenses such as room and board, conference fees, and travel in cases of need. The staff of the Education Department also invests considerable time in cultivating ecumenical networks of religious leaders, students, educators, and businesspeople in order to expand the Institute's reach, develop strategic partnerships, and remain connected to the needs and demands of the Institute's constituencies.

Research: The Institute's academic investigations are conducted by its Research Department. The work produced at Acton Research includes the disciplines of philosophy, economics, theology, and history, among others, and it includes the contributions of both in-house research fellows, affiliates, and of invited scholars. Additionally, the materials and research produced at the Acton Institute are delivered locally in Grand Rapids as well as at national and international conferences with the goal of reaching the scholarly community at large. The Research Department publishes books, journals, monographs, and occasional papers, along with essays at respected and scholarly online outlets. The Journal of Markets & Morality is a semi-annual refereed journal that provides a forum for scholars from many disciplines to engage issues concerning the morality of the marketplace. The Christian Social Thought Series examines, in each volume, a key economic issue facing Christians. Select primary sources are translated and edited for wider dissemination and use by scholars. Non-Christians have also written articles and books addressing relevant themes of interest to the Acton Institute, such as liberty, religious freedom, and the free economy. The Research Department also manages Acton's academic scholarship programs. Fellowships are awarded to provide financial assistance to promising doctoral candidates, graduate students, and seminarians who are advancing an understanding of the connection between economic liberty and religious values. Free Market Mini-Grants help fund university course development and faculty research in market economics at colleges, universities, and seminaries in the United States and Canada. The Freedom and Prosperity Grant promotes research by scholars internationally into the relationship between freedom and prosperity using the Atlantic Council Freedom and Prosperity Indexes. The Calihan Academic Grants provide financial assistance to scholars and graduate students whose academic work shows outstanding potential to advance understanding in the relationship between theology and the principles of the free and virtuous society. The annual Novak Award recipient is presented with a prize to acknowledge and reward new research on the relationship between religion, economic freedom, and the free and virtuous society. Lastly, the Research Department manages or helps manage a number of programs, including (1) a small, curated conference for religious scholars held in Grand Rapids, (2) larger conferences for scholars, graduate students, public intellectuals and leading religious figures, and (3) an academic colloquium held annually in Grand Rapids, (4) the scholarly and programmatic outreach of Acton's Rome office. Internationally, we have held conferences on various topics such as economic liberty, justice, economic history, poverty and development, Catholic social teaching, war and peace, Protestant social thought, Judaism and the economy, property rights, monetary policy, and limited government.

General Education and Communications: The Institute reaches out to business leaders, policymakers, students, and religious and community leadership groups through lectures, media products, web and social media, and various writings. The Institute hosts a variety of events across the nation to engage our supporters and partners. In 2023, we hosted luncheons and dinners with distinguished Acton lecturers that ranged from 25-100+ participants in Houston, Dallas, Chicago, Minneapolis, and Pittsburgh. Additionally, we hosted our 33rd Annual Dinner which was held in Grand Rapids to promote outreach and to thank supporters for their partnership. The dinner and program festivities included prominent public speakers, Institute supporters and partners from all over the world. Over 500 participated, representing many states and several foreign countries. We host a busy slate of activities and events in our local facility for discussions of a variety of topics related to our work, including our Acton Lecture Series. Acton Institute also operates a bookstore to promote and sell its own publications, in addition to outside publications, related to our mission and program outreach areas. These educational materials were sold, distributed and exhibited at a variety of events throughout the world. Our rich and robust web presence centers on the Acton website (www.acton.org), and includes other Acton sites such as Religion and Liberty Online as well as a great deal of current and historical Acton-produced content. The Institute has a broad and growing presence in social media. This platform has steadily increased the scope and frequency of Acton's outreach to the general public. The Communications Department manages the growing family of Acton websites, blog, podcasts, and social media which use leading technology to integrate text, audio, and video content in easily accessible formats and venues to promote Acton's message to web users. It publishes the print and digital editions of the redesigned Religion & Liberty. The Communications Department also connects Acton experts with print and broadcast journalists covering faith and policy issues. Acton's newest documentary film The Hong Konger was released in 2023. It received multiple film festival screenings and awards and continues to bring exposure to the imprisonment of Jimmy Lai and his fight for freedom in Hong Kong.

The Center for Social Flourishing promotes Acton's message in the context of poverty alleviation, both domestic and global. The Center does this through educational events, research, a partnership network, and multimedia products, including a new feature-length documentary film about poverty in the United States. In 2023, the Center organized three "CityFAVS" conferences in collaboration with Acton's Programs department. These events gathered a mix of roughly 25 students, business leaders, nonprofit professionals, and pastors for 2.5 days of lectures and discussion on themes relevant to urban poverty. The Center also organized monthly "listening sessions" with local Grand Rapids nonprofits to build our partnership network and learn about the work being done in our community as we refine our approaches to delicate topics. A new website is under development. The Center also began identifying affiliate research fellows and organizations that will be invited to join our partner network. Research was conducted into the Center's approach to different topics. The largest individual project of the Center is the new documentary on poverty in the United States. Directed by Michael Miller, who is also the Center's director, the film will explore the sources of American poverty and social isolation. In 2023, about 40 interviews were filmed in Washington, D.C., Detroit, Los Angeles, and other locations. The film is expected to be completed by mid-2025 and be submitted for film festivals. Acton's media products were distributed with a focus on digital platforms. They can be found on familiar platforms such as Amazon and iTunes, in addition to others. A curriculum and related website about enterprise solutions to poverty in the developing world (PovertyCure) continued to be promoted. Many schools and universities have incorporated this resource into their curriculums. The project seeks to build a network of likeminded organizations as well as to promote a proper understanding of the human person and society. The media projects will encourage solutions that create opportunity and unleash the entrepreneurial spirit. Acton's documentary Poverty, Inc. has earned more than 45 film festival awards to date, including the $100,000 Templeton Freedom Award. The film has screened more than 500 times in 28 countries. Its impact continues and it streams on multiple platforms.