The Barbican Centre is one of the world’s leading arts centres, founded and run by the City of London Corporation. It encompasses dance, film, music, theatre, visual arts and creative learning who work together in creating the model of tomorrow’s international arts and learning centre.

Committed to providing a world-class programme, which inspires, challenges and amazes its audiences, the Barbican is also home to Resident Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Associate Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra and Associate Producer Serious. Its Artistic Associates include Boy Blue Entertainment, Cheek by Jowl, Deborah Warner, Fabulous Beast Dance Theatre and Michael Clark Company. International Associates are Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and Jazz at Lincoln Center.

The architecturally renowned Centre, now Grade II listed, opened in 1982, and comprises the 1,949 seat Barbican Hall, the 1,166-seat Barbican Theatre, the Pit theatre, a 286 seat cinema, the Barbican Art Gallery, a second gallery The Curve, foyers and public spaces, a library, Lakeside Terrace, roof-top tropical conservatory, conference facilities and three restaurants.

‘A building where there is always something rich and strange going on.’
The Guardian

The Faculty of Architecture is one of the largest faculties of Warsaw University of Technology, with a total student enrolment of about 1200. The student-faculty ratio is very advantageous with an academic staff of 140, including 25 professors, many of whom are nationally recognised architects with considerable creative achievements. This is also one of the largest schools of architecture in the country, established in 1915 and originally housed in the Warsaw School of Fine Arts. Since 1916 it has been located in an eclectic, turn-of-century building in the central area of Warsaw.

Prominent graduates of the faculty include the famous architects Maciej Nowicki, Stanislaw Noakowski, Bohdan Pniewski, Romuald Gutt, Barbara and Stanislaw Brukalski, Jerzy Hryniewiecki, Jan Boguslawski, Oskar Sosnowski and Helena and Szymon Syrkus. These and other graduates have contributed to the development of modern architecture and planning, as well as to the establishment of the Polish School of Preservation and Conservation.

The “Warsaw School” of modern architecture, which developed between the wars, may be characterised by its creativity within the boundaries of rational design and this tradition is carried on today. It includes strong emphasis on practice as part of the student’s education and many of the faculty have been and continue to be actively engaged in the profession. In addition, research is conducted in such areas as History of Architecture and City Planning, the field of Preservation and such areas as Urban and Physical Planning, as well as CAAD techniques.

The Bęc Zmiana Foundation is a non-profit organization that prides itself on promoting emerging talents in the newest culture (contemporary art, architecture, design, cultural activism, etc.). We organize art projects, exhibitions, design competitions, we publish books, magazines and guides. We run a very small space where we turn theory into practice –  this multifunctional place is a gallery space, a bookshop, a cultural information for locals and foreigners, and more – we can shape its function according to our current needs.

Our initiative is designed by people who want to support the development and advancement of contemporary art and culture. We carry out projects of artists/architects/designers/interdisciplinary minds who are receptive to change, open-minded and imaginative.

We also strive for facilitating encounters between artists and the audience, filling the gap that exists between the artwork and its public. That is why creating common ground where these two can easily is essential for us. We try to achieve it by inventing actions that push the artwork out into the streets and public spaces, make it accessible for all social groups. Since we are based in Warsaw, we also try to emphasize the city’s peculiarity in many of our projects.

Bęc Zmiana creates a path for an undisturbed flow of energy, ideas and thoughts. We do not interpret art - we tunnel it.

The Liberty League is the UK’s young pro-liberty network. We work to encourage classical liberal and libertarian activism, helping to inform, develop and recruit students and young professionals by setting up and aiding existing groups committed to the defence of freedom.

We are a non-partisan organisation, with individuals and groups in our network hailing from across the political spectrum. Please contact us about getting involved with the pro-liberty movement; setting up groups, attending our conferences, or simply staying informed.

With more than 4 million printed books and manuscripts, over 41,000 electronic journals and 500,000 electronic books, as well as several hundred databases, the John Rylands University Library (JRUL) is one of the best-resourced academic libraries in the country.

Our primary aim is to support students and staff of The University of Manchester in all areas of their study. But we are also fully committed to widening participation, and access to many of our services is provided for individual researchers, schools and the local community.

Used by thousands of schools and colleges, with over 995,000 registered users and over 1.85 million monthly visitors (March 2010), TES Connect is the central focus for the UK teaching community to share their ideas, thoughts and views outside the staffroom. TES Connect is a social network that allows teachers to network, share resources and search for jobs. It is the world’s largest social network for a single profession and allows teachers to connect with other professionals to find and share their best classroom resources and advice. Split into four user-friendly sections including jobs, community and resources, the site gives teachers access to tools that have the potential to transform lesson planning and the quality of lessons taught.

sphères ist eine Bar und eine Buchhandlung mit einem integrierten Kulturbetrieb, der Bühne. sphères ist auch ein Verlag.

Die Lokalität diente ursprünglich als Anlieferung für einen Porzellangrosshandel. sphères hat die bestehende Rampe übernommen und nutzt sie als Bühne und Buchhandlung. Im ebenerdigen Bereich steht die Bar. Eine Galerie schafft die dritte Ebene.

sphères möchte einen Ort zur begrenzten Auszeit bieten, zur kurzen Verlangsamung der Zeit in Hetze und Termine. Da ist eine Bar mit kleinen Köstlichkeiten, gute Bücher zum Alleinsein und Lesen, eine Bühne für Bildung und Entertainment. Und eben ein Raum, der all dies ermöglicht.

sphères - eine urbane Oase im zürcher Westend.

In der Schweiz finden viele oberflächliche Diskussionen statt, jedoch wenig substantielle Debatten. Das Battle of Ideas Satellite Debate Zurich (BoIZH) ist ein “Battle” mit Argumenten, nicht mit Fäusten. Es ist weder eine rhetorische Stilübung, noch soll um jeden Preis ein Konsens gefunden werden – echte Überzeugungen und Ideen sind gefragt und treten gegeneinander an. Möge das bessere Argument gewinnen!

Unkonventionelle und vom Mainstream abweichende Ideen sind erwünscht, getreu dem Motto des Battle of Ideas „free speech allowed“. Das BoIZH will das freie und befruchtende Aufeinanderprallen von Ideen und Meinungen zu zeitgenössischen Themen und philosophischen/ethischen Grundsatzfragen ermöglichen –  eine Rarität in der Schweiz und eine Bereicherung für Zürich als ausgewähltem Austragungsort.

Das BoIZH ist eine Abendveranstaltung; die thematischen Diskussionsrunden finden nacheinander statt. Diese sind jeweils mit einem hochkarätigen Panel von zwei bis vier Teilnehmenden besetzt und werden moderiert. In einem ersten Teil diskutiert das Panel unter sich,  während in einem zweiten Teil das Publikum aktiv einbezogen wird und das freie Mitdiskutieren ausdrücklich erwünscht ist. Claire Fox, Gründerin und Leiterin des Institute of Ideas welches die „Battles“ in London organisiert, wird ein Panel persönlich leiten.

Das Battle of Ideas richtet sich an alle, die an einer harten, aber fairen geistigen Auseinandersetzung interessiert sind.

“Debates about drug policy are too often simplified into polarised arguments with little engagement between strident opposing views. The Battle of Ideas is a forum for a different kind of debate. The UK Drug Policy Commission is keen to be part of an event where preconceptions will be challenged and thoughtful arguments will be taken seriously.  Robust discussion between people who listen and seek to hear one another’s views is rare in drug policy and we are pleased to be supporting and participating in the event.”

Roger Howard, Chief Executive of the UK Drug Policy Commission

London Science Festival is a brand new festival for London in 2011, which was founded with the mission to inspire and engage the public in all things scientific, from natural science to science in its most cultural contexts.

English PEN is a registered charity (number 1125610), working to promote literature and human rights. From defending the rights of persecuted writers to promoting literature in translation and sending writers in to refugee centres and prisons, English PEN promotes literature as a means of greater understanding between the world’s people. English PEN’s work is made possible by the generosity of our sponsors, donors and members.

The London Legal Salon was launched in 2011. Every month, in a relaxed location in central London, the Salon meets to discuss the big questions facing the law today.

Every meeting is introduced by a short talk from a lawyer or commentator in the area under examination. The discussion is then opened up to those attending to make contributions or ask questions. All meetings last around ninety minutes and operate under Chatham House rules.

For more information see the London Legal Salon blog.

Founded in 1957, the Hellenic American Union is a public-service institution with an international focus and strong community commitment, dedicated to providing opportunities for a diverse range of audiences to encounter and benefit from innovative educational programs and cultural events. These programs are developed independently by the institution or in partnership with European and American educational and cultural organizations and aim to directly address emergent social or economic needs.

In-Debate is a free monthly magazine that debates the most popular and current headlines from news, sport, entertainment and culture by delivering informative, provocative and compelling on these, the month’s hottest issues.

CityAM.com is the online presence of City A.M., London’s first free daily business newspaper. Both platforms cover financial and business news as well as sport and contemporary lifestyle. The free daily newspaper is read by over 350,000 professionals throughout the City, Canary Wharf and other areas of high business concentration. Our ABC certified distribution figure for the period from 30/05/2011 till 03/07/2011 is 102,636. Our readers are professionals, in full-time work and with an average salary of over £87,000 per annum – well over three times the national average.

Green Futures is the leading magazine on environmental solutions and sustainable futures. Founded by Jonathon Porritt in 1996, it is published by Forum for the Future.

Every issue is packed full of stories, comment and insight on topics ranging from clean energy and smart design, to food and finance in a changing world.

Our readership includes key decision-makers and opinion-formers in business, government, education and the media, including leading CEOs, all UK MPs and MEPs. Our global reach is growing through online syndication deals with websites in the US such as Grist and Good.is, and print publications such as India’s Sustainability Tomorrow and Brazil’s Ideia Sustentavel.

You can read us in print four times a year, and we also produce regular Special Editions. These offer detailed insights into a range of hot topics from Brazil’s search for a sustainable future, to the positive case for carbon offsetting, the potential and pitfalls of geoengineering, to the future of food and farming in a changing climate.

The Consortium Institute of Management and Business Analysis (CIMBA) is dedicated to providing unique educational opportunities to undergraduate, graduate and executive program participants. It is committed to providing an innovative learning environment and to the development of superior educational programs to better prepare today’s young professionals for the global marketplace. CIMBA takes pride in the success of its students and the companies they serve; its professors and employees; the shared commitment to its educational philosophy; the Consortium-member universities it serves; and the integral part it plays in the Veneto region, which so graciously serves as the program’s home.

KRAB Music House and Special Events was founded in 1996 by Bożena and Andrzej Korczak - partners in business and in life with over twenty years of experience in the music industry. KRAB began as a small management agency representing several Polish rock bands, but already in its first several years the company broadened its focus to include jazz, classical, pop, and variety show performers, as well as a pantomime theatre troupe. At the same time, the KRAB team evolved toward broadening its range of services. Within a few years, KRAB was booking artists, organizing concert tours, producing albums, and planning special events for corporate clients. KRAB has proven itself a successful talent manager and event organizer, as well as a flexible and reliable team player whenever sub-contracted by another agency to help put on a great show. Now it is one of the leading Polish concert and music management agencies, specializing in corporate, promotional and diplomatic functions as well as production of cultural events.  Among others, KRAB was involved in concerts of such stars as The Rolling Stones, Carlos Santana, Michael Jackson, Lenny Kravitz, BB King and many others.

The agency continues to collaborate regularly with Poland’s most acclaimed performers, as well as with the music industry’s top service providers. KRAB president Andrzej Korczak is the founder and chairman of the Polish Music Managers’ Forum (SMAP), one of Poland’s main industry associations. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Polish Music Foundation.

Eötvös Loránd University is internationally recognized and its programs are accredited by the Hungarian Accreditation Board. The diplomas issued by Eötvös Loránd University are acknowledged worldwide, and its course credits are transferable in all countries in the European Union.

Over the last hundred years, Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) has had many world famous scientists and four Nobel Prize laureates among its teachers and alumni. The current number of students enrolled yearly has reached 32 000, and there is an academic staff of 1800 highly-qualified teachers and researchers.

The IoI Arts and Society Forum meets regularly to talk about art, cultural value and the relationship between art and society, with a focus on a text, book or policy document.

Contact Tiffany Jenkins to find out more.

Eureka, a new Times magazine covering life, science and the planet.

Markson Pianos began at the beginning of the 20th Century when Lewis Markson renovated pianos in the front room of his house. Simon Markson, and Julian Markson, the grandsons of Lewis Markson, are now the Managing Director and Chairman of the company.

Two generations later, Markson Pianos has grown to a large retail store in London, making us a most prominent dealer for piano sales and hire, and continuing the Markson reputation for quality and excellence.

Over the years, countless pianos have been hired and supplied to homes throughout the United Kingdom and the world.

You have likely seen a piano from Markson Pianos at a high-profile televised event or heard one played by celebrities in some of the most prestigious concert halls and other performance venues around London.

We hope that now, in the 21st Century, you may be able to share in our history and benefit from 100 years of experience in the piano industry.

The Lifelong Health and Wellbeing (LLHW) programme is a cross-research council initiative, led by the Medical Research Council, in partnership with the UK Health Departments. LLHW funds multidisciplinary research addressing factors throughout life that influence healthy ageing and wellbeing in older age.

Longevity, health and wellbeing are the consequence of a complex mix of genetic, environmental, behavioural, cultural and socio-economic elements. A Strategy for Collaborative Ageing Research in the UK has been developed as part of the programme. It advocates collaboration between experts from all disciplines as a means to solve the challenges an ageing population represents.

www.mrc.ac.uk/llhw

The Our Shared Europe project is the British Council’s response to one of the major cultural challenges facing our continent today – the growing mutual mistrust between Muslim communities and wider European society.

Our Shared Europe seeks to find common ground, and build shared values, perspectives and behaviours that are based on mutual respect and trust. In particular, it is about how to acknowledge the contribution of Islamic communities and cultures – both in the past but also in the present – to the shaping of contemporary European civilisation and society. This means recognising the rich and diverse roots of our culture and society and using this recognition to build a more inclusive view of the continent that we all share.

The Battle of Ideas is a unique institution with its crowd of debating and discussing people. The diversity of themes is a great advantage of this event. It is a reminder for participants that not only today´s great “theme à la mode” is worth discussing, but hundreds of other themes as well. The Battle of Ideas is a modern agora for freedom of speech and freedom of thought. As founder of the European Cultural Parliament, ECP, the Pan-European forum for personalities from Culture, Arts and letters, I feel particularly at home at this London event, which I hope will spread across Europe and other parts of the world.

Karl-Erik Norrman, secretary general, ECP

Launched in September 2009 Free Word is an international centre for literature, literacy and free expression, hosting regular talks, screenings, and performances. Free Word’s mission is innovation and collaboration, pushing boundaries to promote, protect and democratise the power of the written and spoken word for creative and free expression. It aims to bring together organisations across literature, literacy and free expression to enhance their work and the profile of their sectors. Shreela Ghosh, Free Word’s director says “Freedom of Expression and social justice is central to Free Word’s vision. We are keen to collaborate with partners and the Institute of Ideas is a natural ally. This satellite event as part of the Battle of Ideas on the proposed changes to the legal aid system raises a number of questions about access and fairness which are definitely of interest to our audiences. Since Free Word was launched there have been several debates on the law and two of our founding partners, English PEN and Index on Censorship have been spearheading the Libel Reform Campaign.

Free Word Centre aims to be a national resource, with strong links to associates and partners throughout the UK and internationally. Ten organisations are based at Free Word: Apples & Snakes; Arvon;  ARTICLE l9; Booktrust; English PEN; Index on Censorship; the Reading Agency; The Literary Consultancy; Dalkey Archive Press and J-News. The first eight are founder organisations, part of the original consortium which helped evolve the concepts behind the Free Word Centre.

“Engineering and innovation have been major factors in the UK’s success for over two centuries. They are our lifeblood at Jaguar Land Rover and we fervently believe they can and must be nurtured throughout our economy if the country is to prosper in the future. So, we are delighted to support the focus on these important debates at Battle of Ideas.”

Paul Chadderon, Jaguar Land Rover

The idea of a Salon was developed in 17th and 18th Century France. Typically they were created and organised by the aristocratic ladies, to hear the ideas of the great thinkers of the time, to debate their meaning, for entertainment, because they believed ideas were important and because they wanted to know where the world was going, and of course to flirt. The Salon was central to the intellectual ferment of the end of 18th Century. They hosted the great thinkers of the time; Diderot, Rousseau, Voltaire. They were the scenes of excitement, outrage, and the shock of the new in a time when ‘the new’ still seemed possible. They signalled a time when the future was still an unwritten book.The East Midlands Salon is organised in homage to those days which only came to end with the eruption of the French Revolution and the arrival of a new constellation: the age of revolutions. Many historians think that Salons helped develop the ideas that ushered in that age.

The East Mildands Salon will meet on a monthy rotation between Derby and Nottingham

Tidskriften OPERA was launched in 1978.

It is the Nordic region’s only magazine specialising in opera and music drama, and is written for hardened opera buffs and the newly converted alike. OPERA covers the contemporary and the historical with breadth and depth.

BIG POTATOES: The London Manifesto for Innovation is a contribution to improving the climate for innovation globally, authored by Norman Lewis, Nico Macdonald, Alan Patrick, Martyn Perks, Mitchell Sava and James Woudhuysen. The Manifesto will be publicly launched shortly and, urgently, we want your responses to it.

Over the next few months with a number of partners we will also be hosting public discussions and debates around the themes of the Manifesto, including a launch event, in London and beyond. And during the forthcoming UK general election we will be challenging those who propose to lead us out of recession to respond to the Manifesto principles. Later in the year we will publish an updated Manifesto, having determined the scope of the challenge we face and started to change the culture around and climate for innovation globally.

Opera for all
We aim to make our opera profound yet accessible to everyone. We seek to reinvigorate and refresh the art of opera by coming close to our times, close to our audience and close to the story we tell. Opera is about daring to feel passionately, showing sumptuously and saying abundantly. We demonstrate that opera has an explosive power that our times need today.

“Engineering is a major driver in shaping Britain’s infrastructure and the health of the economy, but it also infuses almost every part of lives and therefore moulds the type of society and culture that we live in.  However, engineering and the engineers themselves are often hidden from public view; this is why The Royal Academy of Engineering is delighted to be partnering with this year’s Battle of Ideas festival to engage with a much wider audience and help raise awareness, debate and reflection on the impact of engineering on our world.”

Dr Lesley Paterson, Head of Public Engagement, The Royal Academy of Engineering.

ENO’s fresh and multidisciplinary approach to opera underlines our belief that opera should resonate with contemporary society and, like all great art, make people think again about the world around us. The Battle of Ideas is a natural partner to challenge and explore, with ENO, the relevance of opera today.

Nadine Thompson, director of communications, ENO

The Economy Forum was launched as the Emerging Economies Forum in 2008. Since then it has expanded its remit to discuss economic issues more widely, with a particular focus on the problems with growth today.

The Forum seeks to challenge what are increasingly naturalised accounts of the economy: that the productive side of the economy is not susceptible to fundamental change; and that the major economic problems today are best viewed from the perspective of consumption.

Issues it explores include the concept of there being natural limits to economic growth, demographic challenges, sustainability, the need for innovation, the relationship of finance to the real economy, the role of the state, behavioural economics, the emerging economies, among many more.

The Battle of Ideas is a key event in the Forum calendar and meetings in the run up to the festival focus on the themes that will be debated there.

Angus Kennedy, IOI Economy Forum

The British Humanist Association acts on the basis of progressive and Enlightenment values, believing that we best make sense of the world using reason, experience and shared human values. We promote Humanism, campaign for an open society and a secular state, and work with others of different beliefs for the common good. We usually feel at home with the Institute of Ideas!

NICE produces guidance on the most effective way to diagnose, treat and prevent disease and ill health. We do this by gathering evidence-based information on the effectiveness of new and existing treatments and technologies, and then exposing that evidence to the scrutiny of doctors, nurses, health technologists, patients and the public, who sit on our independent committees. This ensures that our guidance is effective, authoritative, and useful. We are often asked to make difficult decisions about how a healthcare system with a finite pot of money can best use its resources to provide good health for all, and it is in the spirit of this open and transparent debate that we are proud to be sponsors of the Battle of Ideas.

A public forum for debate where ideas are vigorously scrutinised and no topic is off limits.

The Medical Research Council is a publicly-funded organisation dedicated to improving human health. The MRC invests in world-class scientists. It has produced 29 Nobel Prize winners and sustains a flourishing environment for internationally recognised research. The MRC focuses on making an impact and provides the financial muscle and scientific expertise behind medical breakthroughs, including one of the first antibiotics penicillin, the structure of DNA and the lethal link between smoking and cancer.

Today, MRC-funded scientists tackle research into the major health challenges of the 21st century. One of these challenges is the ageing population - one in six people in the UK is over 65 years old, and by 2033 it is projected that a quarter of the population will be. Ageing is inevitable, but it is not uniform. It is influenced by a variety of factors including genetics and socioeconomic circumstances and average life expectancy varies by as much as 14 years across the UK.

A Strategy for Collaborative Ageing Research in the UK has been developed as part of the Life Long Health and Wellbeing programme, led by the MRC. It advocates collaboration between experts from all disciplines as a means to solve the challenges an ageing population represents.

www.mrc.ac.uk

Prospect is proud to be partnering the Battle for the Past debates on Sunday 31st October at this year’s Battle of Ideas festival. There will be five different debates during the day featuring Prospect contributors, including editor David Goodhart, as well as top public intellectuals, including Roger Scruton and Bettany Hughes. These discussions - taking in a wide range of topics, from the question of who owns the Elgin Marbles to the challenges of memorialising the Holocaust - will look at how history can, and can’t, be made relevant to contemporary life.

The Battle of Ideas provides a fantastic forum for public debate, confronting the issues of the day head-on and proving the appetite for a refreshing and rigorous exchange of ideas. 

Suzanne Hewitt, director, Hotwire PR

Fundação Caixa Geral de Depósitos - CULTURGEST - is very honoured to have been chosen by the Institute of Ideas to be their partner in Lisbon on a Satellite Event of this years Battle of Ideas on the very challenging issue of “Just what are the arts good for?”. As a cultural centre devoted to presenting a wide variety of artistic events, this problem is at the heart of our mission. We believe that a provocative and meaningful debate about the “utility” of the arts is important to improve the knowledge and the practice of artists, public, critics, curators, cultural agents, politicians, as well as of everyone interested in cultural matters.

Miguel Lobo Antunes, Administrator of CULTURGEST

We believe strongly that nothing is too controversial to discuss; in fact, the more controversial the issue, the more we insist on and support talking about it. Clearly that is an approach that we share with the Battle of Ideas and explains why we are delighted to partner with them for this year’s conference.

David J Nolan, director of communications, Catholics for Choice

The Young Journalists’ Academy is a scheme run by Journalism Education, a not-for-profit organisation. The main YJA programme is a journalism summer school, held in August in Canary Wharf. Our other activities include school visits by YJA staff, the YJA alumni programme and the YJA ambassador scheme.

Social policy is apparently everywhere these days, embedded in everything from soap opera storylines to arts funding criteria. Yet, for all its pervasiveness in our culture, it is rarely discussed in its own terms. This is a problem because instead of policy makers trying to find ways to better meet people’s needs, they are more likely to be found promoting behavioural change or advocating intrusive interventions into people’s lives. The Social Policy Forum aims to challenge social policy by stealth, while taking a closer look at some key policy debates on everything from housing, social care and welfare, to the reforms of local government and public services.

Leeds Salon is a discussion group founded in early 2009 by Michele Ledda and Paul Thomas, inspired by similar initiatives they had attended and, in particular, their participation in the Institute of Ideas & Pfizer sixth-form debating competition Debating Matters.

The aim of Leeds Salon is to establish a public forum for debate around contemporary political, cultural and scientific issues and, hopefully, challenge any orthodoxies along the way. Writers, academics and experts in their field are invited to present their ideas and to have them debated and held up to scrutiny by the audience. The Salons are lively, informal and open to all.

We are also interested in suggestions for debate and establishing fraternal links with other debating organisations in West Yorkshire and beyond.

Blackwell University Bookshop is Manchester’s leading academic bookstore. We stock cult fiction, graphic novels, cookery and craft books, along with best sellers and new titles. Blackwell offers the widest range of academic books: our dedicated subject specialists will source any book for you. We stock text books for the Manchester universities, as well as HSE/TSO publications. We also do Ordnance Survey mapping. No request is too small or too big. Pop in now to our Oxford Road shop, ring 0161 274 3331 or email us: manchester@blackwell.co.uk.

Sheffield Doc/Fest believes in the power of ideas that can bring together the different disciplines working inside and outside of the documentary industry. We also believe in how challenging and breaking down preconceived ideas can create more vibrant and resilient concepts. This, combined with our commitment to presenting high-quality well-produced sessions, means that the Institute of Ideas is a perfect partner for us in thumbing a nose at the status quo.

Campbell Glennie, Marketing and Business Director, Sheffield Doc/Fest

“I first came to the Battle of Ideas three years ago and I really didn’t know quite what to expect. I was intrigued and captivated by the concept. It was billed as a two-day festival of high-level thought-provoking debate and that is exactly what it did. It was a festival and it celebrated debate and it made me challenge my own thinking. For me, it espoused the spirit of debate. Many of the topics covered will shape the context in which we as an organisation operate and have a direct bearing on our clients and on our people as well as being at the heart of the communities we operate in. The importance of looking at things from a different perspective was one of several factors that inspired me to get PwC involved with the Battle of Ideas. I am hopeful and confident that this year’s Battle of Ideas will deliver once again on the promise of providing high-level, thought-provoking debate.”

Oriana Pound, Director, Market Insight and Thought Leadership at PwC

It is all too easy to view culture from the bottom line, assessing its worth against social, political or commercial purposes.

The Battle of Ideas provides the perfect platform to champion the very best in contemporary culture. The Royal Philharmonic Society is proud to be a partner.

Tom Hutchinson, RPS Project Coordinator

About the Royal Philharmonic Society

The Royal Philharmonic Society [RPS] is one of the two oldest music societies in the world. It was formed on 24 January 1813 with the aim ‘to promote the performance, in the most perfect manner possible of the best and most approved instrumental music’, which it did principally by giving regular public orchestral concerts in London, including through two world wars.

Today the RPS seeks to create a future for music through the encouragement of creativity, the recognition of excellence and the promotion of understanding. The Society’s artistic activities focus on composers and young musicians and through a programme of audience development, awards and discussion (most recently Alex Ross’s RPS Lecture on concert etiquette and applause) it seeks to raise the public consciousness of the finest music making today and to create a forum for debate about the direction of classical music. Current recipients of the Society’s highest honour, the RPS Gold Medal, are: Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Janet Baker, Bernard Haitink, Alfred Brendel, Colin Davis, Elliott Carter, Pierre Boulez, Simon Rattle, Placido Domingo, Joan Sutherland, Claudio Abbado, Daniel Barenboim, Henri Dutilleux and Thomas Quasthoff.

Index on Censorship is delighted to be a partner in this year’s Battle of Ideas. Freedom of expression is at the heart of the festival, with its mix of dynamic, challenging, robust debate. And standing up for freedom of expression is what we do on a daily basis at Index. So it’s a perfect match.

John Kampfner, CEO of Index on Censorship

The Institute of Ideas has provided through its Battle Satellites a series of charged arenas for vigorous debate about the most urgent local and global issues of our time.  The University of Notre Dame (USA) regularly facilitates such debate at its London Centre, an international study abroad centre and cultural institution dedicated to public scrutiny of urgent cultural concerns, past and present, through conferences, symposia, lecture series, university classes, and the type of robust debates characteristic of Battle Satellites.  Given the University of Notre Dame’s special concerns with the arts, religion, global studies, and social justice, we are particularly delighted and honoured to host Battle Satellites on these themes.

Greg Kucich, Director, University of Notre Dame (USA) in England, London Program