Curated by renowned Russian-American journalist and author Masha Gessen, Festival Albertine 2018: Reimagining Democracy brought together thinkers, authors, and artists from both sides of the Atlantic to ask not what a democracy is but what it could be. How do we widen our lens and drop assumptions we don’t even realize we hold? Read a full curators statement by Masha Gessen here.

Watch all six panels from your desktop or mobile device:

Tues, Oct 30, 7PM EDT
Beyond States and Borders
As millions of refugees face increasing scrutiny and are turned away at borders across the world, we ask basic questions about borders: What are they for? By what right are they created and policed? And how do we live now? With Sophia Azeb, Fabienne Brugère, Gauz, Aleksandar Hemon, and Guillaume le Blanc. Moderated by Stephanie DeGooyer.

Wed, Oct 31, 7PM EDT
A Post-Work World
Daniel Cohen, Yann LeCun, Rakeen Mabud, and Joseph Stiglitz consider the future of work, or, rather, the world after work. Can we imagine a time when we value people not for what they produce but for who they are, and what will this future look like? Moderated by Judith Shulevitz.

Thurs, Nov 1, 7PM EDT
Rethinking Gender
Some political movements around the world promise a return to an imaginary past in which clear and stable gender divisions maintained order and comfort for all. But what is the glorious gender future that is the opposite of the dark gender past? With Phia Ménard, Eric Fassin, Eng-Beng Lim, and Daniel da Silva. Moderated by Jack Halberstam.

Fri, Nov 2, 7PM EDT 
The Mechanics of Democracy

We often talk as though free and fair elections were the definition of democracy. This assumption begs to be demolished. Mamadou Diouf, James Fishkin, Andreas Kalyvas and Ingrid LaFleur dare to imagine a better way of doing politics with informed and motivated citizens. Moderated by Masha Gessen.

Sat, Nov 3, 1:30PM EDT 
A Different Path to Education

Akilah S. Richards, Antoine Fromental,Julia Putnam, and Emmanuel Davidenkoff will talk about education, school as an institution, and how alternative learning environments could produce better educated students, and subsequently, a healthier society. Moderated by Kenneth Danford. 

Sat, Nov 3, 4:30PM EDT 
Redefining Normality and Disease
Elizabeth Guffey, Siri Hustvedt and Laure Murat will join two representatives of L’Oiseau Mouche Theater Company to discuss how the understanding of mental illness can move beyond a dichotomous perception of normality and disease. Moderated by Sara Hendren.

Festival Albertine is made possible with major support from The Recanati-Kaplan Foundation, Susannah Hunnewell, Van Cleef & Arpels, Air France, Institut français, Onassis Foundation USA, Carnegie Corporation of New York, and Emily and James Hamilton. Generous support is provided by Champagne Pommery and Intercontinental New York Barclay. Media Partner: The New York Review of Books.