"Liberalism: A Battle Cry" is an attempt to present and defend – in a way accessible to a fairly wide audience – a version of liberalism that is simultaneously robust and self-confident in its underlying principles, and maximally pragmatic in its implications for policy and institutional design.

A seminar open to all, exploring the political philosophy, theology and biography of Raymond Plant (Lord Plant of Highfield).

Join the Provost, Lord Isaac CBE, in conversation with Anthropic board member and Worcester alumnus Chris Liddell CNZM (1980, Management Science). Chris currently sits on Anthropic's Board of Directors, a leading role in one of the world's foremost AI companies.

Infrastructural breakdowns are often understood as technical failures or accidental disruptions. This talk introduces the concept of organised breakdowns to examine how infrastructural breakdowns disruptions can function as socio-technical mechanisms of power. It illustrates how technological systems, institutional practices, and legal frameworks can be organised to create conditions of access, exclusion, and vulnerability, while reshaping everyday life.

Join us at Rewley House for a free screening of the film 'The People's Emergency Briefing'. Presented by Chris Packham, the film contains clips of the briefings given to MPs in 2025 interspersed with reactions from people watching the briefings, including Jennifer Saunders and Deborah Meaden. It is part of a national initiative to ensure the UK is fully and honestly briefed on the climate crisis. The film is around 50 minutes long and presents the issues arising relating to climate change and the actions available to respond to the issue.

The Wolfson John W. and Lizbeth Adams Lecture series is made possible thanks to a generous donation by Wolfson Honorary Fellow, John Adams. Please find the title and abstract for the 2026 lecture below. All are welcome to attend, no booking required. – Can democracy and AI live together? Lord Hague will discuss how serious are the dangers presented by AI to democratic societies, alongside the many opportunities. Will AI enhance the power of totalitarian systems? Will new capabilities in the hands of bad actors lead to greater restrictions on freedom?

In this talk, I take up some of the principal themes in my 2025 book, but with a particular focus on the colonial reconstitution of caste in the nineteenth century. I look at the remarkable ability of conservative Maratha Brahmans to adapt precolonial textual traditions to the world of vernacular print. I also explore the new and often competing definitions of Brahmanhood and Hindu orthodoxy that emerged during this process. The interwar years saw intensifying challenges to this long tradition of Brahman-led nationalism.

Abstract- This talk looks at civil liberties groups in Indian politics as a distinct form of collective action. We often think of social movement politics as a bi-partisan conflict between a movement and the state. But in reality, movement politics is an ecosystem. Many other actors are involved, such as allies, legal aid groups, alternative media platforms, working alongside movements. Their role is important, but often overlooked in the history of India's civil society based politics.

Britain is profoundly unfair. Unsustainable levels of inequality have contributed to a broken economy, declining social cohesion and increasingly volatile politics. But a fairer society is within reach. In The Fair Necessities, Will Snell, Chief Executive of the Fairness Foundation, argues that unfair inequality undermines everything from trust in government to economic growth.

Presentation of the 2026 Positive Peace Index, by Steve Killelea AM, founder of the Institute for Economics and Peace, with introduction by Prof. Richard Caplan (DPIR), with discussion, and drinks reception. Jointly sponsored by OxPeace, DPIR, OPHI and others. 'Peace is not a byproduct of a functioning society but a foundation of it, one that can be measured and adopted for societal regeneration.' “Positive Peace is a transformational concept for revitalising failing western democracies, placing peace at the centre of national development.