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Events

Explore our upcoming events, find video and audio from our past events, and subscribe to stay updated on all of our talks, panels, and live webcasts.

Welcome to the Berkman Klein Center’s events. These get-togethers are all about having great conversations and making new connections in a friendly and inclusive space. We believe everyone has something interesting to say. Please bring your ideas, experiences, and unique perspectives. Feel free to critique ideas and speak from your own experience, all in the spirit of lively and respectful discourse.

Thanks for helping us create a great community atmosphere!

Our hybrid and virtual events are hosted on Zoom with closed-captioning. Questions can be submitted to the moderator, who will highlight popular and emerging themes and relay them to the speakers. Please note that translation services are currently unavailable.

Public event recordings will be available one week after the event. You can find them on the event page or BKC’s YouTube channel. For the latest updates, follow BKC on X or LinkedIn.

Respiratory illnesses like flu, COVID-19, and RSV affect millions annually. Protect yourself and others by wearing a high-quality face mask in crowded indoor settings and staying home if you're unwell.

Harvard University and the Berkman Klein Center welcome individuals with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you would like to request accommodations or have questions about the physical access provided, please contact our Event Specialist at [email protected] in advance of your participation or visit. Requests for American Sign Language interpreters and/or CART providers should be made at least two weeks in advance, if possible. Please note that the University will make every effort to secure services, but that services are subject to availability.

For further questions about accessibility on Harvard's campus, we invite visitors to check out Harvard University Disability Resources page and the Digital Accessibility page.

For in-person attendees, below is a list of resources regarding parking and accessibility at HLS. Harvard is a tough area to find parking, but we do have a number of options around Lewis.

For those with accessibility needs who have handicap parking permits:

  1. Private HLS parking is available at 10 Everett St Garage (the garage recommended for events) for a moderate fee. Passes must be purchased in advance and printed ahead of time. For more info on Accessible Parking at HLS click here.
  2. Public handicap spots are spread out throughout Cambridge. Click here for a guide to public Cambridge parking, and click for campus interactive accessibility maps. The closest spots within reasonable walking distance and NO major roadways to cross are located at 2 Kirkland St, 23 Everett St, and 12 Oxford St. All 3 locations are located within 1 block of Lewis. Please note, so long as the driver has a legal handicap permit, they can park at any public, paid metered spot, or "Residents Only" spot in Cambridge, but MUST have their permit displayed at all times in their car window. If the permit is not visible, they will be ticketed and/or towed. They do NOT need to park in a handicap spot so long as their permit is visible.
  3. The most accessible streets to park on (meaning no major roadways to cross and within reasonable distance of Lewis) are Everett St, Oxford St, and Kirkland St.

For those not using handicap parking permits:

  1. Private HLS parking is available at 10 Everett St Garage, 52 Oxford St Garage, and School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. These are the 3 privately owned Harvard garages recommended. Click here for daily permit purchasing information, which must be done ahead of the event. A day rate is $25. Click here for Harvard’s Parking Map.
  2. Public, metered parking spots are available. They range in maximum parking time limit from 2-4 hours for $1.50-$2.00/hour. Please note, if you pay using the mobile Passport Parking app, you will NOT be able to renew your session once it ends. You will have to feed the meter using coins as the app will not permit you to surpass the maximum parking limit. (continued below).
  3. Car-pooling and public transportation are great ways to save money and time. These methods of transportation are highly recommended to those who can do so! 

The Berkman Klein Center is located on the 4th and 5th floors of the Lewis Law Center. The street address is 1557 Massachusetts Avenue. Most events occur in the 5th floor multipurpose room. The Center is wheelchair-accessible and includes accessible restrooms. The building is key card access only. For public events, staff will be stationed at the door to allow entry.

If an event is being catered, it will be noted in the event description and you will be prompted to indicate your dietary preferences on the RSVP form. Food is always offered on a first come, first served basis. The more we know, the better we can prepare, so please always RSVP. If you were unable to RSVP, please still come but consider not taking a meal unless there is an abundance.

Using a variety of local caterers, BKC does its best to provide an assortment of clearly labeled dietary options at all catered events. We usually have vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options available.

For all event related needs or concerns, please contact someone on our Events Team at [email protected] or call our Event Specialist at 617-384-0596. Thank you.

Past Events

Oct 25, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

Doing Science in the Open

Michael Nielsen, author and an advocate of open science

Why have scientists been so conservative in how they use the net, what is society missing out on because of this conservativism, and how can we move to a more open scientific…

Event
Oct 22, 2011 @ 9:00 AM

Media Law in the Digital Age: The Rules Have Changed -- Again

Co-produced by the Citizen Media Law Project at Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society and Kennesaw State's Center for Sustainable Journalism, Media Law in the Digital…

Event
Oct 21, 2011 @ 9:00 AM

Digital Public Library of America Plenary Meeting

The plenary meeting will bring together a wide range of stakeholders in a broad, open forum to present the history of and vision for the DPLA effort, to showcase the best ideas…

Event
Oct 18, 2011 @ 6:00 PM

The Penguin and the Leviathan: How Cooperation Triumphs over Self-Interest

Yochai Benkler, Berkman Center Faculty Co-Director

In his new book, Yochai Benkler uses evidence from neuroscience, economics, sociology, biology, and real-world examples to break down the myth of self-interest and replace it with…

Oct 18, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

Tweeting the Revolution: agency, collective action, and the negotiation of risk in a networked age

Beth Coleman, MIT

Beth will discuss her paper which looks at the impact of social media platforms on collective action. This event will be webcast live at 12:30PM ET.

Event
Oct 11, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

Almost Wikipedia: What Eight Collaborative Encyclopedia Projects Reveal About Mechanisms of Collective Action

Benjamin Mako Hill, Berkman Center & MIT

Benjamin Mako Hill will present some preliminary findings from a qualitative, inductive, case-study based analysis of 8 early projects to create online collaborative encyclopedias.

Oct 4, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

islawmix: content and context for Islamic law in the news

Intisar Rabb, Berkman Center Fellow / Boston College Law School & Umbreen Bhatti, islawmix Co-Founder

Islamic law (“sharīʿa”) now seems to matter for issues of American law and policy. But what sources do we have for finding out just what Islamic law is? As the latest Berkman…

Sep 27, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

From Tehran to Tahrir: Social Media and Dynamics of Collective Action under Authoritarian Regimes

Zeynep Tufekci, University of North Carolina

Using empirical findings from a large protestor survey from Tahrir, Cairo (from Feb. 2011; n=1050), Zeynep Tufekci discusses how the new media ecology impacts dynamics of…

Event
Sep 22, 2011 @ 9:00 AM

Law School for Digital Journalists

A Pre-Conference of the Online News Association's 2011 Conference

The Online News Association, Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society, and the UNC Center for Media Law and Policy present Law School for Digital Journalists, part of the…

Sep 20, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

A self-standing financing model to help sustain the non-market digital commons

Philippe Aigrain, Sopinspace

What if we consider that sharing a digitally published work in one's possession with other individuals is a fundamental right? Philippe Aigrain will discuss.

Sep 20, 2011 @ 6:00 PM

NOW YOU SEE IT: How the Brain Science of Attention Will Transform the Way We Live, Work, and Learn

Cathy Davidson, Ruth F. DeVarney Professor of English and John Hope Franklin Humanities Institute Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies, Duke University and co-founder of HASTAC

Cathy Davidson will discuss her new book "Now You See It: How the Brain Science of Attention Will Transform the Way We Live, Work, and Learn."

Sep 13, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

Indigenous technology design and its challenges

Christopher Hoadley, Educational Communications and Technology program at New York University

When is technology an invasive species, disrupting the local human information ecosystem?

Sep 12, 2011 @ 5:00 PM

News and Entertainment in the Digital Age: A Vast Wasteland Revisited

In 1961, Newt Minow – then Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission – delivered a landmark speech to the National Association of Broadcasters on “Television and the…

Sep 6, 2011 @ 6:30 PM

[September 6] Berkman Center Fall 2011 Open House

Come to the Berkman Center for Internet & Society’s Open House to meet our faculty, fellows, and staff, and to learn about the many ways you can get involved in our dynamic,…

Jul 26, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

Open Technology Initiative: How Geeks, Wonks, & Field Operatives are Fighting to Transform Inside-the-Beltway Policy-Making

Sascha Meinrath, New America Foundation

Sascha Meinrath of the New America Foundation will talk at the Berkman Center luncheon series about the New America Foundation's Open Technology Initiative.

Jul 19, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

The Hacker's Aegis - Protecting Hackers From Lawyers

Derek Bambauer of Brooklyn Law School & Oliver Day

A hacker who finds a weakness in software or a cloud computing service can sell it and get rich, or report it and get sued. How can we change the law to protect researchers and…

Jul 12, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

The Internet and the Commerce Clause through the Prism of the Federal Kidnapping Act

Michele Martinez Campbell, Assistant Professor of Law at Vermont Law School

Should use of the Internet to lure the victim be enough to federalize what would otherwise be a state kidnapping crime? Michele Martinez Campbell will examine a uniquely 21st…

Jul 11, 2011 @ 5:00 PM

Cultivating New voices, Approaches, and Audiences for national -- and international -- reporting

in an era of global interconnectedness and shrinking news budgets

The Berkman Center will host a conversation about the challenges of reporting international stories to US and Global audiences. In an age of shrinking news budgets, American…

Jun 28, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

Privacy Rethinks and the Example of Privacy-Preserving Marketplaces

Latanya Sweeney, Distinguished Career Professor of Computer Science, Technology and Policy at Carnegie Mellon University

Societal demands to share large-scale collections of detailed personal information are driving new directions for privacy. These rethinks are happening within legacy environments …

Jun 21, 2011 @ 12:30 PM

Bots, Mobs, Geeks: The new separation of powers / Top Secret, XXX, Private, All Rights Reserved

Glenn Otis Brown

Are we be ruled by robots? The mob? Technocrats? Yes, yes, and yes. The question is not if, but how -- and how we should prevent any one of the three from taking over.