Ideas for
Prosperity
Tomorrow’s leaders need better, bolder ideas about how to make our society freer and more prosperous. That’s why the Civitas Institute exists, plain and simple.
Through research, commentary, and public outreach, we explore all aspects of a free and vibrant society, including economic dynamism, individual flourishing, civic virtue, and constitutionalism.
The Civitas Institute is part of the School of Civic Leadership at the University of Texas at Austin.
Independent thought, civil discourse, free speech, reasoned deliberation and intellectual curiosity are central to our ethos.
The Civitas Institute takes its name from The University of Texas at Austin motto, Disciplina Praesidium Civitatis, a condensed Latin rendering of Mirabeau Lamar’s famous statement that a “cultivated mind is the guardian genius of democracy.”
This origin reflects both the university’s institutional heritage and the Institute’s interest in the link between knowledge and liberty.
Our history
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We are dedicated to exploring the ideas and institutions that create flourishing societies.
Spencer Cox Provides the Statesmanship America Needs
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox did not say what many wanted to hear but what they needed to hear in the aftermath of Charlie Kirk's murder.
The Dangers of Pursuing the Endangerment Finding
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin’s most ambitious undertaking may also be the most legally vulnerable.
Chernow Speaks of Twain But Doesn’t Know His Words
Chernow is always speaking of Twain but never captures his literary essence.
Conservatism's Timeless Triad: Puritans, Pioneers, and Robber Barons
Conservatives should pay attention to the ever-changing forms of the puritan, pioneer, and robber baron in everyday American life, draw inspiration from them, and proclaim the rightward center of gravity among them as “conservatism.”
