




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.
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






Our team
We are dedicated to exploring the ideas and institutions that create flourishing societies.

Painting the Revolution
Trumbull makes the story of America’s independence about more than the men who secured it.

AI on the Brain
A new study predicts a "likely decrease in learning skills, as LLMs reduce the cognitive effort required for writing," translating to poorer long-term knowledge retention.