Civitas Outlook

Civitas Outlook, the online journal of the Civitas Institute, publishes original writing about the ideas that create flourishing societies.

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Remembering Ed Banfield's “The Unheavenly City"

Remembering Ed Banfield's “The Unheavenly City"

Banfield’s most valuable work describes phenomena we have all recently noticed: the easy transition from student to activist to revolutionary to criminal.

Politics
Dec 4, 2025

Will State Attorneys General Allow Their Cities to Make Energy Policy?

Will State Attorneys General Allow Their Cities to Make Energy Policy?

The effort to apply state law to redress climate injuries has been spearheaded not by state officials eager to protect their home turf, but by international non-profits, NGOs, and out-of-state private law firms frequently representing local governments.

Michael Toth
Politics
Dec 4, 2025

The Myth of Milliken

The Myth of Milliken

Shep Melnick evaluates Michelle Adams' new scholarly attempt to return Milliken v. Bradley and the story of Detroit school busing to the court of public opinion.

R. Shep Melnick
Constitutionalism
Dec 3, 2025

All topics

Civitas Outlook seeks understanding from a variety of authors, ideas, and disciplines. Choose a specific topic above or explore our full library.

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Remembering Ed Banfield's “The Unheavenly City"
Politics
Dec 4, 2025
Will State Attorneys General Allow Their Cities to Make Energy Policy?
Michael Toth
Politics
Dec 4, 2025
The Myth of Milliken
R. Shep Melnick
Constitutionalism
Dec 3, 2025
Carl Schmitt: A Window into the Postliberal Id
Thomas D. Howes
Politics
Dec 3, 2025
In the Long Run, the Meta Case Is Dead
Jessica Melugin
Politics
Dec 2, 2025
Will "The Great Feminization" Displace the “old” Male-Dominated Model?
Brian Lee Crowley
Politics
Dec 2, 2025

Economic Dynamism

We consider the principles, policies, and culture that supports free market capitalism

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Texas Stands on Commerce
Michael Toth
Economic Dynamism
Nov 19, 2025
America Needs Its Hidden Champions
Arthur Herman
Economic Dynamism
Nov 19, 2025
The Truth about Chinese Manufacturing
David Hebert, Peter C. Earle
Economic Dynamism
Nov 17, 2025
The Miracle of Economic Growth
Leonidas Zelmanovitz
Economic Dynamism
Nov 14, 2025
Hydrocarbons Aren’t Disappearing
Michael Toth
Economic Dynamism
Nov 13, 2025
America's Litigation Addiction Threatens Its AI Leadership
Kevin Frazier, Adam Thierer
Economic Dynamism
Nov 11, 2025

Politics

We investigate what it means to be a constitutional people who remain tethered to the rule of law.

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Remembering Ed Banfield's “The Unheavenly City"
Politics
Dec 4, 2025
Will State Attorneys General Allow Their Cities to Make Energy Policy?
Michael Toth
Politics
Dec 4, 2025
Carl Schmitt: A Window into the Postliberal Id
Thomas D. Howes
Politics
Dec 3, 2025
In the Long Run, the Meta Case Is Dead
Jessica Melugin
Politics
Dec 2, 2025
Will "The Great Feminization" Displace the “old” Male-Dominated Model?
Brian Lee Crowley
Politics
Dec 2, 2025
Building a Politics of Deliberation in the Tarheel State
Leslie Winner, John Hood
Politics
Nov 28, 2025

Constitutionalism

We discuss the political thought that undergirds a society of freedom and virtue.

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The Myth of Milliken
R. Shep Melnick
Constitutionalism
Dec 3, 2025
United States v. Lopez at 30: The Court’s Federalism Revolution Didn’t Happen
Constitutionalism
Dec 1, 2025
Supreme Court Term Preview: Presidential Power in Two Dimensions
Aaron L. Nielson
Constitutionalism
Nov 18, 2025
Judge Oldham's Olson Lecture: Yet Another FedSoc Debate or an Existential Challenge?
Josh Blackman
Constitutionalism
Nov 12, 2025
Ban the Filibuster — But Only for Continuing Budget Resolutions
Richard Epstein
Constitutionalism
Nov 12, 2025
Will the Unitary Executive Swallow the Independent Judiciary?
Richard Epstein
Constitutionalism
Nov 10, 2025

Pursuit of Happiness

We explore how citizens, neighbors, workers, families, and communities shape the future of American society.

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AI and the Divine Test
Spencer A. Klavan
Pursuit of Happiness
Oct 31, 2025
The Reckless American
Mark Bauerlein
Pursuit of Happiness
Oct 24, 2025
Bodies, Selves, and the Quest for Identity
Rachel Lu
Pursuit of Happiness
Oct 21, 2025
A Doctor In Full
Ronald W. Dworkin
Pursuit of Happiness
Oct 17, 2025
Racing Earnhardt
Emina Melonic
Pursuit of Happiness
Oct 17, 2025
Dallin Oaks: From Legal Giant to Leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Aaron L. Nielson
Pursuit of Happiness
Oct 15, 2025

Technology & Innovation

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Who we are

We are a community of scholars exploring the ideas and institutions that create flourishing societies.

The Civitas Institute is part of the School of Civic Leadership at the University of Texas at Austin.

Independent thought, civil discourse, reasoned deliberation and intellectual curiosity are central to our ethos.

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