Looking for engaging content for your political philosophy course? The Institute for Humane Studies has curated this collection of educational resources to help philosophy professors enrich their curriculum. Find short videos, lectures, and reading lists on everything from where rights come from to Peter Singer's "The Drowning Child". This collection is updated frequently with new content, so watch this space!

In this lecture, Professor Howie Baetjer of Towson University explains how the market process generates improvements in the human condition, highlighting how profit and loss serve to help people channel their activities in creative and socially useful directions.

In 1838, poet, essayist, and lecturer Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote a letter to President Martin Van Buren protesting the forced removal of the Cherokee Nation from its land in Georgia to modern-day Oklahoma. In this extended excerpt from his letter, read by Professor Amy Sturgis from Lenoir-Rhyne University, Emerson demonstrates that people at the time were aware that the Trail of Tears was a grave injustice. Emerson's was only one of many voices protesting the government's treatment of the Cherokee people, but these protests fell on deaf ears. The Trail of Tears remains a blemish on U.S. History.

Governments don’t work the way most people think they do. In this lecture, Professor Antony Davies of Duquesne University explains public choice theory, a branch of economics that explores how voters, politicians, and bureaucrats actually make decisions.

Why do politicians never seem to cut government spending? Using public choice economics, Professor Ben Powell of Suffolk University explains why it's difficult to cut policies with concentrated benefits and dispersed costs.

Public choice economics uses economic tools to study political behavior. This reading list provides students with an introduction to important concepts in public choice economics, like logrolling and rent seeking, as well as some of the discipline's most important figures such as James Buchanan and Gordon Tullock.

What is "classical liberalism?" Is it a specific set of beliefs, a philosophy, an economic theory, or something else? In this video mini-course, Dr. Nigel Ashford of the Institute for Humane Studies explores what classical liberalism -- sometimes referred to as "libertarianism" -- actually means. Dr. Ashford looks at 5 different schools of classical liberalism, and examines their similarities and differences.

In the eighteenth century, Scotland experienced a period of great intellectual achievement. The political, economic, and philosophical ideas that came out of the Scottish Enlightenment still have a huge influence on our world today, especially those of Adam Smith and David Hume. This reading list provides an introduction to the ideas of the two economists and philosophers, especially on political economy and the nature of justice.

Ever wonder why people don’t do everything for themselves? In this video, Professor Art Carden of Samford University explains how specialization and trade create wealth and make us all better off.

This thought experiment, based on an essay by Professor Thomas Nagel, Philosopher at New York University, encourages students to question the morality of intervention. Professor Nagel attempted to liberate a spider he found living in a urinal from it is seemingly terrible living situation, only to find it dead the next day. Wracked with guilt, he began to question his decision. Should he have moved the spider? What would you have done?

According to Professor Aeon Skoble of Bridgewater State University, the word “value” has very different meanings for economists and philosophers. Economists view value as subjective to reflect individual tastes and preferences. Philosophers, on the other hand, use the term objectively, to refer to concepts such as rights. In this video, Professor Skoble explains how these different conceptions actually compliment each other.

Many people are concerned with growing national debt, but according to Professor Antony Davies of Duquesne University, there are a lot of misconceptions. In this lecture, Professor Davies explores ten common myths about inequality, covering everything from the causes of the debt to potential solutions.

According to Professor Amy Sturgis of Lenoir-Rhyne University, the Trail of Tears shouldn’t have happened. In this video, Professor Sturgis explains both the moral and legal arguments used to protest the forced removal of the Cherokee Nation to "Indian Territory" as well as why it’s so important that we remember the Trail of Tears today.

Traditionally, American presidents have supported free trade--or at least less restricted trade. But the new administration has invoked tariffs and possible renegotiation of longstanding trade agreements. Academic economists are all but unanimous on the benefits of free trade, but a few dissenters say free traders live in a fantasy land, ignoring economic reality. In this debate, Dr. Michael Hudson of University of Missouri Kansas City and Peking University and Dr. Farhad Rassekh of the University of Hartford debate whether the US should pursue a policy of free trade or protectionism.

People living together must find some way to preserve common resources. Unfortunately, there are strong incentives for people to exploit these resources when they are held in common by everyone. Professor Sean Mullholland of Stonehill College explains what causes this problem, known as tragedy of the commons, and potential solutions.

What is mercantilism? How did economics contribute to rising tensions between the North and the South in the years before the Civil War? What caused the Great Depression? In this video course designed specifically to help students study for the AP US History exam and SAT Subject Test, Professor Brian Domitrovich of Sam Houston State University explains key events in US economic history and surveys different (and sometimes opposing) viewpoints on each event.

In 2011, federal government spending significantly outweighed revenue. While the federal government spent $3.8 trillion, it collected only $2.2 trillion from various taxes, licenses, and fees. In this video, Professor Antony Davies of Duquesne University explores what the federal government is spending money on and what can be cut to balance the budget.

According to Professor Michael Munger of Duke University, prices are akin to magic. In this video, Professor Munger explains how prices convert countless pieces of dispersed, complex information into a single signal that conveys to sellers what they should do to best benefit society.

What if there were no prices? How would you use available resources? In this video, Professor Howard Baetjer Jr. of Towson University leads you through a thought experiment to illustrate why market prices are essential to human well-being. Suppose you were the commissar of railroads in the old Soviet Union. Markets and prices have been banished. You want a railroad from City A to City B, but between the cities is a mountain range. You can build the railroad around the mountains and use more steel or through the mountain and use more engineering. Which should you choose?

The national debt is so big that it's often hard to comprehend. In this video, Professor Antony Davies of Duquesne University presents the government’s fiscal situation scaled down to the level of an average household to help students understand the national debt.