The Gadfly Initiative is a public philosophy initiative dedicated to innovation in the teaching of ancient philosophy while highlighting the timeless relevance of Socratic inquiry. In an era marked by societal, institutional, and technological challenges, this initiative strives to foster critical dialogue and educational engagement in the humanities.
By demonstrating the enduring importance of philosophy and its application to contemporary issues, The Gadfly Initiative seeks to inspire thoughtful engagement with both public discourse and the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence.
Projects and events:
The Gadfly Symposium brings together philosophers, educators, and scholars to explore innovative approaches to teaching ancient philosophy. In the gadfly tradition of critical inquiry, participants are invited to reflect on how ancient philosophy can disrupt cognitive complacency, foster intellectual humility, and shape thoughtful engagement with contemporary learning environments.
Join The Gadfly Symposium — June 6, 2026 (EWU).
The Gadfly and the Agora on Medium
A new publication on the social blogging site Medium.com, The Gadfly and the Agora offers an outlet for those treating the classroom as a laboratory and civic space — one where classical ideas are used to productively disrupt how we teach, learn, and participate in democratic culture. It invites essays, dialogues, and pedagogical experiments from philosophy instructors, public philosophers, and independent scholars.
The name gadflAI plays on GOFAI (Good Old-Fashioned AI), signaling a reflective stance that probes assumptions, unsettles certainties, and challenges easy narratives of technological progress. Episodes focus on teaching innovation in ancient philosophy, AI-assisted learning, Socratic methods, and the limits of automation in ethical reasoning.
Listen and follow on Buzzsprout:
👉 https://www.buzzsprout.com/2567074