Naveen Sridhara

From the Richard Dawkins Foundation Newsletter. Subscribe here.

Hello!

It’s been an eventful few weeks since our last update; weeks that have seen both remarkable highs and terrible lows. It’s been, to paraphrase Charles Dickens, both the best and worst of times.

We closed October with CSICon 2022, which returned to being in-person for the first time since 2019. It was such a delight to see hundreds of skeptics from across the United States and around the world come together to enjoy thought-provoking presentations and conversations featuring some of the world’s foremost scientists and critical thinkers. The energy and excitement of seeing Richard Dawkins and Neil deGrasse Tyson on stage together was truly special.

It was my sad responsibility to share Kendrick Frazier’s absence with the audience at CSICon. Ken had very recently been diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia and was not able to make the trip. Just two weeks later, we were heartbroken by the news that Ken had died at age eighty. He has been rightly remembered and praised for his work as a science writer and editor of Skeptical Inquirer. But it’s the loss of Ken as a remarkable, compassionate human that hurts the most.

As we process these events, it can be helpful to take a moment and “zoom out.” To remind ourselves of the power of Tyson’s “cosmic perspective,” we’ll share with you a new way to visualize the observable universe.

The U.S. midterm elections provided their own mix of highs and lows. While all the members of the Congressional Freethought Caucus won reelection, so too did several avowed Christian Nationalists and others who oppose the separation of church and state. We’ll look at some of the key takeaways from this year’s results.

I’m also excited to share the positive reviews for the New York premiere of The Unbelieving, a play that was commissioned by the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason & Science.

In both the best and worst of times, it’s important to remember that we are not alone. Throughout all the ups and downs, I’m grateful to you and our entire CFI community for standing together.

Robyn E. Blumner,
CEO and President, Center for Inquiry
Executive Director, Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason & Science