Applied History Project

The mission of Harvard’s Applied History Project is to revitalize applied history by promoting the production and use of historical reasoning to clarify public and private challenges and choices. Founded by Professors Graham Allison and Niall Ferguson in 2016, the Applied History Project builds upon the foundation laid by Professors Ernest May and Richard Neustadt in the 1980s, reflected in their book Thinking in Time: The Uses of History for Decision Makers. 

Advancing its mission, the Project sponsors the Applied History Working Group of faculty members across Harvard University to organize discussions with scholars and practitioners; supports historians and policymakers in producing Applied History; develops courses in Applied History; funds the Ernest May Fellowships in History and Policy for pre- and post-doctoral students; and holds Applied History Events open to the Harvard Community and the public. Harvard’s project is one of the leaders among a rapidly expanding network of universities and think tanks that are furthering the discipline of Applied History by clarifying predicaments and choices to inform better decisions.

The Project gratefully acknowledges the Stanton Foundation's generous support for its Applied History endeavors. 

Quote of the Week 

“If you can revive the ancient and use it to understand the modern, then you're worthy to be a teacher.” – Confucius, The Analects

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Article of the Week 

“The Middle East Needs Its Own Helsinki Act” by Alexander Stubb (President of Finland) and Frank-Walter Steinmeier (President of Germany) in The Financial Times

The Presidents of Finland and Germany argue that a milestone diplomatic achievement from Europe’s Cold War history—the Helsinki Final Act—can inform peace negotiations in the Middle East today. The experience of Helsinki teaches, first, that “you do not need trust to begin a process,” they write. It also shows that “all relevant actors” must be participants (countries involved with Helsinki came from NATO, the Warsaw Pact, and the non-aligned bloc) and offers “ideas for structured dialogue, issue-based cooperation, and confidence-building measures.” Amid gridlock in current negotiations, the authors rely on history to conceptualize a new path forward.