“Compared to previous generations, surveys show that young Americans are more negative about the current state of the world,” said Dale Matcheck, chairman of the economics department and co-organizer of the seminar. “It’s no surprise, having come of age during the War on Terror, the Great Recession, the COVID pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and other historically significant events that shaped their worldview .

“On the other hand, surveys also show that young people today are more optimistic than previous generations about their future and confident in their ability to have a positive impact on the world.”

Matcheck noted that the sessions will be organized around three key areas of concern for young people: economy, environment and society.

The program includes:

• Opening speech by stephen mooreFreedom Works and Jonathan WilliamsAmerican Legislative Exchange Council

• Round table on business, entrepreneurship and sustainability, with André Argenton, Dow; Chris Chandler, Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational; and Alison Orvash, FILL LLC.

• “Leave me alone and I’ll make you rich: how the bourgeois agreement enriched the world”, by Art CardenSamford University

• “The Ingrained Problems of Political Economy: From Plato to Generation Z”, by Daniel J. SmithMiddle Tennessee State University

• “The post-Covid economy”, by Timothy G. Nashdirector of the McNair Center for the Advancement of Free-Enterprise and Entrepreneurship at Northwood University

• “You cannot print prosperity”, by Harry VeryserUniversity of Detroit-Mercy

• “A political agenda for Generation Z”, by Michael TanerCATO Institute

• “Seven Principles of Free Market Environmentalism”, by Jason HayesMackinac Center for Public Policy

• “How Entrepreneurs Promote Sustainability”, a group of professors from Northwood

• “Seven principles for a rational energy policy”, by Jason HayesMackinac Center for Public Policy

• “Removing Obstacles to Upward Mobility”, a Northwood faculty panel

• “Transport transformation”, by Derek KaufmanSchwartz Advisors, LLC

• “Coping with Cancel Culture”, a virtual presentation by the Leadership Institute

• “Parents, Children and Education”, a panel from Northwood Faculty

• “The Future of America”, featuring Georges Leef from the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal

The Freedom 2022 Seminar is made possible thanks to the generous support of the McNair Center for Free Enterprise and Entrepreneurship at Northwood University.

For more information on this year’s Freedom Seminar, including how to register, visit https://www.northwood.edu/freedom-seminar or email [email protected].