Mission
The Institute for Advanced Study connects, incubates, and champions a thriving interdisciplinary community that transforms research and collaboration.
Vision
The Institute for Advanced Study fosters scholarly and creative incubation, offering time, space, and resources to realize projects without conforming to conventions. As a community committed to collaboration, we facilitate local and international interdisciplinary networks that enable surprising and lasting connections. As the only interdisciplinary institute at the University of Minnesota committed to exploring any topic or theme, we represent an open platform for innovation and creative reimagination that has unlimited potential to transform the University and the world around us.
Values
- Curiosity: We approach one another—including other disciplines, our partners, and the broader world—with a commitment to openness and curiosity. We value learning, growth, and listening without expectations.
- Collaboration: The best work happens when we build meaningful relationships with our partners and each other, and work across disciplines and academic standings.
- Serendipity: We create this space to play and imagine, facilitate new connections and conversations, and spark unexpected ideas. We alleviate the burden of conforming to disciplinary standards and offer the IAS as an academic space free of the immediate pressure of a standard outcome.
- Interdisciplinarity: We view interdisciplinarity as an agent of change, and we promote thinking across and beyond disciplines because it is the strongest path to deepening exploration, opening doors to new ways of seeing, and finding solutions to the world’s challenges.
Priorities
As a University service organization and research institute, we live our values in order to:
- Advocate for racial and social justice
- Strengthen community engagement
- Expand international partnerships
- Create pathways for institutional transformation
Focus Areas
- Incubate: We invest in people and groundbreaking, innovative projects and provide the time, space, and resources needed to ensure projects succeed.
- Connect: We create opportunities for University and community members to build and benefit from our vast interdisciplinary network.
- Champion: We lead the University in promoting interdisciplinarity and use our position to elevate those working outside the box.