The Roots of Progress

We’re growing our team. The Roots of Progress Institute is hiring for two additional roles: Event Manager Education Program Operations Manager Both roles are full-time, fully remote, and based in the United States. We also have three other roles still open: Development Manager Head of Content Program Manager, Fellowships Please apply if interested, or share these opportunities with great candidates! The links above are shareable.

The 2026 Blog-Building Intensive Fellowship cohort. Last week we kicked off our fourth Blog-Building Intensive Fellowship with a cohort of 42 outstanding fellows. This year’s fellows were selected from a pool of nearly 400 impressive applicants.

The Roots of Progress Institute (RPI) is hiring for a new role: Development Coordinator We also have two roles recently announced that are still open: Head of Content Program Manager, Fellowships Please apply if interested, or share these opportunities with great candidates! The links above are shareable. The full text of the new Development Coordinator role is also included below. All roles are full-time and fully remote (North America–based).

The Roots of Progress Institute (RPI) is hiring for two new roles. Please apply if interested, or share these opportunities with great candidates! Here are shareable links to individual roles; the full text of both is also included below: Head of Communications Program Manager, Fellowships Both are full-time, fully remote (North America–based). We are seeking a Head of Communications, to grow our online audience and tell them about everything we’re saying and doing.

It is in this context, from the perspective of the bloody millennia of mankind's history, that I want you to look at the birth of a miracle: the United States of America. If it is ever proper for man to kneel, we should kneel when we read the Declaration of Independence. Ayn Rand, “A Nation’s Unity” A bonus post for Independence Day 250: In a 1972 speech, Ayn Rand put the founding of America into the grand historical context of the problem of human violence.

Every country has a national holiday. France celebrates the storming of the Bastille. Mexico celebrates the revolt that began their war for independence from Spain. Sweden celebrates the election of a king. Belgium celebrates the ascension of one. India celebrates the transfer of power from Britain. Japan celebrates the emperor’s birthday. America’s Independence Day is not the day the war began, nor the day it ended. It’s not the ascension of a leader, let alone his birthday.

Starting June 15th, the Roots of Progress team brought together 30 teenagers to learn about Progress in Medicine. These talented, ambitious high schoolers are choosing to spend six weeks of their summer exploring careers in medicine, biotech, and health as part of the inaugural cohort of the Roots of Progress summer career exploration program.

I don’t use AI to draft my writing. These are fine handcrafted artisanal essays, every word placed individually with loving care. I use AI a lot for researching, occasionally for brainstorming, and increasingly for fact-checking. But not for outlining, drafting, or directly editing. This isn’t some principled objection to AI use, or a revulsion at the idea of letting technology intrude on my craft. It has simply never occurred to me to do it. Why? I just don’t think AI writing is good enough today.

You have 3 more days to submit your application to the Blog-Building Intensive program, a writing intensive for aspiring progress writers. You can read more about this year’s program or apply here. The application deadline is this Monday, June 1. Our fellows have sung the program’s praises, and you can hear directly from them about how it changed their lives in the video below. You can also watch the recording of yesterday's Substack Live session.

We’ll be hosting a Substack Live event at 2 pm PT / 5 pm ET this afternoon. Come learn more about the nuts and bolts of the Blog-Building Intensive Fellowship. You have 5 more days to submit your application to the fourth cohort of our Blog-Building Intensive program, a 10-week program for aspiring progress writers. You can read more about this year’s program or apply here. You may have seen alumni singing the program’s praises on Substack over the last few weeks.