Our 55th season! Welcome back to another culturally and intellectually stimulating experience, featuring real experts and honest conversations.

Here at SILL, we are extremely proud to bring you lectures on Global Issues along with a wide-range selection of musicians on Music Mondays.

Global Issues: We again offer a dynamic lineup on global Issues. Returning in 2026 are several distinguished speakers. Dr. David Lampton will explore the pressing question: Are the U.S. and China entering a new Cold War. Robert Jones will address White Christian Nationalism. Ambassador Robert Ford will provide Insights into the future of Syria. Dennis Ross will offer his expert analysis on U.S. Policy in the Middle East. Among new speakers this year is Dr. Kenneth Roberts on Polarization and Democracy in a turbulent Latin America. Dr. Christine McDaniel will examine the implications of new U.S. tariff policies. Dr. Anatoly Temkin will shed light on the transformative power and risks of artificial intelligence. Lt. General Mike Plehn will analyze how wars begin and end. The other speakers will present similarly timely and stimulating lectures.

Music Mondays: Meet Joe Holt in Sarasota and Betsy Traba in Venice as they present fascinating conversations and short performances from a wide range of talented musicians. They will include Invoke, a contemporary string quartet, Jake Kwiatkowski on bagpipes, Eden Espinosa, Boardway singer and actress, and Michael Stephen Brown, pianist, and composer. As a very special guest we are honored to host Frederica von Stade, a highly acclaimed lyric mezzo-soprano opera singer of international renown.

Season Keynote Speaker: We are deeply thrilled to announce that General Martin Dempsey, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will speak at the Church of the Palms in Sarasota on Wednesday January 28. His topic, focused on the US, Russia, and China, is Alliances, Revanchism and Supply Chains: Inevitable Competition or Inevitable Conflict. Tickets are sold separately for this event. We intend to make this type of special event a regular part of our seasons.

Ticket System: We will return to a single ticket for season subscribers. Tickets for our special event speakers, such as General Martin Dempsey, will be sold separately on an individual basis.

Video on Demand:All three of our programs will be available through video on demand; Music Mondays programs as recorded in Sarasota, as well as our Tuesday and Thursday Global Issues presentations.

Friends of SILL: Your significant support of SILL every year is much appreciated and crucial to our success in offering such a superb range of speakers and performers. Please consider continuing your support by contributing as a “Friend of SILL” when you purchase your tickets. We are an “all-volunteer” organization, and every dollar goes to support and improve our programs. To learn more about how you can support our programs, visit sillsarasota.org. Welcome to SILL's 54th season. We are enormously proud to bring you stimulating and engaging lectures on Global Issues and the exploration of the wide-ranging careers of musicians on Music Mondays.

With warm regards,

Jeff Olesen, President