Media Resources

Wendell Berry delivered the 2012 Jefferson Lecture on April 23, 2012. He speaks of the importance of place in cultivating responsible relationships to the world: only if we are able to imagine our places in the world can we feel affection for those places, for the world, and so begin to create the "possibility of a neighborly, kind, and conserving economy."

In this "Ask an NEH Expert" interview, Margaret Hughes, Associate Director for Education at Historic Hudson Valley, discusses crafting an argument and working with primary sources to support your claims.

Leslie Hayes, the New York Historical Society's Director of Education, discusses how to engage with primary and secondary sources in historical research projects—and how to proceed when sources say very different things.

Dana Williams, Howard University English Department Chair and professor of African American literature, discusses the writing and editing process.

Jeffrey Ludwig, Director of Education at the Seward House Museum (Auburn, New York), discusses the benefits of wide research when developing any project. The video includes examples of primary sources and other resources available at the Seward House that illustrate how wide research works. 

Shatavia Elder, Vice President of Education at the Atlanta History Center (Atlanta, Georgia), offers advice on the importance of historical significance when writing about a topic, event, person, or era. The video includes materials available at the Atlanta History Center that show how researchers can evaluate historical significance across time.

Anne Petersen, Executive Director of the Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation (Santa Barbara, California), addresses why multiple perspectives are important to developing a rich understanding of historical events and topics. The video includes how maps and primary documents available at the Santa Barbara Trust can be used to analyze multiple and competing perspectives in history.