The Institute for Southern Studies uses research, media, and education to promote a more just and sustainable future for the South.

A New Voice for a Changing South

Since our founding in 1970 by veterans of the civil rights movement, the Institute for Southern Studies has established a national reputation as an essential resource for grassroots activists, community leaders, scholars, policy makers and others working to bring lasting change to the region.

The Institute draws attention to the national importance of the South and offers an exciting vision of the region -- a place brimming with the potential for progressive change that challenges its reputation as a monolithic, conservative stronghold.

The Institute publishes FACING SOUTH, a popular online magazine. Facing South's investigations into issues of voting rights, money in politics and other key issues have been featured by CNN News, MSNBC, The New York Times, NPR, USA Today, The Washington Post and other major media.

Since 1973, the Institute's journal, Southern Exposure, has gained critical praise for its thorough investigations, unsentimental portraits of Southern life, and resources for change. Southern Exposure has won the National Magazine Award for Public Interest Reporting, two George Polk Awards and other prestigious honors.

Over 40 years later, the Institute retains our unique place in the movement to build a better South.