The International Students For Liberty Conference

What: The World's Largest Gathering of Pro-Liberty Students

When: Friday, February 17 - Sunday, February 19, 2012

Where: Grand Hyatt Hotel, Washington DC

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We are pleased to invite all students and non-students interested in liberty to attend the 2012 International Students For Liberty Conference!  The International SFL Conference is the premiere event of the year for students dedicated to liberty and advancing freedom on campus.   The world's largest crowd of pro-liberty students will gather for a weekend of learning about liberty from contemporary leaders in liberty, discussing best practices for promoting liberty on campus, and getting more involved in the larger movement for liberty.

In addition to being a weekend of celebration the ISFLC is an event where speakers are invited from all across the liberty spectrum.  The presenters may believe in differing (and sometimes competing) philosophies of social change and views on society, providing a great opportunity to learn and grow. The subjects covered will span everything from activism on campus to liberty 101, civil liberties, anarchy, austrian economics, the drug war, gun rights working within the system and opting out, and much more.

As John Stuart Mills discusses in “On Liberty”, free discussion is necessary for intellectual progress and we all benefit from a constant reevaluation of our beliefs. The ISFLC provides a unique opportunity to discuss and debate in a friendly environment with peers and professors about all matters of liberty and have a great time doing it. After each day of intellectual stimulation there will be socials sponsored by SFL’s partners all around Washington DC. At these socials you can continue the discussion in a more casual environment with your new friends and philosophical sparring partners.

The ISFLC has grown every year in both size and quality of the experience:

2008 - The inaugural Students For Liberty Conference in 2008 drew 100 students from 42 schools in 3 countries.

2009 - The 2009 International SFL Conference brought 153 students from 86 schools in 13 countries together.

2010 - The 2010 ISFLC drew 304 young liberty advocates through "Snowpocalypse"  to Washington DC.

2011 - The 2011 conference broke all the previous records with over 500 attendees (click here for a recap)

2012 - The biggest student libertarian conference yet, featuring:

• Great Speakers, such as Peter Thiel, John Stossel, and many more!
• Breakout Tracks covering a wide variety of topics.
• Presentation of the SFL Awards for student, event, alumnus, and group of the year.
• Activism training featuring workshops taught by fellow student leaders of liberty.
• Networking with the leaders of the liberty movement and your fellow pro-liberty students from around the world.
• Social Events featuring free drinks (both hard & soft).
• Celebrate Liberty with the largest gathering of pro-liberty students in the world!

Opening Performance by GoRemy

The 2012 International Students For Liberty Conference will open with a bang with a special guest performance by GoRemy, the creator and star of such videos as Raise the Debt Ceiling, The Arlington Rap, TurboTax: The Rap, and many more!

Friday Keynote Peter Thiel

We are thrilled to announce that our Friday Night Keynote will be libertarian entrepreneur, PayPal founder, Facebook investor, and venture capitalist Peter Thiel! Thiel first gained attention for innovations in banking and startup finance. Today he is known as the mentor of the PayPal mafia of entrepreneurs, as well as for his warnings of a coming technology deficit with severe economic consequences. He works to accelerate innovation to prevent such a crisis by identifying and funding promising technology ideas and by guiding successful companies to scale and dominate their industries. he made the first outside investment in Facebook, a social networking hub that now has more than 750 million active members. He serves on its board.  Mr. Thiel advances freedom by sponsoring the Committee to Protect Journalists, the Seasteading Institute, and the Human Rights Foundation. He funds the artificial intelligence research of the Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence.In 2010, Mr. Thiel created the 20 Under 20 Thiel Fellowship, which nurtures the tech visionaries of tomorrow.

Saturday Taping of the STOSSEL Show

John Stossel is the most recognized libertarian spokesman alive today. His long run as a reporter for ABC's 20/20 exposed millions of people to the follies of government intervention. His new show Stossel on Fox Business News provides a wonderful platform to discuss the ideas of liberty and get them out to a wide audience. We made history in 2011 by recording an episode of the STOSSEL Show at the ISFLC which was later broadcast worldwide on the Fox Business Network.  Featuring John Stossel, Cato Vice President David Boaz, and the hundreds of student attendees, that show was such a success that Stossel is coming back for a repeat performance in 2012! This year John will be bringing with him not just one guest but a libertarian all-star lineup with different special guests for each segment.  Our special guests will be announced as we get closer to the conference.  As with last year the STOSSEL taping is open to the public. Last year we announced our presence and showed the world that the student movement for liberty is a force to be reckoned with.  That not only do John Stossel and David Boaz believe in liberty, but hundreds of passionate college students as well.  Now we have the chance to show them how quickly our movement is growing.

The SFL Awards Presentations

One of the highlights of the International Students For Liberty Conference is the Annual Awards Presentation.  The student movement for liberty is full of passionate, hard working individuals, and we seek to honor their efforts.  Award recipients are chosen based on their hard work, organizational skills, value creation, innovation, and entrepreneurism.

This year, SFL will present awards for Student of the Year, Event of the Year, and Student Group of the Year along with a new category for Alumnus of the Year.  Nominations and voting are open to the public, so check back here later in the fall for more information on how to submit your nominations.

This year we have dramatically reduced registration fees so that as many students can attend the conference as possible!

Early Registration (Ends October 31) Student: $10 Alumni $20

Standard Registration (Ends December 31) Student $20 Alumni $35

Late Registration (Ends February 3) Student $30 Alumni $50

Refunds are not available.

* Registration for the ISFLC provides individuals with access to all conference sessions including Keynotes, breakouts, exhibitor fair, and tracks.  Note that in past years registration has included meals during the conference. However, due the growing size of the conference we are no longer able to offer food as a part of registration. There are many restaurants and delis near the conference site and breaks will be scheduled throughout the event so attendees can get food as they please.

Socials

Social events are a staple of Students For Liberty Conferences, providing fun opportunities for students to network with each other and the leader of the liberty movement.   The 2012 ISFLC will be no exception with multiple social events with free drinks (both hard and soft) on Friday and Saturday Night.  More details to come.