Dr. Darby is a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. He holds degrees from Colgate University and the University of Pittsburgh. In his TEDx talk, “Doing the Knowledge,” he tells the story of discovering his passion for philosophy growing up in New York City. He is a dynamic teacher, accomplished scholar, and passionate speaker. His recent books include Boxed In: Making Identities Safe for Democracy and A Realistic Blacktopia: Why We Must Unite to Fight. He has lectured and taught on five continents. His life and work have been covered by the Atlantic magazine, CNN, and other news outlets. His calling card is to harness the power of hip hop’s fifth element (knowledge) to empower his audiences to think critically and deeply about our world, the problems we face, and about ways in which we can work together to create a better world.