A Guide to Cato’s Home Study Resources

The Cato Institute offers a wealth of online educational audio and video resources, from self-paced guides on the ideas of liberty and the principles of economics, to exclusive, archived lectures by thinkers such as Milton Friedman and F. A. Hayek. In addition to exploring the vast array of material posted on Cato.org, we hope you will take an opportunity to browse through some highlights of our collections, listed below, either for personal study or for use in the classroom.

Cato Home Study Course

This self-paced, home study audio program immerses you in the ideas of John Locke, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, James Madison, Adam Smith, Voltaire, John Stuart Mill, Henry David Thoreau, Ayn Rand, F.A. Hayek, Milton Friedman, and others. Each program is presented by professional actors and broadcasters, and the content is lively, dynamic, and thought-provoking.

The Encyclopedia of Libertarianism

Access an online version of the Encyclopedia of Libertarianism. The Encyclopedia tightly weaves all of libertarianism’s diverse strands together into one comprehensive work and provides hundreds of succinct, originally written articles by some of the most widely recognized experts in the field. In one searchable place, the Encyclopedia provides a commanding, point-by-point understanding of libertarianism and its history by illuminating a vast range of economic, social, political, philosophical, cultural, individual, legal, historical, and psychological subjects from a libertarian point of view.

Libertarianism.org Guides

Guides available from Libertarianism.org (a project of the Cato Institute) are self-paced online courses, available in audio and video formats, taught by top professors and experts. Guides introduce the basic ideas and principles of a free and flourishing society and serve as a path to further learning. Start with the introductory video, then dive into the lecture series and featured book. If you’d like to dig deeper, each Guide’s homepage offers reading lists, essays, and links to other helpful materials. New Guides are being added regularly, and currently include David Boaz with an “Introduction to Libertarianism”; Jason Brennan with an “Introduction to Political Philosophy”; Jeffrey A. Miron on “Libertarian Public Policy”; and Howard Baetjer on “Foundational Concepts in Economics.”

Cato’s Letter

Read favorite editions of Cato’s Letter, a quarterly publication of the Cato Institute featuring essays and speeches from important thinkers. While the entire archives are online, these selected essays feature some of our most popular issues, on topics such as capitalism, globalization, free speech, entrepreneurship, and the drug war.

Classics of Liberty

In this podcast from Libertarianism.org, Caleb Brown narrates excerpts from classic works, such as Frederick Douglass’s What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?, Henry David Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience, Adam Smith’s The Theory of Moral Sentiments and The Wealth of Nations, Lysander Spooner’s No Treason, and many others.

The Jim Turney Collection

View rare and exclusive lectures from major thinkers, including Milton Friedman on his famous expression, “There’s no such thing as a free lunch”; F. A. Hayek on social evolution and the origins of tradition; Murray Rothbard on how he became a libertarian; and Roy Childs on the radical libertarian vision. The entire collection, available here, features over 150 lectures.

The Libertarian Mind * Audio Selections

Listen to several chapters from the audiobook edition of David Boaz’s acclaimed work The Libertarian Mind — a comprehensive guide to the history, philosophy, law, and economics of libertarian ideas. Interested in more? The complete audiobook is available on Audible.com — print copies are available through bookstores and online retailers nationwide.