Why do humans have a memory system that so frequently malfunctions? How do memory and imagination interact? And what are the implications of memory on forgiveness?

Dr. Felipe De Brigard, who is the Fuchsberg-Levine Family Associate Professor of Philosophy, and Associate Professor in the departments of Psychology and Neuroscience at Duke University, investigates these questions and more as part of his John Templeton Foundation-funded research project: Forgetting and Forgiving: Exploring the Connections between Memory and Forgiveness.

Dr. De Brigard recently joined our staff at the John Templeton Foundation for an illuminating lecture on the connections between memory and forgiveness. During the wide-ranging presentation, Dr. De Brigard explained that his research approaches memory as both a scientific and philosophical problem. This contributes to his novel framework for understanding the relationship between remembering and forgiving, which his current research project applies to victims of political violence in Colombia.

To learn more, watch the full video: