Our achievements include the Encyclopedia of Indianapolis, hailed as a national model for urban encyclopedias; our Project on Religion and Civic Culture, a multi-faceted look at the intersection of religion and urban culture as it exists in Central Indiana; our Spirit & Place Festival that annually brings more than 150 organizations together to create community awareness and inquiry about the issues that confront us, and Spatial Humanities research which relies upon powerful geospatial technologies and methods to explore new questions about the relationship of space to human behavior and social, economic, political, and cultural development.
Community & Culture
Our work began in 1989 with a special emphasis on the communities and cultures of Indianapolis and Central Indiana. One aim was to create comprehensive and reliable information about these communities and use it to improve decision making and enhance equality of life. Although the geographic scope of our work has broadened considerably, with projects and partners around the nation and world, we retain a special interest in the place where we live.
Projects
Encyclopedia of Indianapolis
The Polis Center, in collaboration with the city’s major cultural and heritage institutions developed a web-based, free-access Encyclopedia of Indianapolis.
Learn about this project
Project on Religion and Culture
We have compiled the largest collection of meaningful religious data ever gathered on one American city.
Learn about this project
Spirit & Place
Its mission is to be a catalyst for civic engagement and enduring change through creative collaborations among the arts, humanities, and religion.
Learn about this project