The Heroic Imagination Project

The Heroic Imagination Project (HIP) is a nonprofit organization that advances everyday heroism - founded and led by Professor Philip Zimbardo. At HIP, we believe everyone has the potential to transform the private virtue of compassion into the civic virtue of heroic action, and we are dedicated to helping individuals internalize and express their “heroic imagination” in service to humanity. We’re a team of ordinary people and we believe every person has the potential to be a hero. So we’re preparing heroes around the globe. The HIP education programs prepare heroes in training for everyday heroic action. This is achieved by educating participants directly about their own psychology and teaching how they can master social and situational forces as well as their automatic human tendencies in order to act in ways that are kind, prosocial, and even heroic. With guidance from expert HIP Trainers and Educators, tens of thousands of people around the world have already gained essential skills for heroism such as situational awareness, self-efficacy, values-driven decision-making, and social resilience. These skills help individuals harness their heroic potential and take effective action in challenging situations. We’re making academic information accessible to everyone. Our founder, Dr. Philip Zimbardo, has spent his life studying social psychology and personal growth. We take complex and valuable findings about psychology from academia and translate them into consumable, relevant, and engaging lessons for youth and adults to use in their everyday lives to improve situations and transform themselves and their communities. How do we train heroes? We train heroes through delivering workshops and trainings, connecting heroes in training online, and promoting advancements in heroism research and education.