Richard Berry: "What Does It All Mean?"

For the last AFS meeting in 2025, we are delighted to host speaker Richard Berry both at Atlanta Freethought Hall and on Zoom. In this whirlwind discussion, we’ll use Thomas Nagel’s What Does It All Mean? as a roadmap through some of philosophy’s biggest questions—about knowledge, the mind–body problem, free will, ethics, justice, death, and the meaning of life. Rather than giving final answers, Nagel invites us to slow down and examine things we usually take for granted. We’ll sketch his main questions, sample some of his arguments, and pause to ask what they might mean for how we live our lives in the here and now.

Richard Berry, an Atlanta native, joined the Peachtree City Humanists to connect with fellow freethinkers in 2009 (where he met Steve Yothment) and in 2013 he stepped into a leadership position. During his tenure as Organizer, which lasted until 2017, Richard cultivated the group and grew its membership. After Richard and his wife Aimée moved from the suburbs to the city in 2017, he started another group for skeptically minded life-long learners called SPARK Philosophy. Today SPARK’s membership is well over 1,000. Over the years Richard has created a wide variety of events and experiences for his members. Activities have included walks on the BeltLine, hikes along the Chattahoochee, and evenings out at some of Atlanta’s landmark destinations like Manuel’s Tavern, Krog Street Market, and Sister Louisa’s Church of the Living Room & Ping Pong Emporium.

Richard is a successful graphic designer, teacher, artist, actor, and community organizer. In his spare time Richard enjoys traveling, reading, and doing deep dives on Wikipedia to prepare for the next big game of Trivia.