Stanford University’s unofficial motto, “Die Luft der Freiheit weht” (translated as “The wind of freedom blows”), was the theme of Gerhard Casper’s 1992 inaugural address as Stanford president. In his speech, he talked about the nine aspects of a university’s freedom. Twenty years later, as president emeritus, Gerhard Casper reflected on the freedoms of and at the university in his new book, The Winds of Freedom: Addressing Challenges to the University. The freedoms of and at the university in a historical, philosophical, ethical and experiential context was the subject of this talk. Casper explored the complexities faced by the leadership of research-intensive universities, especially, but not only, those of the United States; issues regarding campus speech and campus diversity, government regulation and politics, affirmative action; and the role of the research-intensive university, its faculty and students, in the pursuit of knowledge.