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Democracy demands new ideas.
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Avoiding conflict over conflicts of interest
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Our Top Insights from Spring 2024
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Harvard’s hub for research and teaching on democracy
The Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation develops ideas and fosters practices for equal and inclusive, multiracial, and multiethnic democracy and self-governance.
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Our Work
From expanding voting access to developing new strategies for antiracist organizational change, we tackle the most pressing issues facing democracy and democratic institutions around the world today.
Latest News
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Podcast
Episode Four: The Movement to Stop Cop City
Host Jay Ulfelder sits down with Joseph Brown, Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Massachusetts Boston, to discuss a mass mobilization in Atlanta to stop a new a police training center amid environmental and community rights concerns.
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How Portland, Oregon Embraced Voting Reform — and Democratic Innovation
Portland, Oregon passed one of the most progressive voting reforms in the country. Max Kiefel, Nick Chedli Carter, and Archon Fung explore the motivating factors behind this big change.
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What led to the rise — and then fall — of participatory democracy in Colombia?
Research by Democracy Postdoctoral Fellow Jamie Shenk highlights how referendums in Colombia served as a powerful tool to block the expansion of mining and oil enterprises before the practice was curbed by the country’s Supreme Court.
Upcoming Events
Ash Center Open House
In-Person Event
Ash Center Foyer, Suite 200, 124 Mount Auburn Street
4:00 pm – 6:00 pm EDT
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