Feature
Reimagining Democracy 2026 Summer Reading List
Tova Wang, director of research projects in democratic practice at the Ash Center, shares her top picks for summer reads focused on making democracy more resilient, responsive, and inclusive.
Video
From Patients to Voters: Civic Engagement in Health Care
The Ash Center and the Center for Public Leadership recognized Civic Health Month and hosted a discussion on how healthcare workers are deepening civic engagement through voter empowerment, including how high levels of civic engagement can drive more equitable health outcomes.
Issues
Commentary
Allen Lab Fellow Spotlight: City Charters Are Deliberative Democracy’s Friends
Allen Lab Fellow Tyler Fisher examines the untapped potential of city charters as a vehicle for deliberative democracy, arguing that advocates should work to embed tools like citizen assemblies, participatory budgeting, and town meetings directly into the governing architecture of cities, institutionalizing deliberative democracy one municipality at a time.
Policy Brief
DOCE Beats DOGE: The Case for Meaningful Government Transformation Through Citizen Empowerment
A new policy brief by Jon Alexander, Non-resident Democracy Fellow at the Ash Center, argues for the development of a Department of Citizen Empowerment (DOCE) at all levels of government around the world.