Through our books, case studies, journal articles, papers, and surveys, the Ash Center is home to some of the world’s most advanced research and publications on issues related to democratic governance and self-governance.
To explore all research authored by Ash Center faculty, please visit the Harvard Kennedy School website. You can view the Ash Center’s open access policy here.
Article
In a recent essay for the American Journal of Public Health, Aditya S. Pawar, Democracy Visiting Fellow; Jon Alexander, former Non-resident Democracy Fellow; Archon Fung, Director of the Ash Center; and co-authors examine how public deliberation and representative engagement can shape more efficient and reliable public health policy.
Newest
Article
A new article in the American Journal of Political Science by Yanilda María González, Ford Foundation Associate Professor of Public Policy and Ash Center affiliate, and co-author, examines public attitudes towards police violence in Brazil. The authors find that while police discourse can increase public endorsement of violence, counternarratives from marginalized victims can be effective in reducing citizen support for repressive policing.
Article
In a recent essay for the American Journal of Public Health, Aditya S. Pawar, Democracy Visiting Fellow; Jon Alexander, former Non-resident Democracy Fellow; Archon Fung, Director of the Ash Center; and co-authors examine how public deliberation and representative engagement can shape more efficient and reliable public health policy.
Article
In a recent piece for the Journal of Democracy, Matthew Cebul, Lead Research Fellow for the Nonviolent Action Lab, explores the global pattern of anticorruption movements, assessing mechanisms for navigating the “accountability-defections dilemma”—how to encourage authoritarian regime defections while maintaining democratic accountability.
Policy Brief
As technology reshapes how public officials communicate with their communities, this policy brief offers recommendations for modernizing Massachusetts Open Meeting Law to protect transparency and accountability while enabling the tools that expand access to government.
Paper
Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation authors offer the first comprehensive analysis of how Massachusetts municipalities are using technology to support civic engagement, government decision-making, and public service delivery.
Additional Resource
Published as the nation celebrates its 250th anniversary, the Carr-Ryan Center for Human Rights’ essay collection “Self-Evident Truths” gathers faculty and fellows across Harvard’s schools including the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation, to examine how well America has fulfilled its promise that all people are created equal and endowed with inalienable rights.
The included essays span democracy, technology, public health, immigration, climate, and more, providing a nuanced look at what is required to fully realize the nation’s founding ideals today.
As state and local election officials navigate complex problems, what practical solutions can strengthen their work today and equip them for the challenges ahead? A recent piece in electionline Weekly highlights the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation’s Executive Session on Elections and Election Administration, bringing together a small, bipartisan group of state and local election officials, academics, and experts to develop innovative strategies for addressing the most pressing challenges in election administration.
Paper
As traditional news declines, content creators play a growing role as information sources. This paper proposes frameworks for effective collaboration between creators and election officials and offers recommendations for officials to develop their own social media content.
Additional Resource
This resource provides accessible, reliable information on constitutional history and the roles and responsibilities involved in administering congressional elections in the United States, with the goal of advancing civic understanding among government officials, media, civic organizations, and the American public.