124 Mount Auburn Street, Suite 200-North, Cambridge, MA
Darryl Pinckney, Author, and Alex Keyssar, Matthew W. Stirling Jr. Professor of History and Social Policy
Co-sponsored by the Harvard Journal of African-American Public Policy.
About the Event Throughout the history of the United States, voting rights have been progressively expanded, though in fits and starts, to our current universal suffrage. Today the U.S. is witnessing a systematic and almost unprecedented erosion of the franchise. Join Professor Alex Keyssar and author Darryl Pinckney as they discuss disenfranchisement, the legacy of the Voting Rights Act, and the state of voting rights in the United States.... Read more about Blackballed: The Black Vote and U.S. Democracy
124 Mount Auburn Street, Suite 200-North, Cambridge, MA
Stephen Goldsmith, Daniel Paul Professor of Government, Susan Crawford, co-director of Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society, and Bill Oates, Chief Information Officer for Commonwealth of Massachusetts
About the Event Harvard Kennedy School Professor Stephen Goldsmith and Harvard Law School Visiting Professor Susan Crawford will discuss their new book The Responsive City. When harnessed by dedicated leaders, they argue, data empowers communities and officials to make local government more transparent, responsive, accountable, and cost-effective, thus thickening the bonds of democracy, increasing trust in government, and improving civic life.... Read more about The Responsive City: Engaging Communities through Data Smart Governance
124 Mount Auburn Street, Suite 200-North, Cambridge, MA
Hahrie Han, Wellesley College, Sarah Hodgdon, Sierra Club, Jane Mansbridge, Adams Professor of Political Leadership and Democratic Values, and Archon Fung (Moderator), Academic Dean and Ford Foundation Professor of Democracy and Citizenship
About the Event Why are some civic associations better than others at getting – and keeping – people involved in activism? In this book talk, Hahrie Han will describe how she used in-person observations, surveys, and field experiments to compare organizations with strong records of engaging people in health and environmental politics to those with weaker records.... Read more about How Organizations Develop Activists: Civic Associations and Leadership in the 21st Century
Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation, 124 Mt. Auburn St., Suite 200-North, Cambridge, MA
Kamal Essaheb, Immigration Policy Attorney, National Immigration Law Center Tricia Farley-Bouvier, Massachusetts State Representative (D-Pittsfield) Kica Matos, Director of Immigrant Rights and Racial Justice, Center for Community Change Carlos Saavedra, Co-founder of United...
124 Mt. Auburn St., Suite 200-North, Cambridge, MA
Panel Discussion and Tweet Chat
Mat Morgan, ShoutAbout Cristina Garmendia, OpportunitySpace Seth Flaxman, TurboVote Gaurav Keerthi, Dialectic Archon Fung, Ford Foundation Professor of Democracy and Citizenship (Moderator)
About the Event Mainstream efforts in the arena of democratic reform include campaign finance reform, election administration, and reform of the electoral college. But the next democratic revolution may be driven by much smaller operators – especially start-ups riding the digital technology revolution. And Harvard University students, alumni, and faculty are launching some of the most compelling and promising tech start-ups that find creative ways to deepen democracy by mobilizing citizens and empowering them to influence the critical public and private decisions and policies that affect their lives.... Read more about Harvard University’s #Tech4Democracy Movement, with Harvard innovation lab
124 Mt. Auburn Street, Suite 200-North, Cambridge, MA
Jorrit de Jong, Lecturer in Public Policy and Management and Academic Director for the Innovations in Government Program Joseph A. Curtatone, Mayor of Somerville, Massachusetts and Senior Fellow, Ash Center
About the Session In this interactive session, Professor Jorrit de Jong and Somerville Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone will help participants develop a set of concrete recommendations for how cities like Somerville might consider the ideas and solutions discussed during the study group, from adopting or scaling tech innovations that will benefit all residents to pursuing policy goals such as tech equity and greater public engagement.... Read more about Cities, Technology and Democracy Study Group Session 4: A Call to Action
John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum, 79 John F. Kennedy Street, Cambridge, MA
A Challenges to Democracy Conversation with
Joan Blades, co-founder of MoveOn.org, MomsRising.org, and LivingRoomConversations.org Mark Meckler, President of Citizens for Self-Governance, Co-Founder and former National Coordinator, Tea Party Patriots Archon Fung, Ford Foundation Professor of Democracy and Citizenship (Moderator)
About the Event There are some who argue that the gridlock and partisanship affecting Washington is simply a reflection of the polarizing discourse and growing divide within the American public. Can we engage in more civil conversations and find common ground between the political left and right in the U.S.? Two great American leaders representing the left and the right, Joan Blades, co-founder of Momsrising.org and Moveon.org, and Mark Meckler, co-founder of Citizens for Self Governance and Tea Party Patriots, have come together to promote and encourage a safe format to build trust, appreciation for other views, and relationships.... Read more about The Tea Party and MoveOn: Finding Common Ground?
124 Mt. Auburn Street, Suite 200-North, Cambridge, MA
Matt Lira, National Republican Senatorial Committee Macon Phillips, U.S. Department of State Bureau of International Information Programs Archon Fung, Ford Foundation Professor of Democracy and Citizenship (Moderator)
About the Event This panel will feature a discussion between two of Washington’s best known digital media experts-representing both the right and the left side of the political spectrum – on the potential of digital technology to influence American democracy. There is disagreement about the significance and character of how digital technology is transforming the political process. Panelists will discuss how digital media has transformed the U.S. political landscape, or at least political communication, within both the realm of electoral politics and issue advocacy? Specifically, how have political parties and institutions differed in their attempts to harness the power of digital media to communicate with voters or potential voters?... Read more about Digital Democracy: Is Digital Technology Transforming the US Political Landscape as Expected?
Qniversity, Union Crossing, 2nd Floor, 50 Island Street, Lawrence, MA
A Panel Discussion on the Lawrence Experience Welcome Remarks by Daniel Rivera, Mayor of Lawrence
Featuring Jessica Andors, Executive Director, Lawrence Community Works Sr. Eileen Burns, SNDdeN, Executive Director, Notre Dame Education Center–Lawrence Zoila Gomez, Immigration Attorney Eliana Martinez, Teacher, Lawrence International High School Archon Fung, Ford Foundation Professor of Democracy and Citizenship, Harvard Kennedy School Asma Khalid, Reporter, WBUR (Moderator)
Reception and Panel Discussion
This event is free and open to the public, no RSVP required.
About the Event Immigration policy and paths to citizenship are hotly contested topics on the national stage, yet the impact of immigration is most often experienced on the local level. Lawrence and communities like it across the country are on the frontlines dealing with important questions and tensions that immigration can present.... Read more about Integrating Immigrant Communities into Civic and Political Life
124 Mount Auburn Street, Suite 200-North, Cambridge, MA
Using Technology to Increase Civic Engagement in Public Decision Making
Quinton Mayne, Assistant Professor of Public Policy Tom Cosgrove, Co-Founder and Current Board Member, New Voice Strategies
About the Session This interactive session will focus on ways that traditional organizing and mobilizing campaigns are incorporating digital strategies to increase engagement in the policy making process by both the public and interest groups. What are effective strategies to connect digital platforms with on-the-ground, face-to-face organizing? What are the challenges to engaging with local policy making in different sectors from education to conservation?... Read more about Cities, Technology and Democracy Study Group Session 3: From Potholes to Policies
Darryl Pinckney, Author, and Alex Keyssar, Matthew W. Stirling Jr. Professor of History and Social Policy
Stephen Goldsmith, Daniel Paul Professor of Government, Susan Crawford, co-director of Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society, and Bill Oates, Chief Information Officer for Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Hahrie Han, Wellesley College, Sarah Hodgdon, Sierra Club, Jane Mansbridge, Adams Professor of Political Leadership and Democratic Values, and Archon Fung (Moderator), Academic Dean and Ford Foundation Professor of Democracy and Citizenship
Kamal Essaheb, Immigration Policy Attorney, National Immigration Law Center
Panel Discussion and Tweet Chat
Jorrit de Jong, Lecturer in Public Policy and Management and Academic Director for the Innovations in Government Program
A Challenges to Democracy Conversation with
Matt Lira, National Republican Senatorial Committee Macon Phillips, U.S. Department of State Bureau of International Information Programs 
A Panel Discussion on the Lawrence Experience
Using Technology to Increase Civic Engagement in Public Decision Making