Policy Brief
Civic Engagement
At the Ash Center, we’re generating new ideas and insights for the future of civic engagement — everything from voter participation to democratic deliberation.
Related Programs
Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation, American Politics Speaker Series, Nonviolent Action Lab, Reimagining Democracy Program
Civic engagement — from voting to volunteering — is the engine that drives democracy forward. Robust citizen participation at every level of government provides the feedback that democratic systems require to be responsive and productive.
But what happens when people are systemically shut out of deliberation? Can we boost declining voting rates? How will we create a culture of civic engagement in an increasingly digital, AI-influenced world?
These are the questions the Ash Center community works to answer.
Our programs generate novel ideas about making civic engagement more robust, enabling everyone to participate. Ash scholars are researching how citizens can better provide input into government programs, processes, and policies. Together, we are developing a blueprint for what the future of civic engagement can look like.
We encourage you to explore the below events, research, and commentary to learn more about our work.
The Latest News, Research, and Resources
Video
Public Narratives and Organizing: A Case Study of the Stand Up with the Teachers Campaign in Jordan
Organizers and practitioners around the globe have long utilized “public narratives” as a way of connecting their work to leadership by learning to tell a story of self, a story of us, and a story of now. In this panel discussion, Ash Center Democracy Fellow Dr. Emilia Aiello examined how public narratives can contribute to community building and power building even under constrained conditions. Dr. Aiello was joined by leaders and practitioners of the Qom Ma’al Muallem (Stand Up with the Teachers) Campaign, which has been organizing for female workers rights in Jordan. The campaign was originally supported by the International Labor Organization (ILO), and coached by Ahel, a community-based organization that has aided organizing efforts that promote freedom, justice, and human rights for over ten years in countries across the Middle East, such as Jordan, Palestine and Lebanon.
Panelists include:
- Nisreen Haj Ahmad, Director of Ahel; Alumni of Harvard Kennedy School
- Nariman Al-Shawaheen, Coordinator of Stand Up with the Teachers Campaign, Jordan
- Reem Aslam, International Labor Organization, Jordan
- Dr. Emilia Aiello (Moderator), Marie Sklodowska-Curie Post-doctoral Fellow, Ash Center, Harvard Kennedy School
Feature
Rocking the vote from the ER to the Peach State
Two Kennedy School student research projects chart path forward on voter engagement.
Video
Social Movements in the Post-Trump Era: Organizing for Policy Change
In this discussion, Ash Center Democracy Postdoctoral Fellow Johnnie Lotesta talked with leaders from the environmental justice, gun violence prevention, labor, and immigration movements about how they balanced these commitments in the course of their work.
Video
Book Talk — Prisms of the People: Power & Organizing in Twenty-First Century America
The Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation hosted a book talk on Prisms of the People: Power & Organizing in Twenty-First-Century America with co-authors Elizabeth McKenna and Michelle Oyakawa.
Video
Voting Rights and Democracy Reform in the States and on the Hill
The Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation convened advocates from the states and Capitol Hill to discuss what is at stake and the strategies being used in the fight for voting rights and democracy reform.
Video
Citizen Ballot Initiatives: A New Tool for Election Reform
Video
Voting in the Extraordinary 2020 Elections: What Worked for Voters, What Didn’t?
The 2020 elections were a dramatic interplay of major procedural changes brought about as a result of COVID-19, multiple attempts to limit and discourage voting and a strong pushback against them, and extraordinary efforts to mobilize citizens to vote.
Video
Queer the Vote: Mobilizing the LGBTQ Community Ahead of the 2020 Elections
The Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation hosted a conversation to discuss the priorities of LGBTQ voters and how they are being mobilized to get out and vote in November 2020.
Video
Navigating the Rapids: Swing State Secretaries and the 2020 Elections
The Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation brought together a bipartisan group of secretaries from the key swing states of Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
Feature
A Win for Democracy
Mauzy Award-Winner Demarquin Johnson sees democratic action as the path to overcoming injustice and protecting voting rights
Video
Young Voters Could Decide the Election: Will They?
The Ash Center hosted a discussion with leading experts about the latest young voter polling data, ongoing grassroots organizing efforts, and the challenges young people face in the voting process.
Feature
A New Story for Nigeria
Recent Kennedy School Graduate Uche Pedro is leveraging her popular media brand to increase voter participation and advocate for social justice issues in Nigeria.
Q+A
How are businesses encouraging civic engagement in 2020?
The Ash Center sat down with Ashley Spillane MC/MPA 2018, president of social impact consulting firm Impactual, and Sofia Gross, Ash Center Technology and Democracy Fellow 2018-19, public policy manager at Snap, Inc.; authors of Civic Responsibility: The Power of Companies to Increase Voter Turnout, to discuss how organizations are supporting voter participation this fall.
Video
Rising: AAPI Engagement and the 2020 Elections
The Ash Center hosted a conversation with leading practitioners in the field on the importance and state of current efforts to engage AAPI voters, AAPIs’ role and connection to the Black Lives Matter movement, and the stakes of the upcoming election.