Read the latest news, commentary, and analysis from the Ash Center.
Podcast
In the season 2 premiere of Terms of Engagement, Archon Fung and Stephen Richer revisit January 6 with journalist Mary Clare Jalonick to examine what the January 6 Capitol attack reveals about democratic trust, accountability, and political violence.
Newest
Podcast
Over the past five years, Untying Knots has served as a vital platform for conversations about racial justice, systemic oppression, and community-driven change. Co-hosted by Erica Licht and Nikhil Raghuveera, the podcast — born from a Harvard Kennedy School course in 2020 — explored how people and institutions are working to dismantle entrenched systems of racial inequity while building new frameworks rooted in justice and accountability. As the podcast concludes, Licht and Raghuveera reflect on its origins, evolution, and enduring impact, offering insights into the lessons learned and the powerful voices that shaped its journey.
Commentary
Contrary to conventional wisdom, the size and scale of anti-Trump protests this year have dwarfed those in 2017, and they have been extraordinarily peaceful. This article was originally published in Waging Nonviolence.
Feature
Caren Yap, MPP 25, drew on her immigrant background and Nevada roots to bring a powerful commitment to equity and community engagement to the Harvard Kennedy School, where she challenged institutional norms, built bridges between regions, and emerged more resolved than ever to serve and uplift Las Vegas.
Feature
A collection of must-reads curated by Ash Center’s Reimagining Democracy team.
Feature
The official start of Summer is almost here, and Stephen Richer, Senior Practice Fellow in American Democracy and former elected Maricopa County Recorder, shares his summer reading list with a range of books focused on his work of democracy and elections, as well as his personal favorites.
Media Release
The Harvard Project on Indigenous Governance and Development’s Honoring Nations program is thrilled to announce the selection of six outstanding tribal programs advancing to the site visit round for the 2025 awards.
Feature
In its first 100 days, the Trump administration has taken sweeping, aggressive action against federal employees, impacting hundreds of thousands of workers and sending ripple effects across the country. Still, unions have stood strong, with the AFL-CIO, AFT, AFSCME, SEIU, and others filing over a dozen lawsuits to protect workers’ rights.
Commentary
Matthew Cebul and Sharan Grewal explain that dictators around the world have been emboldened by the Trump administration’s abandonment of democracy and human rights norms, but crackdowns may spark stronger and more unified pro-democracy movements.
Commentary
Despite these unprecedented investments in mobilizing voters, overall trust in electoral health, democratic institutions, voter satisfaction, and electoral engagement have significantly declined. What might we be missing? Bruce Schneier and Hillary Lehr explore ways to enhance the voter experience in elections.