Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation
Renovating constitutional democracy for the 21st century
The Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation is an impact lab at Harvard Kennedy School working to renovate constitutional democracy for today’s large, complex, digitally powered society so that it delivers on its purpose: human flourishing.
Our work starts from two premises. First, democracy should not be treated as a stand-alone policy domain, but as a standard shaping how public policy is designed and evaluated. Second, democratic institutions and civic culture are mutually reinforcing. When institutions are unresponsive, people disengage; as participation and civic connection weaken, institutions become less responsive still. Realizing the promise of self-government requires reversing this cycle by strengthening both together.
Grounded in Danielle Allen’s field-defining scholarship on democracy, power-sharing liberalism, civic education, and technology, we combine research and real-world application to develop, test, and spread new frameworks and standards for democracy renovation.
Announcement
Our Record
Advancing democracy-supportive public policy
Develop and analyze new policy approaches; help establish democracy as a central consideration in emerging debates over AI and political economy through first-of-their-kind frameworks, research, and convenings; and equip future leaders to put democratic outcomes at the center of policymaking. Convened hundreds of leading economists, political scientists, journalists, writers and thinkers from across the political spectrum to explore and debate emerging visions for the future of the political economy.
Cultivating new ideas and leaders in democracy renovation
Provide students and emerging leaders with the tools to strengthen democracy; supporting Fellows producing influential books, original research, and civic initiatives, including former White House Senior Policy Advisor Ami Fields-Meyer’s On Courage, Professor Allison Stanger’s congressional testimony on democracy and Big Tech, and former AmeriCorps Director Sonali Nijhawan’s work connecting service alumni to sustain civic participation and leadership beyond service.
Building the foundation for stronger digital civic infrastructure
Produced the first Massachusetts statewide landscape analysis, building the OpenBook municipal budget transparency tool, and developing policy recommendations for digital civic infrastructure, including Open Meeting Law in the age of AI.
Strengthening civic culture
Advancing a national vision for universal civic learning across the lifespan, building a network connecting K–12, higher education, and adult civic learning, and advancing the policies needed to support lifelong civic learning.
Lab Staff
Danielle Allen
Professor of Public Policy, James Bryant Conant University Professor
Darshan Goux
PhD, Senior Lab Director
Sarah Hubbard
Associate Director for Technology & Democracy
Ryan Pell
Coordinator, Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation
Lab Members
Ben Barsky
Lab Affiliate; Assoc. Professor, UCSF Law School
Paula Berman
Non-resident Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Mathis Bitton
Doctoral Student, Harvard Government Department
Niketa Brar
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Emily Clough
Research Fellow, AY2025-2026
Charlie Covit
Researcher, Harvard College
Joshua Darr
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Daniella DiPaola
Research Fellow, AY2026-2027
Emma Ebowe
Assistant Professor, College of William and Mary
Adam Eichen
Research Fellow, AY2026-2027
Keren Elmore
Harvard College
Rani Eng
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Leon Erichsen
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Tyler Fisher
Policy Fellow, AY2025-2026
Cynthia Garcia
Researcher, Harvard College
Marci Harris
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Adam Hinds
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
David Kidd
Chief Assessment Scientist, Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics
Hannah Kunzman
Researcher;
Doctoral Student, Harvard Government Department
Hillary Lehr
Policy Fellow, AY2025-2026
Gideon Lichfield
Policy Fellow, AY2025-2026
Anne Meeker
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Sonali Nijhawan
Chief Program Officer, EdRedesign Lab
Beth Simone Noveck
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Christine Slaughter
Research Fellow, AY2025-2026
Summer Sun
Researcher, Harvard College
Joshua Tan
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Matthew Victor
Berkman Klein Center Fellow
Kenneth Woodland
Researcher, Harvard Kennedy School
Paulius Yamin
Non-resident Policy Fellow, AY2025-2026
Lab Alumni
Carly Chen
Researcher, Harvard College
Felix Chen
Harvard College
Naomi Corlette
Harvard College
Sofia Corona
Researcher, Harvard College
Caroline Curran
Researcher, Harvard College
Owen Ebose
Researcher, Harvard College
Eli Frankel
Researcher, Harvard College
Brian Highsmith
Doctoral Student, Harvard Government Department
Yen-Lin Huang
Non-resident Policy Fellow, AY2025-2026
Conner Huey
Researcher, Harvard College
Martina Jaramillo
Researcher, Harvard College
David Knight
Principal Investigator;
Post-Doctoral Fellow, Columbia University
Woojin Lim
Researcher, Harvard College
Jeremy McKey
Policy Fellow, AY2025-2026
Neil Miller
Researcher, Harvard Kennedy School
Cris Moore
Professor, Santa Fe Institute
Saddat Nazir
Researcher, Harvard College
Femi Ositade
Researcher, Harvard College
Alex Pascal
Lab Affiliate; Executive Director, Berkman Klein Center
Rishab Ramamurthy
Researcher, Harvard Law School
Charlotte Ritz-Jack
Researcher, Harvard College
Christian Schmidt
Researcher;
Master in Urban Planning Candidate, Harvard Graduate School of Design
Priyanka Sethy
Doctoral Student, Harvard Government Department
Karan Shah
Researcher, Harvard College
Allison Stanger
Senior Fellow, Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation;
Co-Director and Co-Investigator, GETTING-Plurality Research Network
Feb. 2024-Jan. 2026
Andrei Stupu
PhD; Fulbright Alumnus
Tessel van Oirsouw
EthicAI and Former Visiting Fellow, Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation
Shlomit Wagman
Allen Lab Policy Fellow AY 2023-2025
Sam Wang
Policy Fellow, AY2025-2026
Jama Willis
Communications, Harvard College
Upcoming Events
Book Talk- “Radical Duke: How One Aristocrat-and the American Revolution-Transformed Britain”
In-Person Event
Ash Center Seminar Room 225, Suite 200, 124 Mount Auburn Street
12:00 pm – 1:15 pm EDT
The Latest News and Research
Commentary
Why I’m Excited About the White House’s Proposal for a Higher Ed Compact
Last week’s leak of the U.S. Department of Education’s proposed “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education” drew intense reactions across academia. Critics call it government overreach threatening free expression, while supporters see a chance for reform and renewed trust between universities and policymakers. Danielle Allen, James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University, director of the Democratic Knowledge Project and the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation, weighs in.
Commentary
Setting the 2025-26 Agenda for the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation
Amid rising illiberalism, Danielle Allen urges a new agenda to renew democracy by reorienting institutions, policymaking, and civil society around the intentional sharing of power.
Feature
Governing with AI – Learning the How-To’s of AI-Enhanced Public Engagement
Public engagement has long been too time-consuming and costly for governments to sustain, but AI offers tools to make participation more systematic and impactful. Our new Reboot Democracy Workshop Series replaces lectures with hands-on sessions that teach the practical “how-to’s” of AI-enhanced engagement. Together with leading practitioners and partners at InnovateUS and the Allen Lab at Harvard, we’ll explore how AI can help institutions tap the collective intelligence of our communities more efficiently and effectively.
Feature
Technology and Democracy: What to Read This Summer
This list of resources, curated by the GETTING-Plurality Research Network at the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation, highlights emerging ideas at the intersection of technology and democracy.
Feature
A Summer Reading List for America’s 250th Anniversary
On July 4, 2026, America will celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. As this milestone approaches, the team at the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation has curated a collection of books, podcasts, and events that explore the meaning and impact of the declaration from 1776 to today. Join us in revisiting the document itself, reflecting on its legacy, and considering the ongoing struggle to uphold democratic ideals.
Additional Resource
Experiential Civic Learning for American Democracy
A new report provides a clear, actionable framework for effective experiential civic learning—what it is, why it matters, and how to do it well.
Additional Resource
Utah Digital Choice Act: Reshaping Social Media
The bipartisan Utah Digital Choice Act aims to reform the social media ecosystem by giving users more choice and ownership over their personal data, while encouraging platform innovation and competition.
Policy Brief
GETTING-Plurality Comments on the Development of a 2025 National AI R&D Strategic Plan
The GETTING-Plurality Research Network submitted a public comment on the Development of a 2025 National Artificial Intelligence Research and Development Strategic Plan.
Policy Brief
GETTING-Plurality Comments on Modernizing the Privacy Act of 1974
The GETTING-Plurality Research Network submitted a comment to Representative Trahan’s Request for Information to modernize the Privacy Act of 1974.
Commentary
Weaponized AI: A New Era of Threats and How We Can Counter It
Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation Fellow Dr. Shlomit Wagman lays out a framework to address the threats artificial intelligence poses to global security and democratic institutions.
Additional Resource
Why US States Are the Best Labs for Public AI
In a recent piece for Tech Policy Press, Allen Lab Senior Fellow Alex Pascal and Nathan Sanders outline how US states are well-positioned to lead the development of Public AI. State governments can act as “laboratories of twenty-first century democracy” to experiment with AI applications that directly benefit citizens.
Additional Resource
Understanding DOGE and Your Data
Over the past several weeks, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) within the Trump Administration has been embedding staff in a range of United States federal agencies. These staff have gained access to data maintained by the federal government. This guide explains what is in the data, what DOGE is doing with it, and why it matters to all Americans.
Policy Brief
GETTING-Plurality Comments on White House OSTP AI Action Plan
The GETTING-Plurality Research Network submitted a public comment on the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Request for Information on the Development of an Artificial Intelligence Action Plan.
Commentary
“A Time for Choosing” — Danielle Allen on What Comes After DOGE
At a conference earlier this month, Professor Danielle Allen argued that what we are seeing with DOGE is the real time implementation of an extreme ideological vision of the role that technology and a small cohort of its wealthiest leaders should have in the world.
Commentary
Efficiency − or empire? How Elon Musk’s hostile takeover could end government as we know it
Alison Stanger argues that the question facing Americans isn’t whether government needs modernization – it’s whether they’re willing to sacrifice democracy in pursuit of Musk’s version of efficiency.