Danielle Allen
Professor of Public Policy, James Bryant Conant University Professor
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.
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
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
Mathis Bitton
Doctoral Student, Harvard Government Department
Emily Clough
Research Fellow, AY2025-2026
Charlie Covit
Researcher, Harvard College
Emma Ebowe
Assistant Professor, College of William and Mary
Keren Elmore
Harvard College
Tyler Fisher
Policy Fellow, AY2025-2026
Cynthia Garcia
Researcher, Harvard College
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
Sonali Nijhawan
Policy Fellow, AY2025-2026
Christine Slaughter
Research Fellow, AY2025-2026
Summer Sun
Researcher, Harvard College
Matthew Victor
Berkman Klein Center Fellow
Kenneth Woodland
Researcher, Harvard Kennedy School
Paulius Yamin
Non-resident Policy Fellow, AY2025-2026
Joshua Tan
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Marci Harris
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Leon Erichsen
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
Beth Simone Noveck
Policy Fellow, AY2026-2027
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
Ash Center Open House – Fall 2026
In-Person Event
Ash Center Foyer, Suite 200, 124 Mount Auburn Street
4:00 pm – 6:00 pm EDT
The Latest News and Research
Political Economy of AI Essay Collection
Earlier this year, the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation hosted a convening on the Political Economy of AI. This collection of essays from leading scholars and experts raise critical questions surrounding power, governance, and democracy as they consider how technology can better serve the public interest.
Additional Resource
Watching the Generative AI Hype Bubble Deflate
As a part of the Allen Lab’s Political Economy of AI Essay Collection, David Gray Widder and Mar Hicks draw on the history of tech hype cycles to warn against the harmful effects of the current generative AI bubble.
Additional Resource
AI and Practicing Democracy
As a part of the Allen Lab’s Political Economy of AI Essay Collection, Emily S Lin and Marshall Ganz call on us to reckon with how humans create, exercise, and structure power, in hopes of meeting our current technological moment in a way that aligns with our values.
Additional Resource
AI, Digital Sovereignty, and the EU’s Path Forward: A Case for Mission-Oriented Industrial Policy
As a part of the Allen Lab’s Political Economy of AI Essay Collection, Tessel van Oirsouw explores how the EU should pursue “mission-oriented industrial policy” to align its technological development with its cross-sector strategic objectives.
Additional Resource
Medicare Advantage as Asset Management: The Pretense of Care Under Logics of Extraction
As a part of the Allen Lab’s Political Economy of AI Essay Collection, Ajeet Singh explores how AI technologies deployed in the health care sector often orient towards the extraction of greater surplus revenues at the expense of patient health.
Additional Resource
Cooperative Paradigms for Artificial Intelligence
As a part of the Allen Lab’s Political Economy of AI Essay Collection, Sarah Hubbard explores alternative ownership and governance structures for artificial intelligence that may better serve the public interest.
Commentary
Sunset and Renew: Section 230 Should Protect Human Speech, Not Algorithmic Virality
Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation Senior Fellow Allison Stanger, in collaboration with Jaron Lanier and Audrey Tang, advocate for a “repeal and renew” approach to Section 230 in an effort to reform the current social media ecosystem.
Video
Can Higher Education Help Renovate American Democracy?
The Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation hosted a webinar with several panelists to discuss a host of new campus initiatives that offer promising pathways for higher education to reassert its vital role in strengthening democracy by engaging students’ civic learning and supporting their development as civic actors.
Commentary
Tech Policy that (Actually) Serves the People
Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation Fellow Ami Fields-Meyer lays out research questions for developing a new U.S. tech policy agenda that puts people first.
Occasional Paper
The National Security Case for Public AI
Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation Fellow Alex Pascal and Vanderbilt Law Professor Ganesh Sitaraman make the case that public options for AI and public utility-style regulation of AI will enhance national security by ensuring innovation and competition, preventing abuses of power and conflicts of interest, and advancing public interest and national security goals.
Video
Building a Digital Democracy with Audrey Tang and Megan Smith
The “Building a Digital Democracy” panel brought together Audrey Tang, Megan Smith, Professor Danielle Allen, and Professor Mathias Risse for a conversation on how technology is being used to transform our political institutions.
Commentary
The First Amendment Meets the Virtual Public Square
Allen Lab Senior Fellow, Allison Stanger, argues in the Journal of Free Speech Law that Section 230 is breaking the First Amendment.
Commentary
GETTING-Plurality Public Comment on U.S. AI Safety Institute Guidance
The GETTING-Plurality Research Network recently submitted a public comment on the NIST U.S. AI Safety Institute’s “Managing Misuse Risk for Dual-Use Foundation Models” draft guidance. The full text of the public comment can be found below.
Podcast
Conference on the Political Economy of AI Podcast Episodes
Check out the podcast episodes from the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation’s Conference on the Political Economy of AI to glean insights from each panel.
Occasional Paper
Beyond the Sound and Fury: The Landscape of Curricular Contestation in Texas
In this new Occasional Paper from the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation, Hannah Kunzman and Danielle Allen offer a case study on contestation over K–12 civics curriculum in Texas.