May 1, 2026
Many community foundations have long been champions of civic health in their communities. As place-based institutions, they understand local dynamics intimately. They are above the political fray, so they can...
February 1, 2026
An update from Matt Leighninger on the activities and progress of the Center for Democracy Innovation Dear Friends: Many people have lost confidence in the basic idea that Americans can...
January 2, 2026
Jon Abercrombie, who passed away last month, was an influential civic innovator who helped make Decatur, Georgia, a sterling example of participatory and deliberative democracy. After an already-accomplished career in...
August 31, 2025
Local institutions face a crisis of confidence in our current approach to solving public problems. Millions of reasonable Americans, in red, blue, and purple communities, don’t sufficiently know or value...
May 1, 2025
Our political system is broken. Americans don’t trust institutions (or each other) and feel that their voices are not being heard. This has been true for a while, and has...
May 27, 2024
Last month, the National Civic League’s Center for Democracy Innovation and the Institute for Democratic Engagement & Accountability (IDEA) at the Ohio State University co-hosted the second annual Global Innovations...
December 22, 2023
The following are remarks from Matt Leighninger during the Conference on Citizenship, November 30, 2023. Matt was introducing the lunch plenary, ‘Structural Reforms for the Future of Democracy,’ featuring Maureen...
December 5, 2023
Democracy and citizenship continue to evolve, spurred by new threats and new opportunities. In order to exert some control over these changes, we need to understand the nature of...
November 22, 2023
Democracy and citizenship continue to evolve, spurred by new threats and new opportunities. In order to exert some control over these changes, we need to understand the nature of the...