What is 21st century citizenship, and why is an institute dedicated to it neccesary?
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In partnership with the National Association of State Boards Of Education, we've announced the first four Civic Engagement Champions, middle school teachers going the extra mile to prepare their students to play an active role in our democracy...
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The subject that originated public education has the highest stakes of all, and states like MA and IL are illuminating the path back to the future, aided by a plethora of new 21st century resources...
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“It’s a republic, not a democracy” say the defenders of minority rule. For the founders, and Noah Webster after them, there wasn’t remotely as much daylight between the two as seems to have opened up since...
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A 17-year old takes on the federal government over a rebuilding essential for our democracy--universal K-12 civic education...
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Far more than any other citizenry, we are a nation of dreamers, but this element of our identity has come under attack. What are our dreams today, and how can they be fostered, rather than dashed, in the future they were destined for?...
As we continue to celebrate our collective birthday, it's not too early to consider our next 250 through three vanguards of politics' next: the young, immigrants, and technology...
It's been called "the last refuge of scoundrels," and with the far right appropriating its trappings, it would be understandable if many Americans agreed, but a nationwide decline in patriotic fervor may account for the crossroads we find ourselves at today...
AI is the apotheosis of a world that seems increasingly untethered from reality, but it--and all artifice we create--can never be more than a reflection of us all, unless we choose to be nothing more than reflections ourselves...
We think of a constitution as a document, but it can also refer to the health of the body politic or citizens within. For our health, and our nation's, it pays to explore "the manner in which power is distributed" on a regular basis...
The pursuit of happiness has always been central to what it means to be American, but what this meant to the Founders was clearly different than what it means today, and that may well be at the heart of the problems we face...
Birthdays are always a time for reflection and taking stock. For nations, this includes their impact on the world, and in our case, includes the moment of our birth, along with everything that's followed from it...
we don't need the “king's horses” and "king’s men," but we do need concerned citizens to collaborate in reconstructing and revitalizing our democratic republic, in order to avoid fighting the same battles over and over again...
"'Tis pity, the little time we have to spend in this world, we cannot enjoy ourselves and our friends" When Lucy Knox wrote those words in 1777, the British had begun a campaign that seemed likely to split the nation. Then, as now, America was seeking...
An administration whose daily goals of ever-increasing chaos and obfuscation are increasingly echoed by the world presents an age-old conundrum: how to see the forest for the trees...
With the escalation of both rhetoric and actions by the Trump administration (and facial hair sprouting like it's 1859), the unthinkable has peeked over our horizon like a rogue planet...
"With liberty and justice for all." A pledge we've all made to this country hundreds, if not thousands of times. But these days, some of those who govern us don't seem to have much allegiance to it...
Up until January 20, 2025, our colleges and universities were among the most important institutions maintaining our leadership in the world. Since then, they've been the target of relentless attacks, some of which may be justified...
Sapiens author Yuval Noah Harari has argued that our ability to trust--and be trusted--at a distance has made us the dominant species on earth. The remarkable level of faith shown here should be our North Star--can we reach it?...
The spirit of '76 seems to be upon us, and with the installation of a new Pope, the spirit of humanity from time immemorial as well...
"We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately" --Ben Franklin...
"There are three things in the world that deserve no mercy: hypocrisy, fraud, and tyranny" --Frederick William Robertson...
Division is the hardest of the basic mathematical operations, and whether we split atoms or nations, the result is the same: the release of a lot of destructive energy...
We are all seeking vision that will inspire us and help us see our way through the present dark, a darkness that is itself the vision of others...
"In a democracy, every citizen ‘holds office.' We, the people, are the boss, and we will get the kind of political leadership, be it good or bad, that we demand and deserve." --John F. Kennedy...
The end of every year is always a time for reflection, especially with a shiny object like a national election to use as mirror. What do we see about ourselves as we head into a new year, soon to be joined by a new administration?...
A country riven by divisions showed a surprising degree of convergence in the most recent election, but with the end result literally no more "decisive" than a 23-22 football game, it's clear we're a long way from a mandate to move forward as a nation...
One definition of a bridge is a structure that provides a path over an obstacle. Another is a means for bringing people together. In these divisive times, there is a need for bridge builders--not barrier creators...
With early voting just around the corner all over the country, the latest "most important election in our lifetime" is upon us. We have the opportunity to make it the last one we call this for a while...
Our Founders were willing to give their lives for the pursuit of happiness, yet for the first time, this year the U.S. did not rank in the top 20 happiest countries. But it should be noted: the happiness report was published in March...
For decades, the study of economic development was a sleepy one, at least when it came to its fundamentals. Today, crises may have created the mother of all pivot points, with all 360 degrees potentially available...
The Founders feared them, and record numbers of Americans have declared independence from them. In a country as large and diverse as ours, they've been a source of both unity and division, and our future and theirs seem as deeply intertwined as ever...
Justice. In a world that seems increasingly devoid of it, the meaning, and even continued existence, of justice have been brought into question as never before...
In 30+ years Gallup has asked Americans if they want government to do more, or less, have they said more. Yet in the case of the virtually all the issues we care most about, majorities of us want government's role to be expanded...
The definition of intoxication has many facets. Together these descriptors tell the story of a journey many Americans are on today, across many domains, one that may require novel expansions of our definitions of malady and treatment...
Years after Simon's "Mrs Robinson" became a hit, DiMaggio wanted to know what was meant by the lyric that referred to him. "I haven't gone anywhere; I'm right here." Simon explained that he just meant that heroes are hard to find But heroes are everywhere--...
It seems like only yesterday when we made democracy the theme of this newsletter. But it was actually August, in 2019, and here we are again, with our way of life on the line--again...
Eight score ago Abraham Lincoln wondered if a nation created out of an idea "could long endure." Can there be any doubt the welcoming and gathering together of those from all over the world who believe in that idea has been the most durable answer...
Geography is the science of place and America is a very big place. Not surprisingly, in times of division, geography is often at the root of the divide, while the ways in which humanity rises above it to form common ground is our wellspring of hope...
Unity and union share the same root, but while appeals for unity are, too often, calls by "powers that be" to fall in line, unions are typically the product of contention. And yet, in the long run, more vital to unity than establishment appeals...
It's said one of the challenges in dealing with climate change is that it's so big it's hard for anyone to get their arms around it. That's because the climate in need of change goes far beyond the weather...
Those who really "call balls and strikes" know the goal of their craft is to be as invisible as possible, but those charged with settling our disputes have been anything but inconspicuous...
What makes modern firearms so deadly is the velocity with which they fire each bullet. Speed kills. And not just human beings, but truth as well...
In the depths of the Great Recession, the Obama administration found itself looking for any signs of life in the economy, which they called "green shoots." Small businesses and startups are the crocuses of economic recovery, but today it's not only the economy that's looking...
If there's anything we should have learned from the past three-plus decades, it's the importance of character in our leaders. Now that nothing appears to be disqualifying, it's up to we, the people, to rebuild our national values...
Our democracy would be hard for any of the Founders to recognize, especially Thomas Jefferson, who believed the only "safe repository" for "ultimate power" was--and is--we, the people, a conviction rooted in his fierce faith in the power of education...
There are few words in the English language that provide better fodder for oxymorons than "intelligence." And yet it's never been more important to understand what it is...
So many of our current disputes between left and right ultimately come down to differing definitions of just one word: freedom. Which is not surprising because, with apologies to Kris Kristofferson, it means *everything* to lose...
Fall is the time when high school and college graduates return to their almae matres and come together to share what they've learned and hope for. The recent elections felt something like a homecoming on the political and existential front: are they?...
If love of it is, as the Bible says, "the root of all evil," what does it mean that we as a nation value money so much? And what might we choose as our cultural currency instead?...
Mental health has always been a problem for a segment of Americans. The pandemic, political polarization, and now inflation have increased the size of that segment substantially, turning what Freud called the "oceanic experience" of oneness into relentless waves of PTSD...
As the Founders created their new form of government, they quickly realized the need for checks on its power, from which emerged, most sweepingly, the 1st Amendment. But as our democracy comes under fire, the role of the media as defender has been subject to...
Many of our earliest flags and symbols were arboreal for good reason; like a tree, our democracy has sheltered us from the elements and spread wide to embrace all denizens, but some today fail to understand the common imperative of trees and democracy, seeing the...
We've been told repeatedly in recent years that we're living in an increasingly Orwellian Brave New World, which might be true if Orwell and Huxley had been dropping acid as they wrote. Fiction is becoming stranger than truth--and being perceived as true in the eyes...
All across the country, it's commencement season again, and leaders are fanning across the country to give advice. When it comes to careers, the future may never have been so compelling...
As the conflict in Ukraine continues to evolve, it increasingly 'spits bars' from our own history and experience. Cumulatively, its inflections and outcomes may represent turning points in democracy's struggle against authoritarianism, both domestically and around the world...
With Russia’s invasion of the Ukraine, an entire era reached forward from the past to prove Faulkner right and push us all backwards and off-balance. Do we still have the collective resolve to move this nation and the world forward?...
Optimism has always been integral in our rise to the first rank, if not the pinnacle, of nations. Now would be the worst time in at least eighty years, if not our entire history, to lose it. ...
As we reach the end of another tumultuous year, it's clearly time for taking stock in advance of even more critical times ahead. Nothing better indicates the urgency of doing so than this recent poll result: 71% of Republicans believe our democracy is under major threat....
It's said that in life, we go through three stages: dependence, independence, and interdependence. As a nation, like mid-lifers in crisis, we've been stuck in the second stage for more than 250 years...
Never in our history have we seemed so lost, so unsure of who we are. Instinctively, like children, we seek to go back to our beginnings. But origins nearly always prove more complex than we expected...
There are six degrees of separation from the past, not in sequence, but overlapping, like waves: embrace it, reject it, avoid it, ignore it, learn from it, build on it...
At a time when mistrust is at its highest levels since the Civil War, we have to work together like we haven't since World War II. New understandings and new forms of engagement are going to be necessary in all sectors...
In his farewell address, Washington was very clear about his top-of-mind fear for our democracy: political parties. And yet it's hard to imagine the progress we've made w/out the Ds and Rs...
Presidential transitions are normally quiet affairs. This year's, belated to begin with, promises to be long, and touch all aspects of American life as few have seen government so much as attempt...
Normally we put this issue out in early January, but this year, 2020 lasted longer than usual, all the way to December 51st. The good news is that even though 2020 seemed to go on forever, it produced many ideas and initiatives worth re-sharing...
It sounds like such a gloomy way to begin the new year, especially after the gloom-filled epithet of a year preceding. But post-mortems are actually the first green shoots, the beginning of hope...
This past month, American democracy had a near-death experience. It's clear that we need to treat not just the symptoms, but the disease, and find ways to prevent it from recurring, but how?...
If you think you’ve seen this movie before, you have. It’s not Bill Murray in Groundhog Day, though. It’s Donald Trump making baseless claims about the system being rigged...
We yearn for simplicity, we rely on small business for jobs & innovation, technology & globalization provide unprecedented opportunities for the small. And yet everywhere smallness looks to be endangered...
If George Wallace were alive today, he might well amend his infamous cry. Every part of America is diversifying, and even the birds and bees know it's essential to our future...
America has become like the lattices of an apple pie, a nation engaged in much parallel play. Where lattices meet lies both conflict and resolution, the harmony and balance between diversity and divides...
When the 1918 pandemic, the Great Depression, and the 1960s combine, we're in need of intensive care: healing must come first, before we can recover...
Regression can be a good thing. In software and statistics it's used to find mistakes; in politics, it's being used to make them...
It's too much to expect, but it's not too much to ask -- Joe Diffie, 1958-2020 Pray for us all. Especially those in ICUs, all alone. And those trying to save them...
It may seem like we are in a long national nightmare from which we will never awaken. But that need not be, if we citizens remember that America is the land of second chances, but not straight lines...
Last year, we took our February fingertips to the United Kingdom; this year's travelogue landed us in India, the world's largest democracy, struggling with challenges that eerily mirror our own...
Out of the tumult of 2019 have emerged many inspiring stories and ideas, which we celebrate with our second annual "best of" edition, recognizing both the posts and stories you, our community, liked best (based on your clicks) and those that were our favorites....
The Latin root of education, educare, means to lead out. In a 'post-truth' world, teachers, the nation's curators and explainers of knowledge, are going to play an outsized role in holding our republic together...
When is enough enough? It's a question we must ask with respect to so many aspects of our lives in these times. In politics today, the query is with us daily, because impeachment is the Constitution's way of posing it...
Our greatest president, Abraham Lincoln, once observed: "Capital is only the fruit of labor. Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration." How times have changed--and not...
Since his election, the current President and his administration have fractured American democracy and divided its citizenry, most painfully and personally along generational lines. The steps that citizens of all stripes and ages are already engaged in to insure an unbroken arc of progress in...
"It's a republic, not a democracy" say the defenders of minority rule, sliding into authoritarianism. For the founders, and Noah Webster after them, there wasn't remotely as much daylight between the two as seems to have opened up since. There are serious questions now about what our democracy...
It was an American, General Douglas MacArthur, who coined the phrase “rules are made to be broken.” Rule breaking and rule rewriting have been American traditions since the founding of the nation. But the tension over what rules to change and how to change them...
Infrastructure Week has become a running gag, but it's no laughing matter; our infrastructure is not only key to overcoming a surprising array of challenges we face, but may be our best chance to unite again...
The bright side of our current political environment is that there has been a renewed focus on civic engagement. In this edition we highlight selected activities in this emerging era of 21st century citizenship...
Issues of opportunity, the common good, and government’s role in promoting each have been fundamental since the founding of the Republic. How they are addressed and who benefits has not always been simple or straightforward, a dynamic that continues to the present day...
The Greek root for "-topia" is "topos," which just means "place," as in "topography." As we map the future, whether technology will produce a utopia, a dystopia, or just what a techtopia is generically--a technology place, a world of tech--is very much in human hands...
Great Britain didn't just colonize the US, she gave birth to our nation. We rebelled against her as youngsters, have grown close since, fought beside her, like family, many times. As we hit middle age as a nation, and doubts creep in, we look ahead...
It's customary for many publications to wrap up the year with "best of" lists of one kind or another. For each of our standard categories, we present the articles that you liked the best--people's choice--followed by our "editor's choice...
The November elections were like rains in California fire country, or calm blue skies in Florida after a monster tropical depression. When we survive a brush with death in a natural disaster, our task turns to assessing the damage: what's broken, what can be...
People are saying' we can't tax (or spend) our way out of the challenges ahead of us. They're right. To take on problems that seem so much bigger than we are, we can't just eat the pie, we have to make it bigger. We explore...
Never in our lifetimes has the famous aphorism of early 18th century Prussian general and military theorist Carl von Clausewitz, that 'politics is war by other means,' seemed so apt...
The 'post-truth' era of 'alternative facts' obscures a deeper reality. That in politics, as in life, it's not what we don't know that's getting us into trouble, it's what we're sure we know that just ain't so. And Mark Twain didn't say that, neither...
In our bodies, we have a word and a name for untrammeled growth: cancer. In the body politic, it seems ultimately to lead to dissolution as well...
In times like these, moral arcs become a source of comfort. Should they be? We trace these rainbows across the sky of history–individual, social, even biological...
As it becomes increasingly clear that all of us will have to be accountable for what our leaders will not, we head into a 21st century Freedom Summer that can have no end...
With all the chaos emanating out of Washington daily, it's hard to know where to turn–but some are managing to ignore the noise and keep their eyes on the prize...
The arc of justice seemed to quicken in its pace and pliability this month, in thrall to the high metabolism of the social media generation and their double-edged sword...
Looking back on the past month, we're reminded that predicting how history will view events is like playing pool with the balls in constant motion...
Announcing the Frank Islam Institute for 21st Century Citizenship, created to address an increasing civic engagement deficit and enhance the concept of citizenship for the challenges and opportunities of our times...
