Overview and Background

Democracy works best when people feel genuinely connected to it and not just as voters but as active participants in public life. Yet across America today, civic life is shrinking. Political polarization is deepening, trust in institutions is eroding, and the ways most people can engage with democracy have narrowed to a handful of transactional acts: casting a ballot, donating to a campaign, or scrolling past a political ad.

This initiative asks a fundamental question: how do we rebuild a democracy that is truly of, by, and for the people?

Too often, our political system treats citizens as targets rather than participants. They are reduced to data points to be mobilized rather than people with ideas, concerns, and a stake in collective decisions. Political parties increasingly rely on sophisticated voter data and consumer behavior profiles to reach a narrow slice of "persuadable" voters, while millions of Americans feel unseen and unheard.

Renewing Democratic Participation takes a different approach. Rather than accepting thin forms of civic engagement, this project investigates how to create richer, more meaningful opportunities for Americans to shape their communities and their government through deliberation, local organizing, and, above all, engagement with civic institutions and political parties that are genuinely accountable to the people they represent. 

Supported by Carnegie Corporation of New York, and in partnership with the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard University, the initiative brings together researchers, civic leaders, and policymakers to develop concrete solutions to rebuilding civic institutions and renewing our shared civic culture. The goal is to strengthen the institutions and associations that connect citizens to government, and help build a civic culture that is inclusive, pluralistic, and alive.

What We Have Done and Where We Are Headed

Since launching, we have brought together over 100 researchers, advocates, practitioners, and foundation representatives from universities and nonprofits across the country to explore a shared challenge: How do we reconnect citizens to the institutions that are supposed to represent them?

Our convenings have examined the organizations that sit between people and government — from houses of worship and civic groups to labor unions — and the vital role they play in giving communities a voice in democratic life while also bridging divides. A central theme has been how to foster genuine dialogue across differences at a moment when those connections are increasingly rare.

Over the next two years, the initiative will translate this work into action. We will publish a set of concrete, practical recommendations and partner with national bipartisan policy organizations to advance them, bringing fresh ideas into the rooms where decisions are made.