Civic leaders who organize their key stakeholders to govern in the interest of the common good must first begin with civic imagination. This is a core concept in civic organizing that is owned and taught by all civic leaders who are building a base of active citizens: every decision you make in every place of Read More
We are testing a framework and approach, called Civic Governance (also called Civic Policymaking), as a strategy for transitioning our current approach to watershed governance to a civic approach. We are intentionally moving away from an expert-based, government-agency-driven system, toward one that is partnership-based and made up of citizens across our watersheds so that governing our waters is within the role and responsibility of all citizen leaders, from public and private sectors, throughout Minnesota. We have established three pilot projects to test this approach: two in the mostly rural St. Croix River Basin and one in the mostly urban Como Lake watershed. Read More
The questions most frequently asked by organization and community leaders who are exploring civic organizing reveal the immediate interests common to leaders across settings: How do we get the right stakeholders at the table to address an issue and organize ownership across their diversity to implement solution strategies? How can we organize a base of Read More
Kowalski’s Markets has dedicated substantial resources in terms of time and money to send all of their leadership personnel through an in-depth training course on civic organizing and civic leadership. Kowalski’s has undertaken a new approach to policy making, based on democratic practices, which we use to solve business issues and meet our goals. Read More
Human beings are political by nature. Politics is what we do when we define problems and advance solution strategies. In the process, we follow, set, ignore, or break rules.
Politics is always grounded in a set of principles or values that justifies the need to take action and achieve our purpose. Read More
Many individuals and systems have chosen to disassociate with politics—some even openly speak out against politics. Even politicians say, “Oh, it’s just political” as if the process that defines their work is degrading. When I hear politicians say this, I think, would a teacher say, “Oh, that’s just education” referring to teaching as if it were evil. Read More
In the realization that something is wrong with the very civic fabric of our society rather than simply the ethics of individuals or any one sector, Tony Massengale and I (with the help of many key partners) co-authored the Civic Organizing Framework. Read More
Like a lot of people, I used to think politics was just about government, elections, and politicians. The word conjured images of power brokers and back room deals and had little, if anything, to do with me. As a leader in the Minnesota Active Citizenship Initiative (MACI), my understanding of politics has deepened and changed, Read More
Just to make myself miserable, I’ll sometimes play the “what if” game. What if I could have known the recent recession was coming? What would I have done differently with my family’s resources, or the Citizens League’s? Ah, how the world would be different if I had only known. Minnesota is in the middle of its own financial “what if” game right now, except that…we know what’s coming. Read More
“So, I ask here, What’s next for our country, For the world? The same old questions and the same old answers? No! That just won’t do! A twenty-first century Citizenship Education Program approach, combining lessens from the historic movement with modern technology and new ways of seeing and understanding our problems and challenges, just might Read More
Reflections on Charlottesville
The events surrounding Charlottesville, Virginia recalls this conversation with Tony Massengale as we responded to media images showing the heartbreaking and disproportionate impact of Hurricane Katrina on African Americans in New Orleans. Our reflection focused on the inability to address these factors in a constructive manner. Read More
Renewing the Public Congregation Case Study 2014
This Renewing the Public Congregation case study is presented by the Islamic Civic Society of America. Islamic Civic Society of America (ICSA) demonstrates the compatibility between Islamic and Civic principles in a democratic society. Members of ICSA are dedicated to governing for the common good while addressing the specific needs of the Muslim community. The Read More