Third Plateau reposted this
Thank you David Stanley. These are great takeaways.
I'm feeling energized coming out of this week's Democracy Funders Network (DFN) Strategy Summit in Boulder, CO. Hats off to Mike Berkowitz, Emily Thielmann, Carly Straus Chan, Toby Cavalier, Hillary Hooke, and others for curating such an impactful and thought-provoking conference that brought together many of the leading funders, donor collaboratives, and practitioners in the democracy space. I'm thinking about three things coming out of my discussions at the DFN summit... First, it's crucial for us to build as big a tent as possible in combatting authoritarianism and fighting for small "d" democracy. The long-term work of re-weaving our civic fabric requires us to find places for many more people (left, center, right) to engage together and see themselves as an integral part of this shared project. I'm inspired to see a number of groups leading the way, including Civic (Re)Solve, Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement (PACE), Civic Health Project, New Pluralists, and Trust for Civic Life. Second, a key pillar of our democracy - the integrity of our elections - faces an acute threat in 2024 and we need to channel resources right now to the organizations best positioned to ensure that the election process in November affirms (rather than erodes) public trust. I'm proud to be working with my Arabella Advisors colleagues to support Tiana Epps-Johnson (Center for Tech and Civic Life), Jake Matilsky (Center for Secure and Modern Elections), and Sam Oliker-Friedland (Institute for Responsive Government) in their efforts through the Resilient Elections Network to meet this moment and support the integrity of our elections in states and localities across the country. Third, our elections processes are deeply in need of upgrades to make them more democractic and responsive to voters, who far too often feel like their votes (and voices) don't matter. We should be investing seriously in innovations (that are taking hold in some states, and being pursued in others) to make this possible, from open primaries, to ranked choice and fusion voting, to proportional representation. It's great to see Unite America, FairVote, and Center for Ballot Freedom taking on this structural reform work. Grateful for this week's conversations and the collaborative possibilities ahead.
