Building Civic Engagement – Facilitating Social Change
The Growing Democracy Project is a collaborative effort to build civic capacity by bringing together diverse constituencies – community members, civic leaders, grassroots organizations, and members of area universities.
We offer a variety a programs, including a community workshop series and podcast series.
We are open to anyone interested in community politics, political engagement, social activism and community organizing. Learn more about us, or get involved by signing up for our email list.
Mission (updated 2022):
Our mission is to curate brave teaching and learning spaces that amplify multiple forms of expertise and knowledge, especially systemically marginalized perspectives, in order to demystify politics, policy, and governance and foster equity-centered civic engagement.
Vision:
By sharing experiences and expertise, and learning from one another, we seek to empower communities and facilitate equitable social change.
Core Values:
- Social Justice: We are committed to challenging and disrupting social injustice and oppressive systems and working for positive, peaceful social change on behalf of and in accompaniment with vulnerable, marginalized, and oppressed groups.
- Democracy: We are committed to and value deep, participatory democracy. We believe in the promise of radically re-envisioning a more just and more equitable governing system that values both the wisdom of lived experience and the knowledge of technical expertise. We value democratic practices that foster collaboration, as well as create space for difficult dialogue.
- Nonpartisanship: We are nonpartisan (as opposed to bipartisan). We do not endorse a specific party nor candidates. We do, however, see the value in engaging in conversation with partisans to examine their understandings, experience, and approach to civic and political life.