Rural communities are home to nearly 20% of the people in the United States but receive only 7% of US foundation funding. While election year dynamics in particular tend to train many democracy donors’ attention to the states and cities where most Americans live (particularly swing districts), we can’t truly talk about a healthier democratic future without including America’s rural communities in the conversation.

Rural America is not a monolith. It is a deeply diverse community that represents many of America’s points of identity and success as a country. At the same time rural America has experienced a pervasive lack of investment that has led to high levels of distrust and low levels of civic infrastructure. The resulting impact is a rural America that is 25% more likely to live in poverty and actually face higher mortality and incarceration rates than their urban counterparts. Anti-democratic forces recognize these challenges and are capitalizing on rural disaffection to frame the enemy of the rural working class as immigrants, people of color, and coastal elites who are quick to discount “flyover country.” A study by the Voter Study Group found that the more rural a voter’s community was, the more likely a voter was to believe that Donald Trump won the 2020 election.

Against this backdrop, rural Americans maintain disproportionate political influence. By 2040, 70 percent of the Senate will be elected by just 30 percent of Americans. If we don’t authentically include rural revitalization in a democracy agenda, we are missing a key part of the equation and reinforcing the perception that national institutions and elites discount the lives and importance of rural communities. We must listen to the diverse perspectives of those on the ground in rural America to ensure a forward-looking democracy agenda is responsive to their needs.

In this program, participants will hear from leading rural funders and practitioners on why rural America is important to the future of American democracy, and why a philanthropic agenda for rural investment needs to extend far beyond building constituencies that can impact election results to improve the long-term civic health of rural communities.

REGISTER HERE>

Join Democracy Funders Network and Trusted Elections Fund to learn about critical work taking place around the country to safeguard democracy and promote a free and fair election. Enjoy cocktails and networking from 4:00-5:00, followed by brief remarks and a rich discussion about how Bay Area funders can play a vital role in 2024 and beyond. 

REGISTER HERE>

Propaganda - and a toxic information ecosystem dominated by a few chaos agents - is not new to the United States. What is unprecedented is the speed and quantity that we are dealing with in this technological era.

Join us for a member-only DFN program where Jon Rauch will be in conversation with Renée DiResta about how a shifting system of power and influence has profoundly transformed how public opinion is shaped, impacting social cohesion and often eroding the trust people have in their institutions. What further erosion lies ahead? How can we hold propagandists and their disciples to account? How do leaders adapt and fight back?

Renée’s new book, Invisible Rulers, dives deeper into these themes. Available on June 11, Invisible Rulers is available for pre-order now.

REGISTER HERE>>

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In recent election years, the democracy funding community has given at unprecedented levels, and largely succeeded in averting the worst potential outcomes for the health of American democracy. And yet, as we begin the 2024 election year, it appears that American democracy is once again facing a number of urgent and existential threats. But at the same time, we know that in order for liberal democracy to be sustained over the long term, we need to think beyond election cycles and address the root causes of our democratic degradation.

Available by request directly from our team, DFN’s recently released election-year giving guide paints a broad picture of the major lanes for funders who would like to make strategic investments to get our democracy through this critical election year. Within each lane, it also outlines some key ideas for funders to understand and some of the core organizations or initiatives in need of support.

Join DFN for a conversation among funders about their investment strategies in this critical year and learn how your peers are navigating the landscape. How are funders weighing risks and opportunities? How are they balancing short- and long-term needs? Are funders doubling down on existing strategies and investments, or adding new work to their portfolios? With the recent All by April call for philanthropy to move election-related giving by April, how are funders navigating their timelines for getting money out the door? And finally, with no shortage of election-related giving options, how does one ultimately make choices about where to invest?

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Join Democracy Funders Network for a funder happy hour at Cornerstone in Berkeley! 2024 is going to be a critical year for the health of American democracy, and now is the perfect time to build relationships that will support us through the times ahead. Whether you’re looking to get to know other local funders investing in pro-democracy work or discuss key democracy strategies, this is the perfect opportunity to come learn and be in community with your peers. Drinks and appetizers are on DFN.

Following happy hour, we invite you to join us for a book talk by Michael Waldman, president and CEO of the Brennan Center for Justice. He’ll be at Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy discussing his new book, The Supermajority: How the Supreme Court Divided America, with Maria Echaveste of the Opportunity Institute. Registration for this event is separate - sign up here - but the DFN team will be attending and happy to coordinate a group walk (~20 minutes) or shared rides from happy hour to the book talk.

REGISTER & LEARN MORE HERE>

Too often, democracy in America is discussed only through the narrow prism of elections. It can be hard for the field to consider what civic engagement and civic infrastructure look like outside of this frame, particularly in a major election year. And yet the practice of democracy extends far beyond periodically exercising the right to vote. In a time of deep polarization and disaffection, people’s trust in government and their fellow residents is directly related to their believing they have agency, that government will be responsive to their preferences, and that government at all levels will deliver materially for them in their everyday lives.

A broad set of actors around the world are applying and testing new methods of participatory governance, and there is growing interest in the United States. Collaborative governance – or “co-governance” – models such as participatory budgeting and citizens assemblies offer more responsive and equitable structures for engaging the public in collective problem solving and in making and implementing policy. What is this “deliberative wave,” and how is it emerging in the United States? What models have been tested so far, what is still unknown, and how might funders support these types of experiments? Finally, what might be possible if thinking beyond elections and adopting a more expansive definition of civic engagement became the norm in the United States?

Register

Harassment of U.S. funders and their grantees is increasing and is likely to be an ongoing problem as authoritarians erode America’s democratic norms. Harassment comes in many forms, including physical, cyber, legal, and political threats, and it affects a range of organizations and leaders, from social conservatives to progressives. The common thread is that it makes it harder for grantees and their funders to be effective, as it closes the civic space that is vital to any functioning democracy. Harassment drains resources, stops institutions from advancing their missions, and sends a chilling signal to others.

Fortunately, funders are in a position to make a difference on this urgent issue for the field. Please join the Democracy Funders Network and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation for a briefing with leading experts, including Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Senior Fellow Rachel Kleinfeld and philanthropic strategist Peter Teague, on the nature of the problem and potential solutions to keep funders and grantees safe and effective, keep the public space open, and de-escalate tensions that lead to violence. This program is relevant for funders in the democracy space as well as a range of other areas such as climate change, education, women’s rights, and LGBTQ+ rights.

Register here. 

(*Note: This session is not a 501(c)(3) friendly conversation.*)

Election season is upon us. Although we know we need to cultivate a long-term agenda for democracy that thinks well beyond election cycles, we are approaching another election where the stakes for democracy could be dire, possibly irreversibly so. The Republican Party and mainstream conservatism in the U.S. have been largely captured by the far-right autocratic movement, and the former president at the center of that capture appears to have a viable path to another term. In order for right-wing extremism to recede in the U.S., it will need to suffer consistent electoral defeat, which will require strategic and sustained opposition from a broad pro-democracy coalition from left to right. Electoral success will also require new strategies that help both major political parties speak to key constituencies who may feel disillusioned or abandoned by the parties as they have been operating. Join us for this Winning Coalition series, in which you will hear from 4 high-performing groups across the political spectrum working in creative ways to ensure that democracy wins at the ballot box in 2024 and long-term.

Briefings:

• December 12, 11am-12pm PT/2-3pm ET: Welcome Party

• January 9, 9:30-10:30am PT/12:30-1:30pm ET: Republican Accountability Project

This Eventbrite date is only set to the third session on December 12. If you sign up for the series, you will receive Google calendar invites for the third and fourth sessions. Please try to let us know if you are not able to make one of the sessions. Password-protected recordings (including the first and second sessions, with The Rural West Project and Mormon Women for Ethical Government) will be available for a limited time to series registrants who need to miss an individual session. Because we will be discussing electoral politics, no session will be 501(c)(3)-friendly.

REGISTER HERE>

Hear from a panel of experts discuss a new report from More in Common and the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University, Searching for a New Paradigm: Collective Settings. The report makes the case for reinvigorating civic infrastructure as a complement to existing institutional reform and bridge-building efforts. The panelists will discuss a wide range of scholarship to argue that healthy civic infrastructure – what the report refers to as “collective settings” - exhibits four key features: 1) They are designed with shared governance structures that engage participation across a wide group of stakeholders and make transparent power-sharing agreements; 2) They have institutionalized mechanisms for accountability so that all those affected have a chance to co-create solutions, 3) They feature public relationships that embrace difference; and, 4) They celebrate open-endedness and experimentation. The webinar will dive into the strengths and challenges of institutional reform, bridgebuilding, and collective settings work, to make the case that the democracy field will be better served by strategies that advance all three kinds of paradigms.

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Whether they are elected, appointed, or career civil servants, the people who make up our local-, state-, and federal-level institutions make a considerable impact on representation and trust in government. We entrust these individuals to make our government more effective, responsive, and accountable to the diverse constituencies they serve. Yet all too often these officials do not share the identities or lived experiences of the communities they represent. This includes gender, race, and ethnicity as much as it does education level, geography, and class. Political distrust is intertwined with failure of representation; people’s trust in government actors goes down when they perceive that those actors do not share their values and interests.

While the federal workforce as a whole is actually about as racially diverse as the U.S. population, people of color are underrepresented in senior-level positions in the federal government. Women are over 50% of the U.S. population yet only around 30% of local, state, and federal elected officials. In the U.S. Senate alone, there are three times more men named John than there are moms of minor children, and Diane Feinstein’s replacement Laphonza Butler will be only the third Black female Senator ever. Some identities are even less well represented in government, including individuals living with disabilities or who are LGBTQ, making up only 10% and .2% of elected officials at the local, state or federal level respectively.

Structural and institutional barriers perpetuate existing inequities and make it harder for underrepresented groups like women and people of color to get into and stay in government service, leaving decision-making tables devoid of their critical perspectives. What are philanthropy and civil society doing to impact representation in government at the state and federal levels? How can structural reforms that address everything from campaign funding rules to electoral systems make an impact on representation? How can philanthropy transcend the distractions of “identity politics” controversies, and instead reframe diversity in government as a nonpartisan democracy issue?

Featured Speakers:

• George Cheung, More Equitable Democracy

• Liuba Grechen Shirley, Vote Mama Foundation

• Larissa Martinez, Women’s Public Leadership Network

• Jenny Mattingley, Partnership for Public Service

REGISTER HERE>

In a high-risk moment for political violence like the one America faces today, steering individuals away from political violence is a critical element of supporting the health of our democracy. There are a few key ways to approach this goal, including creating off-ramps for individuals who are being drawn into extremist spaces and ensuring violent actors are held accountable as a deterrent to would-be followers.

Join DFN’s Political Violence Working Group (PVWG) to hear from leaders working in these spaces. Their work includes tactics such as deploying targeted online advertising to steer at-risk individuals away from extremist content; creating resources for parents, teachers, mental health counselors, and others to recognize and intervene at the early stages of radicalization; brining impact litigation to cut off violent groups’ funding and momentum; and supporting legal accountability for political violence. We’ll discuss the bright spots in this work, and what resources and support are still needed to ensure our elections, communities and institutions are safe from violent extremism.

All funders in the DFN community are invited to join us for peer conversation and discussion with our featured speakers:

• Cynthia Miller-Idriss, Founding Director, Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab (PERIL)

• Vidhya Ramalingam, Founder & CEO, Moonshot

• Rachel Goodman, Counsel, Protect Democracy

REGISTER HERE>

DFN’s Political Violence Working Group is a forum for funders interested in preventing and mitigating political violence. Members meet monthly to connect with and learn from each other and leading practitioners in the space, and to explore political violence trends, intervention bright spots, and needs in the field. Email DFN Program Director Carly Straus Chan to learn more at carly@thirdplateau.com.

Liberal democracy relies on checks and balances to ensure that political majorities do not trample the rights of political minorities. The United States has the opposite challenge today, however: countermajoritarian institutions—some written into the Constitution and others developed by custom over time–-are preventing political majorities from being able to translate public will into public policy. The Electoral College means that a candidate winning millions more votes than their opponent will not necessarily be elected president. The small-state bias in the Senate leads voters in populous states to be underrepresented in that body, and the filibuster means that even being in the majority is no guarantee of being able to enact policy.

While many revere the wisdom of the Constitution and other countermajoritarian institutions, Daniel Ziblatt and Steven Levitsky point out that the U.S. is a global exception for how little and infrequently we have updated the “pre-democratic” elements of our founding document. Ziblatt and Levitsky, authors of the best-seller How Democracies Die and the new book, Tyranny of the Minority, will join us for a discussion about the minoritarian crisis that threatens American democracy and the imperative of reforming some of our most historically-revered institutions—including the Constitution itself.

REGISTER HERE>

This program is co-hosted by Patriots & Pragmatists and Democracy Funders Network. Members of both networks are invited to attend. If you have any questions about your membership status or eligibility, please reach out to Hillary Hooke. Participants are requested to adhere to Chatham House Rule.

Election season is upon us. Although we know we need to cultivate a long-term agenda for democracy that thinks well beyond election cycles, we are approaching another election where the stakes for democracy could be dire, possibly irreversibly so. The Republican Party and mainstream conservatism in the U.S. have been largely captured by the far-right autocratic movement, and the former president at the center of that capture appears to have a viable path to another term. In order for right-wing extremism to recede in the U.S., it will need to suffer consistent electoral defeat, which will require strategic and sustained opposition from a broad pro-democracy coalition from left to right. Electoral success will also require new strategies that help both major political parties speak to key constituencies who may feel disillusioned or abandoned by the parties as they have been operating. Join us for this Winning Coalition series, in which you will hear from 4 high-performing groups across the political spectrum working in creative ways to ensure that democracy wins at the ballot box in 2024 and long-term.

Note: If you sign up for the series, you will receive calendar invites for each session. Please try to let us know if you are not able to make one of the sessions. Password-protected recordings will be available for a limited time to series registrants who need to miss an individual session. Because we will be discussing electoral politics, no session will be 501(c)(3)-friendly.

REGISTER HERE>

Over the last few years, the relationship between faith and democracy has been of growing interest to funders. While there has long been a robust debate in America about the proper relationship between government and religions, there is also a sustained and evolving relationship between faith and democracy. Plenty of headlines have spotlighted the ways they are influencing each other–both positively and negatively.

How are grantmakers to make sense of it all?

A newly released Funding Guide for Faith and Democracy aims to explore the role of faith communities in shaping and making American civic life, while providing a framework for funders to engage with faith communities as partners in advancing a stronger and more inclusive democracy. This guide is meant for funders who are focused on democracy and civic life and can increase their impact by engaging faith communities. It is also for funders who are already investing in faith-inspired organizations but who are seeking a deeper understanding of the unique role those organizations play in the health of democracy and civic life.

REGISTER HERE>>

Election season is upon us. Although we know we need to cultivate a long-term agenda for democracy that thinks well beyond election cycles, we are approaching another election where the stakes for democracy could be dire, possibly irreversibly so. The Republican Party and mainstream conservatism in the U.S. have been largely captured by the far-right autocratic movement, and the former president at the center of that capture appears to have a viable path to another term. In order for right-wing extremism to recede in the U.S., it will need to suffer consistent electoral defeat, which will require strategic and sustained opposition from a broad pro-democracy coalition from left to right. Electoral success will also require new strategies that help both major political parties speak to key constituencies who may feel disillusioned or abandoned by the parties as they have been operating. Join us for this Winning Coalition series, in which you will hear from 4 high-performing groups across the political spectrum working in creative ways to ensure that democracy wins at the ballot box in 2024 and long-term.

Note: If you sign up for the series, you will receive calendar invites for each session. Please try to let us know if you are not able to make one of the sessions. Password-protected recordings will be available for a limited time to series registrants who need to miss an individual session. Because we will be discussing electoral politics, no session will be 501(c)(3)-friendly.

LEARN MORE & REGISTER HERE>

Getting voters to the polls for an election is no easy feat. It requires ensuring that voters are registered, that they are knowledgeable and engaged around the issues on the ballot, and that they have all the information they need about how, when, and where to vote. Adding to the challenge now are widespread mis- and dis-information and dwindling trust in elections and in government more broadly. Join BADF for a happy hour where we will explore the fundamental question: what does it take to mobilize voters?

Joined by Luis Lozada, CEO of Democracy Works and Tatenda Musapatike, CEO and Founder of Voter Formation Project, we’ll explore the innovative ways each of their organizations are using technology in their efforts to inform and turn out voters. Luis and the team at Democracy Works focus on providing reliable voting guidance through the websites, apps, and groups voters trust. In preparation for the 2024 election, Democracy Works will also turn their expertise towards a new challenge: making sure generative AI tools are sharing accurate information about how to vote. Meanwhile, Voter Formation Project uses long-term digital advertising strategies - including some of Democracy Works’ tools - to engage, register, and mobilize new and infrequent voters of color. For the 2024 election, VFP will be working to increase the participation of hard-to-reach Black and Latiné audiences in battleground states. Using innovative ad buying targeting techniques, VFP will place culturally relevant content directly in front of people who would otherwise not be exposed to online civic engagement and voting information.

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We hope you can join us for this special discussion on Friday, Sept. 15—Democracy Day—that will highlight efforts in philanthropy to support election reporting.

In partnership with Media Impact Funders, Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement (PACE), Democracy Funders Network (DFN) and Funders’ Committee for Civic Participation (FCCP), Democracy Fund will hold a one-hour virtual briefing on the intersection of democracy, elections, and journalism.

Earlier this year, Democracy Fund hosted listening sessions with a wide cross-section of journalism and elections grantees and partners. The goal was to hear directly from the field about the threats and opportunities for local and community journalism anticipated in upcoming and future election cycles. The result was powerful messages about what’s at stake in 2024 and how philanthropy can support. 

In this virtual meeting, the team will unpack major themes and takeaways with newsroom leaders, and encourage a dialogue with funders who are engaged in democracy, civic participation and have an interest in building capacity for journalism in and beyond election cycles.

Featuring:

• Dana Coester, Editor In Chief, 100 Days in Appalachia, and Professor, West Virginia University Reed College of Media

• Angelica Das, Associate Director, Public Square Program, Democracy Fund (moderator)

• Jin Ding, Chief of Staff and Operations, Center for Public Integrity

• Shaun Griswold, Editor, Source New Mexico

This member briefing is organized in partnership with Democracy Fund and co-hosted with PACE, DFN and FCCP.

Democracy Fund is an independent and nonpartisan, private foundation that confronts deep-rooted challenges in American democracy while defending against new threats. Since 2014, we have made grants of more than $275 million in support of those working to strengthen our democracy through the pursuit of a vibrant and diverse public square, free and fair elections, effective and accountable government, and a just and inclusive society.

Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement (PACE) is a member-centric philanthropic laboratory for funders seeking to maximize their impact on democracy and civic life in the United States. Our members share a belief that America will be healthier and more successful, resilient, and productive, if democracy is strong and the office of citizen is treated as central to how it functions. We believe that American democracy will thrive when all of its people are informed and engaged in the process of creating it.

The Democracy Funders Network (DFN) is a community for donors who want to learn together, build and strengthen relationships, and ultimately identify opportunities for coordination and collaboration. We convene and connect funders, curate programs, develop informational materials, and advise donors on their democracy investments. DFN serves new and existing funders in the democracy field.

The Funders’ Committee for Civic Participation (FCCP) is an innovative and thought-provoking network that shares an underlying conviction that all people deserve a voice in the democratic process. We serve leaders in the philanthropic community working to further this vision with heightened attention to sociopolitical inequity and the systemic disenfranchisement of underrepresented communities. FCCP values transparency, encourages a diversity of opinion, bases our work on sound research, and encourages experimentation to improve impact.

REGISTER HERE>

Led by Thessalia Merivaki and Mara Suttmann-Lea, based on their research under the Learning from Elections project, and hosted by the MIT Election Data + Science Lab.

This webinar brings together researchers, election officials, and organizations dedicated to supporting the work of election officials for a series of panels reflecting on lessons learned about voter education and outreach during the 2022 midterm election cycle. 

Panels will feature an analysis of trust-building practices used by election officials during the election cycle, a discussion with select officials about their experiences using social media for voter outreach, and spotlight resources available for officials to develop, share, and learn from one another’s communication practices.

REGISTER HERE>

Over the course of American history, the labels used to describe political ideologies have evolved as much as political parties have redefined their positions and membership. In some cases, these labels are even co-opted and begin to take on new meaning. The language we use to describe these developments don’t always keep up with reality; we are in one of those moments now.

In his latest book,  The Struggle for a Decent Politics, On “Liberal’ as an Adjective, political theorist Michael Walzer advocates for a renewed use of "liberal" as a modifier signifying an openness to pluralism and an element of self-restraint brought to one's various identities and views. He asks and answers: what do we gain by deploying "liberal" as an adjective rather than as a noun indicating a moral and political stance? What values does "liberal" imply, and why is it necessary that a broad community join together in defense of them?

Learn more about Michael Walzer here.

This program is co-hosted by Patriots & Pragmatists and Democracy Funders Network. Members of both networks are invited to attend. If you have any questions about your membership status or eligibility, please reach out to Hillary Hooke. Participants are requested to adhere to Chatham House Rule.

REGISTER HERE>

As political violence increases, various civil society actors and organizations can play important roles in preventing and responding to such incidents. Trusted and respected communal leaders including business leaders, veterans, and clergy members can send important signals to their communities by supporting the rule of law, nonviolent norms, and democratic processes. Additionally, the communities these leaders are part of, particularly Evangelical Christian communities and veterans, are often targeted for recruitment by extremist groups, making it essential to provide counter-narratives and opportunities for positive engagement.

The DFN Political Violence Working Group invites all funders in the DFN community to join this open meeting. We will engage in peer conversations and learn from leading practitioners in the field about how organizations are effectively involving veterans, faith communities, and business leaders in political violence prevention. The discussion will focus on successful strategies and identify the remaining needs for further strengthening this area of work.

Featured Speakers:

• Ellen Gustafson, Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director, We the Veterans

• Jeanné Lewis, CEO, Faith in Public Life

• Mike Ward, Director, Business Engagement, Rebuild Congress Initiative

DFN’s Political Violence Working Group is a forum for funders interested in preventing and mitigating political violence. Members meet monthly to connect with and learn from each other and leading practitioners in the space, and to explore political violence trends, intervention bright spots, and needs in the field. Email DFN Program Director Carly Straus Chan to learn more at carly@thirdplateau.com.

PVWG members - no need to register here, you already have all the event details.

REGISTER HERE>

Local journalism plays a key role supporting a thriving democracy: it can drive voter turnout and educate voters about the issues and candidates they’re voting on, build trust and cohesion within communities, and act as a key check on government power.

However, in recent years, the local journalism field has faced deep challenges. Many local papers have closed, leaving their communities without access to trusted information. And even at many remaining papers, overstretched staff don’t have the time or resources to produce reporting on democracy issues that meets their communities’ needs. Meanwhile, as the internet and social media reshape our information landscape and mis- and dis-information spread like wildfire, access to trustworthy local news is more important than ever for our democracy’s health.

With support from philanthropy, a stronger local news ecosystem is rising, driven by new business models, enhanced collaboration, and innovative approaches to meet the needs of different communities. Join DFN and MIF to learn more about the promising solutions in this space. How can philanthropy ensure every community has access to local news and information? How can we ensure that newsrooms are able to cover democracy issues well? What would a thriving news ecosystem for the 21st century look like?

Featured Speakers:

• Jennifer Brandel, Co-Creator, Democracy SOS

• Sue Cross, Executive Director & CEO, Institute for Nonprofit News

• Angelica Das, Associate Director, Public Square Program, Democracy Fund

• Jessica Huseman, Editorial Director, Votebeat

About Democracy Funders Network:

Democracy Funders Network (DFN) is a cross-ideological learning and action community for donors concerned about the health of American democracy. DFN serves new and existing funders in the democracy field, and actively seeks to grow the democracy funding community by creating a network for donors who want to learn together, build and strengthen relationships, and ultimately identify opportunities for coordination and collaboration. DFN’s mission is to ensure that the United States remains a robust liberal democracy a century from now.

About Media Impact Funders:

Media Impact Funders is a national membership organization that advances the work of a broad range of funders committed to effective use and support of media in the public interest. Media Impact Funders informs, convenes and mobilizes a growing network of funders around the crucial role that media and journalism plays in democracy and social change through tailored programming that explores a broad range of issues and opportunities in the media funding field; facilitation of peer collaboration and resource-sharing to create or expand media effectiveness; collaboration with other philanthropy serving organizations (PSOs) to showcase the power and impact of storytelling through media; and more.

REGISTER HERE>

About this program:

Free and fair elections are a key part of America’s democratic processes, and in recent years, our ability to administer them is under threat. In the past few years, dozens of states have passed laws making it harder to vote. Voting rights organizations have challenged these laws  and other threats to democratic elections, and many of those cases are now making their way through the court systems. 

BADF will be joined by Trevor Potter, President of the Campaign Legal Center (CLC) to explore key questions about the election law landscape: What are the biggest potential changes to election laws making their way through legislatures and the courts this year? What trends in election law are promising for democracy, and what are some of the biggest threats? How do national organizations like CLC work alongside local and state players in the election reform and voting spaces? And what strategies are most critical to ensuring every eligible voter can meaningfully participate in democratic processes?

As with all BADF happy hours, there will be plenty of time for conversation with both our speaker and with your fellow funders. We hope to see you there!

Covid Safety:

This event will be hosted outdoors. We request that all attendees be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

About Campaign Legal Center:

Campaign Legal Center (CLC) is a nonpartisan organization that advocates for every eligible voter to meaningfully participate in the democratic process. Focusing on campaign finance, ethics, redistricting, and voting & elections, CLC uses tactics including litigation, policy advocacy, partnerships, and communications to make systemic impact at all levels of government.

REGISTER HERE>

Our communications and information ecosystems play a huge role in shaping the political violence landscape in the US. Many recent acts of political violence have been carried out by individuals who were radicalized and motivated by online mis- and disinformation and extremist networks. Journalistic choices in coverage of politics and incidents of political violence can help reduce polarization and build towards peace, or further inflame tensions and inspire copycat violence. And our overall narratives about violence, democracy, and governance processes help shape the bounds of acceptable behavior in society.

The DFN Political Violence Working Group’s May meeting is open to all funders in the DFN community. In this deep dive on influencing the communications ecosystem, we will explore how philanthropy can invest in projects that shift online spaces, journalism and media, and cultural narratives towards political violence prevention and mitigation.

Through peer conversation and engagement with leading practitioners in the field, we’ll learn about how leading organizations are outcompeting mis- and disinformation with fact-based content; training journalists to provide informative but not inflammatory reporting on political violence; and testing new messages and narratives to push back against violence. We’ll discuss bright spots in this work, and remaining needs to strengthen this field further.

Featured Speakers:

• Eric Sapp, President and Founder, Public Democracy

• Dan Vallone, US Director, More in Common

REGISTER HERE>

DFN’s Political Violence Working Group is a forum for funders interested in preventing and mitigating political violence. Members meet monthly to connect with and learn from each other and leading practitioners in the space, and to explore political violence trends, intervention bright spots, and needs in the field. Email DFN Program Director Carly Straus to learn more at carly@thirdplateau.com.

The Trusted Elections Fund and Democracy Funders Network are pleased to invite you to join expert practitioners in conversation on how to reduce political violence and strengthen our democracy. On this webinar, you will hear from Western States Center, Common Ground USA, and Over Zero, who will share their innovative collaboration and strategies to prevent and mitigate political violence. This work will mobilize a broad cohort of local leaders from civil society, faith, business, government, and other sectors as thought partners, conveners, and advisors to build greater resilience in at-risk states, including Arizona, Idaho, Oregon, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and others. We are eager to share this work with you.

At this briefing, we’ll discuss:

• Why the growing localization of political violence is concerning, and how a whole-of-society approach is the solution. 

• Our approach to empowering local leaders to engage in this work. 

• How collaboration is key to our theory of change, and how our organizations each strengthen our collective work  

Now, more than two years after the January 6th insurrection, the risk of political violence and the energy of bigoted and anti-democracy movements has not dissipated but rather spread throughout the United States. Local communities and institutions are facing the brunt of political violence, authoritarian organizing and dangerous narratives. 

 To match the urgency of this moment and scope of these dynamics, these three organizations are leveraging decades of combined experience confronting bigoted and authoritarian movements in the U.S. and preventing political violence around the globe. These groups, and funders like TEF, are working together to strengthen our approaches by drawing from our collective tools and knowledge, covering more ground, and connecting leaders across states to learn from each other.

REGISTER HERE>

About this event:

The 2022 midterm elections saw the second highest ever turnout of young voters, with 27% of eligible voters between the ages of 18-29 casting a ballot. Research has also shown that not only was this a banner year for youth participation in our civic process, but that young people were especially motivated to participate in key states like Georgia, Michigan and North Carolina, where youth turnout reached 31%. 

While these recent gains in 2022 are well worth celebrating, there are still inequities in youth political engagement. Addressing these gaps and finding ways to bring young people to the table is a critical piece of strengthening our democracy, now and in the future - and BADF’s guest for this happy hour, NextGen Education Fund, is dedicated to empowering and motivating young people to engage with our democracy.

NextGen Education Fund reaches youth across the country using innovative digital, field, and distributed organizing strategies, and will share key takeaways from their work in 2022. Victoria Yang, Vice President of Development at NextGen, will lead us in discussion of some key questions around youth civic engagement, including: What are some of the biggest wins and ongoing challenges around youth engagement in democratic processes? What messages, messengers, and strategies are most successful in reaching young voters? What are effective models for partnership between national organizations like NextGen and state and local organizers?

As with all BADF happy hours, there will be plenty of time for conversation with both our speakers and with your fellow funders. We hope to see you there!

Covid Safety:

This event will be hosted outdoors. We request that all attendees be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

About NextGen Education Fund: 

NextGen Education Fund (NextGen) is one of the nation’s largest youth civic engagement organizations, educating and empowering millions of young people to elevate their voices in our country’s democratic process. They are a multi-issue and multi-racial organization that educates and empowers young people to transform our country and solve the challenges earlier generations have failed to address, including our historical failings around equity and racial justice.

In 2022, NextGen targeted 17.3 million youth in eight key states: Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, and North Carolina. They ran the largest youth vote program in the country. Their work ensured young people were a major headline of the 2022 midterms, and has largely been acknowledged as the key ingredient to upholding our democracy. 

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Join Voting Rights Lab and Democracy Funders Network for an *urgent* briefing on March 22 at 12:00 PM ET/ 9:00 AM PT with David Becker, Executive Director and Founder at the Center for Election Innovation & Research.

This past week, Secretaries of State in Florida, Missouri, West Virginia, precipitously withdrew from ERIC, a reliable and essential national system for maintaining accurate and comprehensive voter rolls. Among others, Ohio and Texas are also considering leaving ERIC.

David and Megan will be sounding the alarm on what this could mean for the administration of the 2024 elections.

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Free speech, once seen as a core ideal of American democracy, has been under fire from all fronts in recent years. On the political right, politicians have taken to weaponizing governmental power to suppress protests and threaten and punish businesses that oppose their favored policies. Meanwhile, activists, students, and academics on the left have developed a reputation for wielding social and cultural power to mete out severe professional and personal repercussions for what they see as unacceptable speech.

These attacks are shrinking the space for robust debate, dialogue, and problem solving, but they also raise legitimate questions about the norms of free speech in the modern era. Meanwhile, the advent of new technologies has also raised thorny questions around the responsibilities of private companies in this area.

Join DFN to explore the role philanthropy and the pro-democracy movement can play in a principled defense of free speech. What are the most serious threats to free expression in America today? How can we support conceptions of free speech that appropriately balance free expression and preventing potential harms from dangerous speech? What parts of classical conceptions of free speech are still critical for our democracy to thrive, and what parts may need to be rethought in our current moment? How can we bring balance and nuance to an issue that is often seen as just one more battleground in a polarized political arena? And what are the risks if we don’t?

Featured Speakers:

• Monica Kim, Program Associate, Piper Fund

• Summer Lopez, Chief Program Officer - Free Expression, PEN America

• Jonathan Rauch, Senior Fellow - Governance Studies, The Brookings Institution and author of The Constitution of Knowledge: A Defense of Truth

• Nabiha Syed, Chief Executive Officer, The Markup

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