How to Fortify Civic Culture in America

Something is broken at the heart of American civic life. Years past the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, our society is beset with widening social epidemics of loneliness, ideological polarization, conspiracy thinking, mistrust, and despair. While political institutions, partisan media and individual politicians can contribute to worsening disunity, they are joined by something bigger at the root of American life. That something is civic culture – the sum of the countless choices millions of Americans make every day as we navigate how to live together. Civic culture shapes how we treat one another, whether we care for our community, how we show up to solve common problems, and whether we are able to disagree without hating one another.

Join us for the launch of a new Academy publication, Habits of Heart and Mind: How to Fortify Civic Culture, to discuss the what, why, and how of civic culture in America. Featuring Ben Klutsey, Eric Liu, and Natalie Tran, this session will celebrate the many organizations working to reinvigorate civic culture today and the methods they use to fortify our civic culture before, during, and after the U.S. presidential election.