About

The bipartisan Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship, a project of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, was launched to explore how best to respond to the weaknesses and vulnerabilities in our political and civic life and to enable more Americans to participate as effective citizens in a diverse 21st-century democracy. 

The Commission issued 31 recommendations for strengthening democracy in the report Our Common Purpose: Reinventing American Democracy for the 21^st Century. The recommendations include reforming political institutions, investing in civil society, and transforming our political culture. The recommendations are rooted in six imperatives, or strategies:

1. to achieve equality of voice and representation through our political institutions;
2. to empower voters in a lasting way;
3. to ensure the responsiveness of our political institutions;
4. to dramatically expand the capacity of civil society organizations that foster “bridging” across lines of difference;
5. to build civic information architecture that supports common purpose; and
6. to inspire a culture of commitment to American constitutional democracy and one another.

Learn more about the people and process that produced Our Common Purpose here. 

With the publication and broad distribution Our Common Purpose, the focus is now on advancing initiatives to achieve empowerment for all, responsive and effective governance, and a resilient and healthy civic culture, characterized by a shared commitment of Americans to one another and constitutional democracy.