​Everyday Democracy’s virtual conversation, “Doing Democracy: Using Civic Imagination to Shape Our Next 250 Years,” explores how creativity, art, and community rituals fuel democratic change. Despite 76% of Americans believing the political system needs significant change, only 25% are confident it can change. The panel features Chandanie Orgias, Shawnee Benton Gibson, and Nadine Bloch, moderated by Everyday Democracy President Merle McGee. They discuss how civic imagination bridges desire for change and belief in feasibility through embodied practice, cultural organizing, and art as dialogue. The event introduces the OurNext250 gathering guide, inviting communities nationwide to host inclusive gatherings that build connection, spark shared vision, and practice democracy. This work advances NCDD’s mission by demonstrating how civic imagination transforms participants into civic agents, reshapes community connections, addresses barriers, and recognizes democracy as created through everyday actions, storytelling, and cultural organizing.

​Evidence for Democracy’s public panel on March 24, 2026, explores how AI transforms government evidence collection and policymaking. Beatrice Wayne from the Samara Centre for Democracy, Helen Hayes from McGill’s Centre for Media, Technology, and Democracy, and Dr. Renée Sieber from McGill’s Bieler School of Environment discuss transparency, bias prevention, and rebuilding public trust amid algorithmic opacity. The panel examines AI’s current use in policy development, fairness in evidence-based decision-making, and strategies for strengthening accountability as AI tools evolve. Panelists draw on expertise in investigations of Canada’s online spaces, youth-centered AI policymaking, and AI’s impacts on marginalized communities and civic participation. This panel advances NCDD’s mission by examining how emerging technologies shape democratic participation, evidence-based governance, and public trust, offering dialogue practitioners insights into maintaining democratic values of openness and integrity as algorithmic systems become embedded in decision-making processes affecting communities and civic engagement work.

Democracy needs better stories. On January 22, the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation at Harvard’s Ash Center hosts an online webinar exploring how creators and artists make democracy feel vivid, relevant, and worth caring about—especially for younger audiences. Drawing lessons from television, podcasts, science fiction, and online creator communities, the session looks beyond alarm bells and academic frames to ask what actually captures attention and moves people to engage. The webinar takes place online on January 22 (time listed on the registration page) and is hosted by the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation at Harvard University. Registration is open now at https://ash.harvard.edu/events/making-democracy-interesting-tips-from-tv-podcasts-science-fiction-and-online-creators/

​The People Powered 2026 Convening, taking place March 2–5 in Nairobi, Kenya, will bring together democracy practitioners from around the world to advance people-powered democracy under the theme Global Challenges, Participatory Solutions. Designed as a collaborative, co-created gathering, the convening combines hands-on learning, site visits to local participatory initiatives, and strategic conversations about power, inclusion, and systemic change. Sessions will address both practical implementation—such as evaluating participatory programs and designing inclusive digital engagement—and urgent global challenges including climate democracy, decolonizing practice, equitable participation, and narrative change. For practitioners in dialogue and deliberation, the convening offers a rare opportunity to connect with global peers, learn from innovations across contexts, and help shape shared strategies and resources for strengthening participatory democracy worldwide.

NCDD and the Democracy Resource Hub invite you to join two upcoming free, virtual trainings designed for facilitators, civic practitioners, organizers, and community leaders. "Using Civic Technology to Facilitate Meaningful Engagement" takes place Thursday, January 22 (12–2 pm ET / 9–11 am PT), followed by "Facilitating Shared Sensemaking in Complexity" on Tuesday, February 3 (2–4 pm ET / 11 am–1 pm PT). These sessions feature experienced practitioners sharing real-world insights, patterns across practice, and skills participants can apply in their own work. Special thanks to SHIFT Action Lab for generously sponsoring these opportunities. Read more in the blog post below.

Essential Conversations: Re-envisioning the Art of Convening for the Next 30 Years will take place on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, from 9:00–10:30 AM CT (US), offering an Essential Conversation on *Re-envisioning the Art of Convening: Purposeful Leadership Re-imagined*. This session introduces innovative leadership tools developed by the Art of Convening (AoC) Re-Envisioning Team to help leaders create spaces of welcome, safety, and belonging amid the complexity of our time, with conversation starters including CPL co-founder Craig Neal and AoC Re-Envisioning Team members Kim Kristenson-Lee, Brent Schmidt, Cecily Victor, Pamela Meade, Hart Edmonds, Amber Yang, Patricia Neal, Ric Hinkie, Jerry Chang, and Terry Chapman.

​The Democracy Resources Hub (DRH) and NCDD will offer a webinar titled "Using Civic Technology to Facilitate Meaningful Engagement" featuring speakers Lucas Cioffi from QiqoChat, Josh Lerner from PeoplePowered, Ramon Perez from the Digital Democracy Project, and Ann Reidy from the Civic Health Project sharing real-world examples of how communities use digital platforms to listen, deliberate, and decide together across distance and difference. The training addresses critical questions facing dialogue and deliberation practitioners: how digital systems complement rather than replace face-to-face facilitation, what frameworks ensure online participation remains accountable and democratic rather than amplifying power imbalances, and how hybrid approaches create more inclusive processes reaching people facing barriers to in-person participation while maintaining depth and relationship-building. For NCDD members and the civic engagement field, this training offers practical guidance for thinking critically about both possibilities and limitations of civic technology—understanding when digital tools genuinely expand participation and when they risk reproducing or deepening existing inequities in who gets heard and whose voices shape decisions.

The Dialogue and Deliberation Resources Hub and NCDD are offering a timely new training, Facilitating Shared Sensemaking in Complexity, focused on helping communities navigate decision-making when facts are contested and trust is fragile. Featuring practitioners from National Issues Forums Institute, the Federation for Innovation in Democracy, News Ambassadors, and Diapraxis, the session explores how dialogue, deliberation, and collective learning can be integrated to move groups from adversarial debate toward shared understanding. Participants will examine practical approaches to balancing expert knowledge with lived experience, designing transparent and inclusive processes, and supporting groups to reach “true enough” common ground for collective action amid uncertainty. For practitioners facing stalled conversations, polarized narratives, and information distrust, the training offers concrete strategies for facilitating learning together when complexity and disagreement are unavoidable.

​The American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) is hosting American Democracy Project (ADP) at Compact26 on March 15-16, 2026, in Chicago, strategically scheduled before Campus Compact's annual meeting to strengthen coalitions and share strategies across organizations committed to democratic engagement and civic learning in higher education. ADP, which has worked with nearly 300 state colleges and universities for over 20 years to prepare informed, active citizens who engage constructively across different viewpoints, is seeking proposals by January 5, 2026 for poster sessions and ignite talks showcasing innovative campus projects on topics ranging from election reform and student voice to digital civic engagement, navigating difference, and sustainability as democratic practice. The conference promises facilitated discussions, opportunities to shape ADP's future, professional development for civic educators, and space to build community, embodying NCDD's principle that addressing complex democratic challenges requires bringing diverse voices together through sustained relationships and shared commitment.

The Sustained Dialogue Institute’s January 7–9, 2025, three-session training series offers community members a comprehensive introduction to Sustained Dialogue, a relationship-centered peacebuilding process designed to help groups move through conflict toward collaborative action. Rooted in a five-stage methodology developed by Dr. Harold Saunders, the training equips facilitators with skills in deep listening, emotional regulation, equitable facilitation, and crafting questions that foster understanding across differences. Accessible to participants of varied backgrounds and experience levels, the workshop models inclusive learning practices while preparing graduates to co-facilitate dialogue groups and join a supportive practitioner network. Ultimately, the series strengthens local democratic capacity by helping communities build the relationships needed to address complex issues constructively.