​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.

​This piece explores how international collaboration can strengthen youth participation in democracy, drawing lessons from a partnership between Albania’s National Youth Congress (KRK) and U.S. civic engagement leaders, including NCDD member Close Up Foundation. By exchanging models of youth empowerment—from Albania’s structured pathways for youth input in local governance to Close Up’s long-standing experiential civic education—the collaboration highlights the value of sustained engagement, capacity building, and meaningful decision-making roles for young people. The article argues that American communities can adapt these cross-border insights by creating formal youth advisory structures, prioritizing equity and inclusion, and fostering intergenerational dialogue, demonstrating that democracy is strongest when young people are equipped to actively shape the policies that affect their lives.

The JAMS Foundation and National Association for Community Mediation (NAFCM) are launching the 2026-2028 Community Mediation Mini-Grant Program, awarding up to five organizations $15,000 per year to develop preventive approaches using community mediation skills to de-escalate family conflict during critical transitions like substance abuse treatment, assisted living moves, or mental health services navigation. Grant recipients will participate in a structured Learning Community facilitated by NAFCM using the Listening for Action Leadership Process, meeting twice monthly for the first six months and monthly thereafter to share challenges, test approaches, and develop replicable resources while creating at least one policy or procedure change over the two years for lasting systemic impact. This collaborative model emphasizes deep listening, collaborative problem-solving, community co-creation, and attention to power dynamics—principles aligned with NCDD values—with all materials shared across the broader field to strengthen community mediation practice nationally and internationally, creating pathways for families to work through disagreements collaboratively before they escalate into formal legal proceedings or institutional interventions.

You are invited to join the upcoming free training "Bridging Across Political Differences" this Friday, January 9, from 3-5 pm Eastern, 12-2 pm Pacific​. Hosted by NCDD and the Democracy Resource Hub (DRH), this session brings together experienced practitioners who use different approaches to bridge political differences. Rather than offering a single method, the training explores when and how different strategies work, their limits, and what practitioners have learned from real-world experience.  These trainings are for civic hub builders, local leaders of place-based projects, engagement practitioners who are new to this work, and experienced practitioners looking to build new skills and deepen their practice. Learn more in the blog post below and register to join this free two-hour training at this link.

Democracy Notes will release its 2025 Trends report on January 15, 2026, offering a comprehensive overview of developments in the U.S. democracy space over the past year, sponsored by the Democracy Funders Network and Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement to help practitioners, funders, and advocates understand emerging patterns, significant developments, and key shifts in democratic institutions and civic participation. Democracy Notes serves a crucial infrastructure role through its newsletter, communities of practice, and convening events, which create spaces for practitioners to identify broader patterns and connections across the field. These events analyze developments, ranging from dialogue and deliberation initiatives to voter engagement, civic education, and advocacy campaigns. For NCDD practitioners, this report provides valuable context for understanding how dialogue and deliberation fit within the broader ecosystem of democracy strengthening, supports strategic decision-making, helps identify potential partners and complementary efforts, and enables the field to collectively assess what's working and where opportunities for collaboration and innovation exist.

​As we begin 2026, we want to pause and offer our deepest thanks to the community that carried NCDD through the close of this past year.

This moment matters. The work of dialogue and deliberation is being called upon in powerful ways, and the generosity of our supporters at the end of 2025 has allowed NCDD to step into this new year steady, grounded, and ready.

This past year asked a lot of NCDD. Behind the scenes, we rebuilt core systems, strengthened internal capacity, and responded to a growing wave of requests from communities, practitioners, and institutions seeking support in navigating difficult conversations and designing more meaningful public engagement. At the same time, we continued to convene people, share tools, and hold space for learning and connection across sectors.

None of this work happens without the coalition. And none of it happens without you.

We are deeply grateful to everyone who supported NCDD through our end-of-year fundraiser, as well as to those who joined the coalition or renewed their membership this season, whether for the first time or as longtime supporters.

Your generosity sustains a small but mighty organization that serves thousands of people across the country who are doing the quiet, courageous work of helping communities talk, listen, and move forward together. Your belief in this work is not just financial support; it is a commitment to the work itself. It is a powerful statement that dialogue, listening, and collective problem-solving matter.

We are profoundly thankful for your trust and for choosing to be part of this community.

With gratitude, we recognize the following supporters (listed alphabetically):

• Barbara Simonetti
  
• David Supp-Montgomerie
  
• Doreen and Michael Cohen
  
• Jeff Prudhomme
  
• Les Ihara
  
• Lori Britt
  
• Lorraine McDonnell
  
• Martha McCoy and Pat Scully
  
• Rhonda Fitzgerald
  
• Robert Alexander
  
• Sandor Schuman
  
• Susan Senecha

We also extend heartfelt thanks to those who chose to give anonymously. Your generosity and care mean just as much, and we sincerely appreciate your support.

If we missed your name or made an error, please let us know so we can make it right.

​In 2025, NCDD focused heavily on stabilizing and strengthening the infrastructure that allows us to serve the field effectively. This included upgrading outdated systems, improving financial and communications tools, and ensuring our membership and donation platforms are secure and reliable.

These investments may not always be visible, but they matter profoundly. They allow us to spend less time troubleshooting and more time supporting practitioners, building partnerships, and expanding access to dialogue and deliberation practices.

​Alongside this internal work, NCDD expanded its programming and national presence. We hosted member calls, trainings, and sector-focused forums; supported emerging leaders through our internship program; advanced the Practitioner Mobilization for Democracy initiative; and deepened partnerships across libraries, higher education, media, and more.

We are also seeing a growing number of communities reaching out for guidance, tools, and connection. This is a powerful reminder that the work of dialogue and deliberation is not optional. It is essential.

​As we step into 2026, we do so with clarity, momentum, and hope.

Our priorities include supporting communities in building trust and connection, expanding programming and member support, investing in the next generation of leaders, preparing for our next national convening, and continuing to strengthen the systems that hold this coalition together.

This next chapter is about moving from stabilization to growth with care, intention, and a deep commitment to accessibility and inclusion.

Because of you, we are able to do this work with confidence and with heart.

If you have already supported NCDD this season, thank you. Your contribution is making a real difference.

If you are still considering how you would like to support this work as the new year begins, we warmly invite you to make a beginning-of-year donation, join or renew your membership, or share NCDD’s work with others who care about healthier conversations and stronger communities.

Every gift and every member strengthens this coalition.

We are honored to be in this work with you, and we are excited to continue building what comes next together.

Make a tax-deductible donation: ncdd.org/donate 
Join NCDD as a member: ncdd.org/join

The Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) released December 2025 research demonstrating that classrooms function as civic institutions where positive classroom climate supports civic development as much as curriculum content, with findings showing that when teachers connected content to students' lived experiences, significantly more students participated in discussions compared to solely historical questions. CIRCLE's evaluation of Massachusetts' Investigating History curriculum found that positive climate empowers deeper peer engagement, socio-emotional learning strengthens civic learning when paired with civics instruction, and inquiry-based instruction with culturally sustaining practices helps students see themselves in history and make real-world connections. For dialogue and deliberation practitioners, this research demonstrates that positive classroom climate, culturally responsive instruction, and adequate teacher support all contribute to civic development, requiring intentional classroom design modeling democratic principles.

​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.