Civic Health: Why It Matters

On March 26, The Community Foundation hosted an online panel discussion on civic health: what it means, why it matters and how it can be strengthened.

Foundation President & CEO Karen DuBois-Walton moderated a wide-ranging and forward-looking conversation with civic leaders from across Connecticut and the country. Together, and with more than 120 in virtual attendance, they explored the elements of strong community engagement and social cohesion.

What We Heard

• Donors are increasingly focusing their giving locally, recognizing the impact of investing in their own communities.
• Civic health is measured by factors such as voter turnout, public trust, engagement in local government, charitable giving and volunteerism.
• Civic health is the extent to which members of a community are involved with each other in decision-making, problem-solving and community-building.
• Civic health is the foundation of a strong community and a thriving democracy.
• Despite challenges to civic strength, and a decline in national data on public trust, a stage is set for a civic renaissance on local levels with community organizing at its heart.
• Words matter. Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement (PACE) has found significant increases in positive associations with civic terms in its research into which words drive civic dialogue and keep people in conversation.
• The 250th anniversary of our country’s independence offers an opportunity to reflect on our history and to envision our future, shaping what civic involvement can look like together.

Resources

• The Community Foundation’s Civic Engagement and Awareness Fund
• PACE’s most recent Bridgey Guide. You can find the original guide here and more resources here
• CTData’s Civic Engagement Data
• DataHaven’s Community Wellbeing Survey highlights on trust
• Citizens & Scholars research on Mapping Civic Measurement
• Wish Wall installations across the U.S., including at Connecticut's Old State House
• Upcoming events at Yale’s Center for Civic Thought, including an April 15 event featuring Cynthia Farrar, titled “New Haven as Athens?: Fulfilling the promise of democracy”
• Civic engagement through creativity and quilting: Peace by Piece
• Robert D. Putnam’s Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community and The Upswing: How America Came Together a Century Ago and How We Can Do It Again
• Cynthia Farrar’s updated thesis: The Origins of Democratic Thinking The Invention of Politics in Classical Athens. See also: Farrar’s ongoing work on civic leagues

Panelists

Shannon N. Green serves as the president and CEO of Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement (PACE). Previously, Ms. Green held senior positions in the public sector, including as the Assistant to the Administrator of the Bureau for Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance (DRG) and Executive Director of the Anti-Corruption Task Force at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). 

Matt Leighninger serves as the National Civic League’s vice president and directs the Center for Democracy Innovation (CDI), leading CDI’s work in strengthening democratic infrastructure, organizing national engagement efforts, and measuring the quality of engagement and democracy.

Sally Whipple is the executive director of the Connecticut Democracy Center at Connecticut’s Old State House, where she has spent more than a decade advancing award-winning programs that use history and civics to inspire civic engagement, including Kid Governor® and Connecticut History Day.

Moderator

Karen DuBois-Walton, Ph.D., president and CEO of The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, is a visionary leader dedicated to empowering communities through education, advocacy and equitable development. With a distinguished career spanning the realms of academia, public service, and nonprofit and philanthropic leadership, she has emerged as a tireless champion for equity, social justice, access and opportunity.