A community-led initiative on democratic innovation

Many people are concerned about the state of our democracy and the quality of public discourse today. Empirical studies demonstrate that everyday citizens agree on most fundamental issues and core societal values. Yet solutions are frequently sabotaged by polarized rhetoric and systems based on an adversarial model rather than collaboration and consensus-building. This can lead to political pendulum swings, toxic environments and decision-making processes that don’t serve us as citizens. Turning Down the Heat is an exciting new local initiative in deliberative democracy exploring the question, How do we turn down the heat and create conditions for more respectful, thoughtful, and productive public conversations?