The United Politics Initiative tackles one deeply challenging problem at a time through a bipartisan, data-driven, community-based approach. We pilot cross-partisan solutions for issues that drive a wedge between people and appear to be intractable. The UP Initiative demonstrates that we, as Americans, can solve tough problems together. If given enough media attention, these efforts can change the national narrative that we can no longer solve our toughest and most contentious issues together. We believe that working on these issues will also open the door making progress on many of the initiatives seeking to improve the health of our democracy.
End the Violence:Addressing Gun Violence Against Youth
The seminal issue the UP Initiative is currently addressing is gun violence against youth. School shootings, gang violence, suicide and other acts of gun violence have killed and injured too many of our youth. Our national dialogue is focused on solutions that will not work and are divisive. The UP Initiative will deepen the national dialogue and make our children safer. We plan to address this challenge through the following steps:
About Jacob:
Jacob Bornstein is the founder and principal of Wellstone Collaborative Strategies and the founder and director of United Politics Initiative. Wellstone Collaborative Strategies offers stakeholder engagement, facilitation, and strategic planning services. The UP Initiative is tackling gun violence against youth with a bipartisan, data-driven, and community based approach.
Bornstein has a 20-year track record in facilitation, stakeholder engagement, strategy design, and nonprofit leadership. Bornstein specializes in reaching consensus in collaborative initiatives around contentious topics. While at the State of Colorado, he spearheaded the development of the scenario planning process that underpins Colorado’s Water Plan and facilitated the final set of consensus actions with a nearly 400 member stakeholder process. Bornstein has also provided facilitation and strategic planning services for topics including: environmental health, health care, services for people with disabilities, healthy schools, social and emotional learning, climate change, sustainable ocean fisheries, and restorative justice. Bornstein is the former Director of Consulting for the Spark Policy Institute, was the Executive Director of the Colorado Watershed Network, and was a statistical and scientific methods consultant (six sigma blackbelt) for large companies (i.e., General Electric) and Ph.D. students designing their dissertations. He holds a Master of Science degree in biology from the University of Massachusetts and a Bachelors degree in the philosophy and history of science from Hampshire College. He lives in Denver, Colorado with his wife, and two young girls and is always on the lookout for great Thai food.