2025 President’s Letter

Our January 2024 President’s Letter opened with an image of a red flag flying in the wind, a warning that “we are in danger.” We declared a commitment to increase the effectiveness of our network of projects to focus more attentively on the interlocking crises that endanger our democracy. Now, a year later, I can report that is precisely what we are doing here at Mediators Foundation.

For years, as an author and facilitator, I advised the communities I worked in to stop playing Washington’s Red-Blue national, political game and design their own technicolor local, civic way of leading. Whether in Michigan or Arizona, my message was the same: Make your state great; don’t let D.C. divide you! Never has that message resonated the way it does today. Americans across the country have realized that they need to face the challenges in their community head-on — not wait for politicians in D.C.

Last spring, our team at Mediators knew that, regardless of the outcome of the election, our nation would be more divided than ever. We had no doubt that, whatever the Red-Blue ratio on Capitol Hill might be and whoever occupied the White House, the dysfunction in Washington would only deepen. So, we asked ourselves: how can we be of service to ordinary Americans in the face of this political chaos?

What we learned from our research and outreach was that scores of local organizations across the country were already hard at work solving problems in their communities. Many of our allies in philanthropy were already funding local democracy initiatives of various kinds. While the mainstream media perpetuated the story of division, local news continued to uplift stories of communities collaborating to solve tough problems. However inspiring, we found these place-based efforts to strengthen democracy were usually isolated, under-funded, and under-reported. What might be possible, we asked ourselves, if this remarkable, positive network of civic work was connected, well-resourced and more visible?

Under the leadership of our Vice President, Jacob Bornstein, and an impressive team of colleagues across the country, Better Together America is weaving together these place-based civic organizations into a nonpartisan network of “civic hubs.” By offering these "laboratories for democracy," a nationwide learning community, collaborative fundraising opportunities, paid training programs and more, we are linking many networks together that provide ordinary people an onramp to participate in direct democracy right where they live. No matter how long the dysfunction and hyperpolarization in Washington D.C. continues, the participants in these civic hubs can collaborate across divides in their community to reimagine democracy from the ground up so that it works for them.

We are committed to helping catalyze this learning community because to reinvent democracy, experimentation and innovation are essential. Better Together America embodies our 2025 response to the dilemmas that shaped 2024. By working with a host of partners and allies, we intend to do our part to contribute to the blossoming of civic renewal taking place across the country in a way that is actionable, scalable, and measurable.

Why is this urgent right now? For communities already hit by crises — extreme weather, growing poverty, drug overdoses, lack of medical care or grocery stores, gun violence, political paralysis, wars over education — the answer is obvious. But even in places that are flourishing, their citizens are not immune to these challenges, this polycrisis. Wherever we live, communities that work well together are more resilient, vibrant and healthy than those that don’t.

If you find this strategy compelling, we would love to share more with you. Whether you are just curious, want to get involved in our work, or help support this growing network with your skills or resources, we are eager to hear from you. Please write to info@mediatorsfoundation.org and let us know how you might want to deepen your engagement with this transformative work.

The truth is: none of us are fortune-tellers. Even professional futurists are perplexed by the unprecedented web of unknowns. In the face of this uncertainty, humility and collaboration are essential. All we can do is ensure that our communities — the places where we live and work and raise children — are as resilient as possible. That means working humbly together, with people we agree with and people we don’t. And it’s probably wisest to start right now.