City Futures Panel on Democratic Governance

2010 Leadership

                                                                          
                                   Mark Linder                                 Conrad Lee                              Donald Rosen

The purpose of NLC’s work on Democratic Governance is to help local officials respond to governance challenges. Drawing on case studies of successful projects, the Panel has explored ways to educate, involve, and mobilize citizens in a variety of events and initiatives. The Panel’s research and written materials describe how communities have used democratic governance approaches to address key issues such as:

• Planning and development;
• Race, diversity, and equity;
• Crime and public safety;
• Education and school improvement; and
• Public finance.

Recent activities and products:

• "Change.Gov That Matters" by Neil Peirce in Nation's Cities Weekly, 1/26/2009.
• Publication of The Rise of Democratic Governance: How Local Leaders are Reshaping Politics for the 21st Century, an introductory guide to Democratic Governance.
• Publication of Changing the Way We Govern: Building Democratic Governance in Your Community, a detailed guidebook on democratic governance practices, including examples from cities around the country.
• Conducting workshops and seminars that assist city and town officials at NLC conferences and as part of NLC’s Leadership Training Institute Program.

Activities and Agenda

• Hold workshops and seminars for local officials at the 2010 Congressional Cities Conference in Washington, DC. 
• Encourage and enable city officials to enhance democratic governance by articulating and delivering a strong, compelling message, using a variety of venues.
• Work with state municipal leagues and other networks to reach out to a broader array of local officials.
• Work with the Deliberative Democracy Consortium (DDC) on the Democracy Helpline and other key services for local leaders.

Next Meeting of the Panel

Congress of Cities, Denver,CO-November 30 -December 4, 2010

2010 Panel Members

For more information about the Panel, membership, or its activities, please contact:
 
Bonnie Mann                                                                      Matt Leighninger
National League of Cities                                                   Deliberative Democracy Consortium
1301 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW                                       1050 17th St. NW, Suite 701
Washington, D.C. 20004                                                   Washington, D.C. 20036
(202) 626-3125                                                                  (905) 972-0550
mann@nlc.org                                                                    mattleighninger@earthlink.net