Josh Lerner

📰 It's time for a fourth branch of government. In @bostonglobe.com today, Marjan Ehsassi & I call for creating a randomly selected House of the People. Our institutions of democracy are failing. We need to try a new approach. Read how it could work and why this is feasible and strategic even now.

Another creative idea for system change from #Wesleyan. Fraternities Can Change. This Is How. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/16/o...

$5,000 checks feel so formal for a bribe. Could we just get cash stuffed into potato chip bags, like how we do in NYC? www.nytimes.com/2026/09/10/u...

Both of these things can be true: 1) Mamdani disrupts top-down old power. He engages people in new ways that subvert old media and political cynicism. 2) Mamdani’s admin is primarily top-down. It decides what to do, then engages others in promoting its agenda. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/04/n...

I never knew I was being so subversive, riding a DEI bike lane as a white man. 🤔 newrepublic.com/post/212853/...

💥Big Life News: It’s time to start a new chapter. Or in this case, many new chapters. On July 31, I’ll step down as Co-Executive Director of @peoplepowered.org, to write a book on the future of democracy. www.peoplepowered.org/news-content...

One week left to apply for up to $25,000 in climate democracy funding. Deadline: July 3. Our June newsletter also includes three impact stories, an open call for visual storytellers, and a new action agenda to change how the world talks about democracy. www.peoplepowered.org/news-content...

📢Calling All Creatives! Do you have ideas for what democracy should look like in the future? @peoplepowered.org just launched an open call for visual content (videos, illustrations, graphics) that tells a compelling story about democracy. $1,000 prizes. www.peoplepowered.org/news-content...

@frameworks.bsky.social just released essential resources on how to talk about democracy in the US, to push back against authoritarianism while building a more democratic future: Validate people’s frustration, connect with their values, propose big ideas. www.frameworksinstitute.org/resources/fr...

In Belgium right now there’s an active campaign and political debate calling to replace the national Senate with a permanent citizens’ assembly. To replace an outdated elite branch of government with a new branch of government by the people. 👏🏼 www.g1000.org/en/news/your...

Upcoming talk: May 7 at Northwestern University! We’ll explore the global decline in what we call “democracy,” and how we can move beyond this current crisis to build the democratic future that we want and need. Please share with anyone in Chicago/Evanston. www.eventbrite.com/e/elliott-sp...

My new video with Mayor Mamdani just dropped 📼 Our partnership has shown that politics doesn’t have to be sour or ego-driven. It can be a team sport in pursuit of values and our hopes. ⬇️

The end is nigh.

Once again, it is local governments that are forging ahead on climate action. Amsterdam is set to become the first capital city in the world to ban meat advertising in public spaces, part of a broader effort to promote healthier, lower-emission, plant-based diets. Hopefully other cities will follow.

⏰ 3 days left! Ticket sales for the People Powered 2026 Convening close on Feb 2. March 2–5 in Nairobi: workshops, site visits, and democracy practitioners tackling climate, inclusion, and narrative change. 👉 peoplepowered.org/2026-convening-program #PeoplePowered #PPNairobi26

While old models of democracy fall apart, participatory budgeting continues to grow. #PeoplePower

reminder:

Come work with me! People Powered is hiring for two positions. Please share with anyone interested in building a more participatory democracy, while working with a fun and growing global community. 🙏🏼

We cannot let this president drag us into more endless wars that risk the lives of American service members and civilians abroad. The attack last night on Venezuela was unnecessary and unauthorized. The President’s actions are reckless and illegal.

Tulsi Gabbard in 2019: "The United States needs to keep our hands off Venezuela... end these destructive and wasteful regime change wars... proven to cause more problems, increase suffering, increase instability for the people in the countries where we wage these wars. In Latin America especially".

“If Zohran Mamdani is serious about delivering on his promises, he needs more than policies — he needs institutions that empower working people. Popular assemblies offer a way to build a new, bottom-up political culture in New York City.” jacobin.com/2025/12/mamd...

📰 New Strategies for Renewing Democracy Faced with rising attacks on democracy, the EU has raised a Democracy Shield. But marching into battle with only a shield is a recipe for defeat. To reverse democratic backsliding, we also need new strategies for expanding democracy👇🏼 philea.eu/opinions/bey...

Applications are open for our Democratic Innovations Accelerator (DIA)! ⏰ We'll be supporting 40 selected participants working on youth-led participatory programs with free mentoring, training and tools. Apply by Nov 30: nets4dem.eu/democratic-i...

Congratulations to @celinasu.bsky.social for launching her new book Budget Justice in NYC tonight! Go read it! Lots of insights into #participatorybudgeting and other movements to build public power over public money. ❤️ press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...

I'm shaking almost too hard to type. I entered SLC airport and heard screams and cries for help. I could see people gathered around, watching. I sped over to discover this woman face down on the floor, four grown men pushing her down, while she cried "HELP ME" and pled for her child.

Why don’t Democrats create visual imagery to change the #shutdown story? For example: 1️⃣ Set up a negotiation room with chairs for the key players. 2️⃣ Show up every day. 3️⃣ Take pictures and video, of Democrats literally at the negotiation table, and Republicans absent. 4️⃣ Share & repeat. Be creative!

This isn’t government efficiency. It’s putting people’s lives at risk, by cutting the essential government services that they rely on.

As democratic practices decay in the United States and elsewhere, the tendency is to defend existing institutions. But building new paths is just as important. Read more from @joshalerner.bsky.social nonprofitquarterly.org/three-emergi...

New Article Alert: Looking for better ways to defend/protect/promote/renew/expand democracy? In @npquarterly.bsky.social I lift up three of the most promising strategies for renewing democracy from around the world. Try them out! nonprofitquarterly.org/three-emergi...

The real highlight of #TheLifeofaShowgirl is how it reminded me to listen to #BRAT again. 🙏🏼

Another violent attack by an ICE officer on a civilian at 26 Federal Plaza—this time on a journalist, who had to be carried out on stretcher. Another attack on the First Amendment, our neighbors, and our democracy.

I was back at 26 Federal Plaza today, where an ICE agent violently threw this bereft woman to the ground in front of her kids. She had not touched him. She did not pose any threat. She had to be taken to the hospital. (🎥: Elias Eliahu)

From a 2 million-strong online petition in France to new insights on Euroscepticism, crowdlaw and disinformation, there's plenty happening in democratic innovation. Learn more in the latest Nets4Dem newsletter 👇 bit.ly/47M5eZM

“Democracy is, in the beginning and in the end, a belief that we can live together despite difference and choose the future together.” @anandwrites.bsky.social 🙏🏼 open.substack.com/pub/anandwri...

Deadline extended to July 6! Apply to the People Powered’s Accelerators & Mentorships for support, resources, and training in participatory democracy and citizenship engagement. Details: www.peoplepowered.org/news-content... #Democracy #PeoplePowered

This is an illegal war of aggression. There is no direct threat, no provocation, no need, and no Congressional approval. The only people this serves are the autocrats trying to cling to power.

#NoKings in Kings County, or anywhere in the US!

Yes! When urban planners learn from organizers they get more done. @nextcity.org nextcity.org/urbanist-new...

Like for the mayoral election, I can’t believe some of these options made it to the ranked choice bagel ballot! Come on NYC, we can do better. #TeamEverything www.wnyc.org/bagelvote

Globally, communities are facing urgent challenges, and participatory democracy is delivering solutions. So far, we've helped launch or improve 85 participatory programs, supported 1,100 democracy champions + more! See how we’re building a more inclusive future: www.peoplepowered.org/our-impact

Join me at the @epd.eu annual conference in Brussels, to reboot democracy!

You don't have to push for democracy alone. Join 200+ global members for learning, funding, and real impact. 🌍 New members this month could win a global feature, and contributions are matched 4-to-1. Apply now: www.peoplepowered.org/news-content... #PeoplePowered #ParticipatoryDemocracy

Some fun news: I’m thrilled to join the Board of Directors of Thrive Philanthropy, a global grantmaker that accelerates just, sustainable, plant-based food systems around the world. Check them out, and let me know if you’re interested in learning more! www.thrivephilanthropy.org

I’m so thankful to Michael Cross-Barnet for shared Caitlin’s powerful story in this Washington Post article. The trauma is cruel. Sharing it is resistance, and humanity. You can read it here, not behind a paywall: www.spokesman.com/stories/2025...

Flying back to the US from Europe. Emptiest flight I’ve been on. I imagine like trains into Germany back in 1934.

Opportunity alert: Apply now for the Accelerators and Rising Stars Mentorships to grow your participatory democracy project. Deadline: July 1, 2025 Includes training, mentorship, and funding. With @nets4dem.eu and global partners. Apply here: www.peoplepowered.org/news-content...

Q&A on democracy in Germany: How can local community participation help prevent the rise of far right parties like AfD? By bringing people together to share grievances, feel heard, and understand those who are different. @peoplepowered.org

This is a must read report for anyone working on democracy, participation, and deliberation. It’s the rare report that shows you how you’ve been doing your work wrong, and offers practical guidance on how to do it better. Take a look!👇🏼

Read this piece from two of our world's best thinkers on democracy. It offers a practical but revolutionary idea for the United States.