Josh Lerner: Democracy is a Verb - Participate and Make It Fun — ImpactFull - Kristine Michie - Impact Investing, Social Justice & Philanthropy

Josh Lerner: Democracy is a Verb - Participate and Make It Fun

Listen in as Kristine and Josh discuss:

How the Greeks invented democracy as an antidote to elections
The real action is in everyday action and engagement with how your community works and serves its citizens
And because of this, play is a vital tool for getting people involved and bringing people together
Practicing democracy in your home, workplace, and community
Josh’s book, Making Democracy Fun (MIT Press, 2014) is as relevant now as ever

Key Takeaways:

We have confused elections with democracy. In its truest form, democracy is only occasionally about elections
Democracy is about everybody participating all the time in every aspect of civic life
There are “play hotspots” around the world we can learn from, places where they use innovative techniques for problem-solving
The solutions we seek and the tools we need are right in front of us, and all around us. We don’t have to accept malaise, dysfunction, or feeling disempowered
When looking to make change, always invite those affected to participate or your results will be limited and your impact short-lived
At work, remember people will participate in play if they believe it will help them to achieve their goals. Make it relevant.

"Participatory democracy is a broader approach for people like you and me, anyone, and actually directly participates in making the decisions that affect their lives, not just electing someone else to decide, but actually deciding yourself with your neighbors. So it goes back to the roots of democracy." — Josh Lerner

More about Josh Lerner:

Josh is Co-Executive Director of People Powered, a global hub for participatory democracy. He has 20 years of experience developing, researching, and supporting community engagement programs around the world. He was previously co-founder and Co-Executive Director of the Participatory Budgeting Project, a nonprofit organization that empowers people to decide together how to spend public money. Josh completed a PhD in Politics at the New School for Social Research and a Masters in Planning from the University of Toronto. He is the author of Making Democracy Fun: How Game Design Can Empower Citizens and Transform Politics, Everyone Counts: Could Participatory Budgeting Change Democracy?, and dozens of articles exploring the future of democracy.

Connect with Josh Lerner:
Website: https://www.peoplepowered.org/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFiKct2woto

Josh’s Book: https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262551144/making-democracy-fun/

Connect with Kristine:

Website: https://www.impactfullinc.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/impactfull_inc

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristine-breese-michie/