My new "one thing"
(Plus, some big news inside.)
Latest news
I am taking a break from our regularly scheduled programming this week to share an exciting announcement—I have been named the next director of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University.
Read the full announcement here!
A bit about the SNF Agora Institute, which I joined a year ago as a faculty member:
The SNF Agora Institute, founded in 2017 with a gift from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, is a multidisciplinary academic and public forum dedicated to strengthening global democracy by improving and expanding civic engagement and inclusive dialogue, and by supporting inquiry that leads to real-world change. The institute draws its name and inspiration from the ancient Athenian agora, a space that grew to become the heart of democratic governance in Athens, providing a structured forum for debate, disagreement, and deliberation.
Scholars affiliated with the SNF Agora Institute study the behavioral, organizational, and institutional foundations of democracy; develop and test interventions; and share lessons learned to promote civic engagement and inclusive dialogue. The institute has 15 tenure-track faculty; six teaching, research, and practice faculty; and at least 10 visiting fellows per academic year.
It is an enormous honor to be entrusted with the job of leading this incredible team during the next phase of our development, and I will be sure to share updates on our work here!
My new “one thing”
At the end of our documentary podcast, When the Wolves Came, we reflected on how overwhelming the current political moment can seem. In a time of eroding trust in democratic institutions and global democratic backsliding, what is a regular person like you or me to do?
I, along with the brilliant team working behind-the-scenes with me to create the podcast, reflected on this quite a bit: What, exactly, were we asking of people?
Here is what we concluded:
I know it can feel overwhelming. But everyone doesn’t have to do everything. Most of the people in this story, they’re not doing everything. They’re doing their one thing. …
It will take many people, like you, deciding to start with their one thing, sending up their own pro-democracy signal flare and connecting with others. …
It’s all hands on deck. What’s your one thing?
This idea has stuck with me during the intervening year, and has helped me to figure out how to focus my energy. And right now, I am feeling super excited to focus my energy on this new role.
My new “one thing.”
In the coming months, as I get my arms around this new role, I may not be posting here as much as usual. But I will do my best to figure out how to keep our conversation going, and if you have any ideas of things you would especially like to keep seeing here, please let me know.
Congratulations! This is so great!
This is great news for Baltimore and anyone who is working to sustain our interreligious democracy. SNF Agora has been a fantastic partner with ICJS on our Silber-Obrecht Lecture on interreligious/interfaith studies, and I’m sure we’ll find many more ways to collaborate. I think Ruth will bring an energy and a focus to the organization that make a big impact.