July Newsletter: Selma, Beacon of Hope; A New American Agenda

Written By The Harwood Institute Team

"If you are hungry for hope, agency, and a sense of direction in this chaotic time, you are going to want to hear what Rich Harwood has to say." - Wilk Wilkinson, Host of the Derate the Hate podcast

The New Civic Path Garners Rave Reviews

The New Civic Path continues spreading nationwide, hitting the #2 spot on Amazon’s bestseller charts this week. It also continues to draw rave reviews from publications and thought leaders around the country. 

  • “The New Civic Path is what we need. Its message needs to be talked about and shouted from the rooftops.” - Wilk Wilkinson, Director of Media Systems & Operations at Braver Angels and host of the Derate the Hate podcast

  • “Harwood provides a hopeful and practical roadmap for communities seeking to overcome inequity, bridge divides, and cultivate a healthier civic culture.” - From Reedsy Discovery’s “must-read” review

  • “I found myself highlighting one passage after another… the pep talk [I needed].” - From Vigilant Positivity’s review 

In the words of one recent reviewer on Amazon, “Read The New Civic Path RIGHT NOW! And let’s change this great country together.” For a limited time only, you can get the ebook edition of this transformational book for just $0.99 on Amazon.

SELMA, BEACON OF HOPE - COMING AUGUST 20

In 1965, Selma, AL, pierced the consciousness of the nation when civil rights’ marchers crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge. They helped us see the work we needed to do in this country to move forward in a new, more hopeful way.

Today—amid our crisis of belief and widespread societal turmoil—Selma can remind us once again of the work we need to do as individuals, as communities, and as a nation. It’s time to get on a new civic path. It’s time to go over the bridge again. 

That’s why, on August 20, our Campaign for the New Civic Path is releasing an original short documentary film called Selma, Beacon of Hope. RSVP for our national virtual premiere of the film on August 20 at 7 pm ET. Let’s go together.

CAMPAIGN BUILDS MOMENTUM WITH SWING THROUGH NATION’S CAPITAL

Last week, our civic campaign landed in the nation’s capital for a series of events around the Beltway. On Tuesday, Rich spoke to Better Together America’s local network of community leaders and residents who are concerned about safeguarding and building democracy. After that, he was the featured guest for a dinner of community leaders, elected officials, and funders from Owensboro, KY, who were in DC for a day of advocacy on Capitol Hill. 

Then, a long-time supporter of the Institute in Chevy Chase, MD, hosted a standing-room-only event at her house. And we rounded things out with an event in Frederick, MD, hosted by the Curious Iguana Bookstore and Frederick County Public Libraries. Here’s the essence of the message Rich delivered all across our nation’s capital:

  1. We don’t need more divisive politics. The change we need is going to start in our local communities. The best way to create that change is to get on a new civic path.

  2. There’s a shared American agenda that people want to work on together. There’s growing consensus wherever we go that we need a greater sense of decency in this country. We need to uphold each other’s dignity. And we need to get to work on a clear set of issues that people are already rallying around in our work across the nation, including things like youth opportunities and education, belonging, mental health, and senior care, among others.

  3. We can’t simply be consumers of politics. We need to be active citizens in our communities to restore our belief that we can come together—not as Republicans or Democrats or even Americans, but as humans—and get some real work done.

Up next, the campaign is headed to Selma, AL, where we’re hosting an in-person screening of Selma, Beacon of Hope on August 14. Then a week-long trek from one end of Virginia to the other in partnership with local libraries all across this battleground state. After that Ohio, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Florida, and more. 

This campaign isn’t stopping. We’re going to keep sounding this message—that we don’t need more divisive politics, we need a new civic path—from one corner of this great nation to another. There’s a lane open, and a deep and growing yearning for this kind of alternative among the American people. We mean to fill it. Remember, we are meant to go together. Let’s go together.

IT’S TIME FOR A NEW AMERICAN AGENDA

“From everyday Americans all across this nation, the aspirations I hear people articulate form something akin to a new American agenda. Not a political party platform. Not a new think-tank treatise. Not a recipe for mass resistance. Not an excuse to stay on the sidelines or simply disengage altogether. This is something fundamentally different and more hopeful. The Americans I meet want a new agenda.”

That’s the essence of Rich’s latest column for The Fulcrum, where he lays out what his experiences during the first two months of the campaign say about what Americans hold in common—from a booming suburb in Florida to one of the poorest communities in North Carolina to a working-class community in Connecticut to all across Northern California to Washington, DC.

PUBLIC LIBRARIES ARE ESSENTIAL TO OUR SHARED FUTURE

Public libraries are essential civic institutions in American public life. That’s why our campaign is determined to lift them up at every turn. We’ve already visited libraries across Northern California, Connecticut, Florida, and Maryland. Earlier this month, the Harwood team was in Fort Collins, CO, leading a Getting Started Public Innovators Lab with Poudre Libraries, an award-winning library system that serves a geographic area of some 1,800 square miles across Larimer County in northern Colorado.

Executive Director Diane Lapierre chose to host this Lab for library and community leaders from across her region to meet this critical moment, saying, “Harwood’s Public Innovators Lab really changed the way I approach my role as library director. To engage with community in a different way than we typically do is powerful.

We want to support your library in getting on a new civic path too. Get in touch with us to explore what our campaign can do for your community!

LISTEN TO RICH ON THE DERATE THE HATE PODCAST

What caused our crisis of belief? And how can we find a way forward? Rich tackles these questions and more in his recent appearance on the Derate the Hate podcast, which is produced in collaboration with Braver Angels. 

Ultimately, Rich told the host, “People aren’t broken. The system is. And we can choose to build something better—together.” Tune in for the full conversation.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Funders Webinar: How to Avoid Paralysis and Maintain Belief in Challenging Times | August 6 at 1pm ET
Join us for our next funder-specific webinar, where we will focus on helping you surface and work through how to not be paralyzed by these challenging times. In this intimate space, we’ll delve into what engenders belief in ourselves and others and zero in on how you can stay focused and on mission amid the challenges you face. Register now!

Unleashing Impact Virtual Lab | September 
The Unleashing Impact Lab is your crash course to becoming a more effective change agent. When you register, you’ll be joining thousands of Public Innovators in all 50 states and numerous countries worldwide who are actively creating real change by applying the Harwood approach in their personal and professional lives. The result of nearly four decades of innovation and learning, this accessible, high-impact Lab offers you the best of the time-tested Harwood approach. It’s time to make community work for all of us. The Harwood School teaches you how. Orientation starts September 2 at 2pm ET. Register to secure your seat! 

Annual Harwood Summit | October 23-25, 2025
Three days. 50 civic leaders. One shared purpose: to come together to wrestle with the challenges we face, to think deeply about who we are and how we’re called to step forward, and to renew our commitment to building a new trajectory of hope in our communities. Learn more about this year’s Summit.

Harwood is your home for hope in trying times.

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The Harwood Institute Team
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July Funders Newsletter