NCoC: Discussions and Commentary

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Discussions and Commentary

NCoC engages in Research, Discussion and Solutions to real world issues. We apply this strategic approach in 6 primary civic focus areas, highlighted here.

NCoC believes addressing an issue occurs in three primary strategic phases: research, discussion, and solutions. The discussion phase is an important element in understanding challenges and animating research findings, as well as turning them into action plans and solutions in communities. This is why NCoC is committed to using our website as a platform for ongoing discussion and commentary about issues facing the civic sector.

Here, you will see a list of our featured discussions, broken down by focus area. Scroll over the title to see a brief description, and click to read the article and join the discussion.

For all featured discussions sorted by date, click here.

Ongoing Discussion Series are also generated on the following topics:
The Meaning of American
Can Engagement Strengthen the Economy?
Public Policy Chat

Discussions by issue area are here:

Title	Date	Type
Beyond the VoteAmericans turned out in force for the 2008 Presidential Election with over 133 million ballots cast. Voters were heeding the call for change, but will citizens continue to be involved beyond Election Day? ...	November 5, 2008	video
Can Facebook Replace Face-to-Face? The 2008 National Conference on Citizenship raised this provocative question with Sean Parker, Founding President of Facebook and Bill Galston of the Brookings Institute. Parker and Galston discussed, ...	November 14, 2008	video
Gatekeepers and New MediaDuring the 2008 National Conference on Citizenship, panelists Bill Galston of the Brookings Institution and Sean Parker, Founding President of Facebook, agreed to disagree on the subject of gatekeepers ...	November 20, 2008	video
The Internet: Civic Polarizer or Unifier?There's an old saying, ”Great minds think alike.” Or is that just what we tell ourselves when we find people who think as we do? Sean Parker, William Galston and Joe Trippi conclude their dynamic ...	November 26, 2008	video
Should Service-learning be Mandatory?Recent studies indicate that service-learning can play a major role in keeping students interested in their studies, thus improving attendance rates. In fact, service-learning can positively affect classroom ...	December 2, 2008	discussion
Should Congress Mandate a New Civics Test?Recently the Intercollegiate Studies Institute compiled a 33-question test on civic knowledge. The average American scored 49% and elected officials scored even lower with an average 44% score. With these ...	December 16, 2008	discussion
The Price and the Promise of Citizenship.President Obama is counting on us. From his first big national speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention to his Presidential Inaugural Address, Mr. Obama has called on us repeatedly to rise to ...	January 20, 2009	discussion
Can Service Save the Economy?It’s no secret that our economy is in deep trouble and that various options for its rescue and resuscitation have been a topic of strenuous debate for months. Banks and the auto industry have received ...	January 28, 2009	discussion
Band-Aid or Down Payment?On January 28, 2009 the U.S. House of Representatives passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (HR. 1), also known as the economic stimulus plan. The legislation includes $200 million ...	February 3, 2009	discussion
Could a Down Market Actually Help Uplift America?Public service pays dividendsIn a recent Washington Times Op Ed, leadership Entrepreneurs Christopher Gergen and Gregg Vanourek say that investing in service as part of an economic stimulus package could have a far reaching and positive ...	February 24, 2009	discussion