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Building Our Muscle for Democracy with Prof. Ceasar McDowell (S2:E8)
Description
EPISODE 8: Building Our Muscle for Democracy (Prof. Ceasar McDowell)
The classic New England town meeting, with voters gathered in a large hall to decide issues directly, is often cited as the purest form of American democracy. But historically, those town meetings gave a voice only to certain classes of people. In this episode we meet Ceasar McDowell, Professor of the Practice of Community Development at MIT and newly appointed associate director of MIT’s Center for Constructive Communication. Prof. McDowell has devoted his career to nurturing a more vibrant, inclusive democracy, one adapted to the complex reality of a modern, largely urbanized America. In his course 11.312 Engaging Community (coming soon to OpenCourseWare), he helps his students use the tools of civic design to craft forms of community engagement and decision-making that will bring everyone into the conversation, even those on the margins of our society. In keeping with his commitment to collaborative effort, Prof. McDowell encourages his students to propose specific real-life problems they’re interested in, and to decide collectively which ones to address in the class. “We have to learn to talk to each other,” he says. “Yes, this is hard work, and yes, you can do it.”
Relevant Resources
MIT OpenCourseWare
https://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=chalkradio&utm_term=s2e8
The OCW Educator Portal
https://ocw.mit.edu/educator/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=chalkradio&utm_term=s2e8
Professor McDowell’s faculty page
https://dusp.mit.edu/faculty/ceasar-mcdowell
MIT's Center for Constructive Communication
https://www.ccc.mit.edu
We Who Engage (blog)
https://open.mit.edu/c/themove
We Who Engage (podcast episodes)
https://soundcloud.com/user-684808838
We Who Engage (Instagram)
https://www.instagram.com/wewhoengage_mit/
America’s Path Forward
https://www.americaspathforward.org
Civic Design Framework
https://open.mit.edu/c/themove/2sn/introducing-the-civic-design-framework-principles
Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions
https://www.sessions.blue
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