Is Civic Capital the Key to Combatting Coronaviruses?
Several studies have shown that countries with greater public trust, equity and social capital have had fewer deaths from COVID-19. These are three ingredients of civic capital, a community’s capacity to solve problems and thrive. Civic Capital is a key factor not only for community health, but for most quality of life measures we care about. Read more. 
President, National Civic League
Reforming the Reforms: California Edition
Community Collaboration to Address Homelessness
Embracing Community Solutions to Public Safety
The recent recall election in California wasn’t close. After months of electioneering, Gavin Newsom retained his position as governor with more than 62 percent of the vote. Considering the cost, California taxpayers can’t be blamed for wondering whether all the fuss and expense were worth it. Is this an instance when it becomes necessary to reform the reform? Read more.
Fort Lauderdale, Florida has few visible signs of homelessness. Though homelessness continues to be an important issue for this All-America City, the city has worked to reduce homelessness through county-wide partnerships. Collaboration is the key to Fort Lauderdale’s work on homelessness, as well as the efforts of cities around the U.S. Read more.

Public safety reform should involve the public. Hayward California’s recent community engagement effort around public safety showed that institutions and governments cannot solve community issues on their own - that it requires working hand-in-hand with residents and leveraging the strength of local groups, associations and institutions.
Handling Incivility in
Public Meetings
Engaging Marginalized Communities
Youth and Participatory Budgeting
There have been some startling examples recently of public meetings that have gone off the rails. City council and school board meetings about COVID protocols have devolved into chaos. Tense public meetings are not new to public officials nor are they entirely avoidable, but there are steps institutions can take to create a more civil environment to allow for productive conversation on divisive issues. Read more.
Major events like COVID-19 have caused local governments to question how they can better engage marginalized groups. Meeting communities where they are and listening to their experiences is a good place to start. Following up to demonstrate how their input is being considered and put into action is equally important. Read more in this ICMA article about Challenges and Best Practices.
Participatory budgeting is a process in which community members come together to decide how a public budget should be spent. We’re most familiar with its use in towns and cities, but it’s also gaining a foothold in high-schools and universities. Listen to a recording of last month's webinar when our panelists discussed techniques for, and examples of, bringing youth voices to the budgeting table. Listen
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Additional Information and Upcoming Events

GFOA: Third Annual MiniMuni Conference 
October 20-22, 2021

National Conference on Citizenship Annual Conference: Accelerate Democracy
November 11-12, 2021

NLC City Summit- Virtual
November 15-19, 2021

NCDD Event Calendar
The calendar lists upcoming events related to dialogue, deliberation, and civic engagement.

Now accepting article proposals for National Civic Review
We are interested in 1,200-3,000 word articles. 
The deadline for the fall issue is December 15th. 
Contact mikem@ncl.org for more information. 
What We're Reading
Thank you to National Civic League Sustaining Member Communities:

Algoma, WI
Asheboro, NC
Aurora, CO
Danville, VA
Decatur, GA
Denver, CO
Dublin, CA
El Paso, TX
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Gladstone, MO
Hayward, CA
Illinois Municipal League
Las Vegas, NV
Miami Gardens, FL
Oakridge Neighborhood, IA
Rancho Cordova, CA
Roanoke, VA
San Antonio, TX
Tallahassee, FL
Tampa Housing Authority
Tupelo, MS
Wichita, KS
Thank you to National Civic League Partner Organizations:

American Society for Public Administration
Bridge Alliance
Campaign for Grade-Level Reading
Carl and Lily Pforzheimer Foundation
CGI
Comcast
Google
Government Finance Officers Association
ICMA-RC
International City / County Management Association
Kettering Foundation
National Academy of Public Administration
National Coalition on Dialogue and Deliberation
National League of Cities
National Forum for Black Public Administrators
Rawson Family Foundation
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Southwest Airlines
United States Census Bureau
United Way Worldwide
Well Being Trust
W.K. Kellogg Foundation