When Linda Harris began working at city hall in her hometown of Decatur, Georgia, she noticed that the relationship between local government leaders and their constituents was often tense, or nonexistent. In this episode, learn how she changed that dynamic and got more people involved in local government

Take a deep dive into the practice of participatory budgeting and learn how it can bring civic power to people who are not normally in the driver's seat on local decisions. Learn how participatory budgeting has impacted cities from Durham, North Carolina to New York City and beyond.

Amid book bans and restrictions on programming, things seem pretty rough for libraries right now. But that doesn't mean we can't fight for something better. This week, we hear from two librarians working to enhance the role libraries of libraries democracy and civic engagement.

When public officials embark on efforts to incorporate more civic input in city decisions, they are often hamstrung by inefficient means that favor the loudest voices in a room. But more people want a say in their local government; they just need the right opportunity. In Petaluma, California, it was something known as the “democracy lottery.”

Some 2,500 newspapers have closed in the U.S since 2005, leaving entire communities without a source for local news, as well as with limited means to keep their government officials accountable. What if there was a way to fill the news desert, with an entirely new approach to informing the public? Meet the innovators working to reimagine local news across the country.

The final episode of the season takes a step back from individual democracy reforms to look at what it will take to create a healthy civic culture where power is shared across the community — rather than concentrated in the hands of a few stakeholders. Eric Liu believes this can happen and is working tirelessly to spread his idea of civic faith across the U.S.