September 30, 2008

7 p.m. - Riverview Library

The Citizen as Co-creator

In his new book, The Citizen Solution: How You Can Make a Difference, nationally known community organizer and public intellectual Harry Boyte challenges recent studies that portray American democracy as in decline. He argues that we are at the threshold of a shift toward self-organized cooperative citizen efforts in which people and communities define problems, what to do about them, and how to measure success.

Join Harry Boyte as he describes some of the roots of community organizing and cites work on St. Paul’s West Side that demonstrates how community-based groups and neighborhood residents can make a significant difference in our world. The event will feature time for discussion and interaction.

Harry Boyte is founder and co-director of the Center for Democracy and Citizenship at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey Institute. He is also founder of the Public Achievement organizing model, which is used by people in communities across the United States and in more than a dozen countries worldwide to solve common problems democratically.