Hi <<First Name>>,
The election of America’s next President was a lengthy ordeal — as drawn out as many experts promised, and far closer than many polls predicted. Even now, after Joe Biden has been declared the winner, some Americans are questioning the outcome, while others feel like they can finally exhale.
Unfortunately, these election results don’t ameliorate the prevailing culture of distrust and “othering” rampant in our institutions and with one another. If anything, the results help reveal it. Each of us plays a role in addressing our growing crisis of connection. We see our work of Bonding, Bridging, and Building as crucial to creating a culture of equity and belonging, where every American feels seen, heard, and valued.
We know human connection is foundational to our individual and collective thriving. It’s in our DNA. It’s what sets us apart as a species: our ability to cooperate, collaborate, and yes, even compromise. That’s why Einhorn Collaborative is focused on advancing the science and practice of empathy, mutual understanding, and relationship building — so we can rediscover our common humanity and solve our nation’s greatest challenges together. In this newsletter, we’ve gathered a collection of resources we believe are helpful in this complicated post-election moment.
Since launching our new strategy and brand in September, many of you have shared great enthusiasm for and interest in our road ahead. Interspersed with the cheers and virtual high-fives, we’ve also gotten a lot of questions. We’ve accepted this as an invitation to go deeper into sharing what we’ve learned in this process and our commitment to working together on what’s next.
We also heard your interest in knowing more about what this work looks like on the ground. In our Through the Prism feature below, we invite you to get to know Steven Olikara, one of Einhorn Collaborative’s Builders, who recently shared what music — specifically jazz — has to teach us about democracy. He shared these reflections as part of a series we’ve put together in partnership with NationSwell’s #BuildItBackBetter initiative. Steven’s work leading Millennial Action Project is a perfect illustration of what’s possible when we bridge partisan divides. (Hint hint: not watered-down consensus, but rather a political culture grounded in empathy and trust that enables innovative, future-oriented solutions.)
After launching Einhorn Collaborative in September, last month, we hosted a webinar with close to 300 people in our community. We’re excited to share the video of that ninety-minute conversation below (in case you missed it!), along with answers to 20 of the top questions we received before, during, and after that event that we promised to follow up on.
At Einhorn Collaborative, we believe deeply in the power of partnership, which is why we’re excited to highlight Jess Pitera, BBMG’s Art Director, who shares her own reflections about our process of designing the new Einhorn Collaborative brand. You can also listen to my interview on BBMG’s new podcast the The Future We Want, that shares more about this powerful partnership.
Across every generation, our ability to work together in common purpose has fueled our greatest achievements and safeguarded our progress in times of challenge and change. This feels like one of those moments. And yet, we know that if we are to do this work well, we must take the time to listen, learn, and understand each other first. I hope you’ll join us next Wednesday at NationSwell’s Build It Back Better event, The Long Road Ahead of Healing the Heart of American Democracy on Nov 18 at 4pm ET with Steven Olikara, Parker Palmer, and Krista Tippett so we can begin to pave the road ahead together.
Until then, with gratitude,
Jenn Hoos Rothberg + the Einhorn Collaborative Team |