Over the past few months, the Thrive Conference Committee has gathered a strong mix of resources for civic education, voter participation, election protection, bridge-building, media literacy, and democratic resilience. Within the last month, a few themes stand out: people are preparing for the 2026 elections, educators are looking for practical civic learning tools, and communities are investing in healthier public dialogue.
Here are some of the strongest resources we found recently.
1. For protecting voting rights and election integrity
Several of this month’s best additions focus on helping voters, organizers, and election officials prepare for 2026.
Vote Safely in 2026 from the Brennan Center for Justice is especially timely. It offers guidance on voter rights, potential intimidation, and practical ways to protect access to the ballot in the 2026 election cycle.
The Brennan Center’s Resources for State and Local Election Officials is another standout. It gathers guides, toolkits, and research to support election administration, security, and public trust.
For the public, VOTE411 remains one of the most useful nonpartisan voter-information tools. It helps people check registration, find polling places, and understand what will be on their ballot.
Nonprofit VOTE is also worth highlighting for organizations that want to support voter education and mobilization without becoming partisan. It offers research, toolkits, and practical guidance for nonprofits doing civic engagement work.
Together, these resources create a strong foundation for anyone preparing voter education or election protection efforts.
2. For grassroots organizing and community action
This month’s additions also include several practical tools for organizing at the local level.
Field Team 6 offers a “Voter Drive-in-a-Box” resource for teams planning voter outreach events. Ground Control connects volunteers with timely actions that support voting rights and election protection.
The Indivisible Toolkit and related election-protection trainings provide accessible organizing materials for people who want to protect the 2026 elections through local action.
For people looking to plug into an existing local network, Find a Group | Indivisible is a helpful directory for locating nearby groups and getting involved.
These resources are especially useful for community organizers, nonprofits, and everyday citizens who want clear next steps.
3. For civic education and classroom use
Educators have several new resources worth exploring.
Founding Forward offers immersive civic education programs, educator resources, and professional development centered on American history and civic responsibility.
AI and Civic Engagement: 75+ Cross-Curricular Activities to Empower Your Students is a timely addition for educators thinking about how generative AI intersects with civic learning. It provides classroom-ready activities and prompts across K–12 subjects.
Civics of Technology is another strong resource for educators and researchers. It explores how technology shapes society and offers curriculum and professional development around building more just futures.
Generation Citizen’s Real-World Democracy Education is a standout for action civics. Its project-based model helps students identify community issues and take action, while also connecting civic learning to voter registration and media literacy.
These resources are especially valuable because they move civic education beyond abstract knowledge and toward active participation.
4. For media literacy, AI, and public life
The resource list also grew with several additions at the intersection of media, technology, and democracy.
Media Literacy Now is a key advocacy organization focused on bringing media literacy into K–12 education.
Libraries and AI in Public Life, a recap from the Digital Public Library of America, highlights how libraries are engaging communities in conversations about artificial intelligence, public knowledge, and civic life.
AI and Human Dignity from the Media Education Lab connects AI, ethics, human dignity, and civic learning — a useful entry point for educators, librarians, and media professionals.
Votebeat is also a valuable media resource. Its nonpartisan local reporting on elections and voting helps readers understand election administration, legal developments, and voting processes.
These additions reflect a growing need for trusted civic information in an AI-shaped media environment.
5. For bridge-building and civic dialogue
One of the richest clusters this month centers on depolarization, civil dialogue, and social trust.
Disagree Better offers nonpartisan tools for constructive disagreement and healthier civic conversation.
Civi helps people connect across political differences through respectful, cross-partisan conversations.
Interactivity Foundation provides discussion clubs, trainings, resources, and events designed to strengthen democratic engagement through dialogue.
American Public Square creates civil, fact-based forums and programs that bring people together for constructive public conversation.
Alliance for Social Trust, an Aspen Institute initiative, is also notable. It focuses on strengthening civic life through trust-building, storytelling, seed grants, and support for changemakers.
For communities trying to lower the temperature and rebuild civic relationships, this set of resources is especially promising.
6. For democratic resilience and institutional trust
Several additions focus on the broader health of democratic institutions.
Protect Democracy’s “If You Can Keep It” is a useful resource for understanding democratic resilience and authoritarian threats.
Verified Voting provides research and policy guidance on secure elections, voting equipment, audits, paper ballots, and election security.
Rebuild Congress Initiative focuses on strengthening Congress and democratic institutions through cross-partisan dialogue and consensus-building.
Horizons Project connects pro-democracy organizations and offers resources, trainings, and initiatives for collective action.
These resources are useful for researchers, advocates, organizers, and anyone tracking the health of democratic systems.
7. For youth civic engagement
Youth-focused civic engagement continues to be a major theme.
DONUTS + DEMOCRACY uses conversation guides and a creative youth-centered model to encourage voter registration and civic participation.
The Civic Success Project equips young people with stories, events, and resources to participate in civic life and drive community change.
Made By Us amplifies young voices in history and civic learning through projects and partnerships with cultural institutions.
HeadCount remains one of the most effective examples of meeting young people where they are — using music, culture, and live events to register voters and encourage civic participation.
These resources show how youth civic engagement is becoming more creative, relational, and culturally connected.
What this month’s curation tells us
The strongest resources added this month point to five urgent needs:
Clear, nonpartisan election information
Practical organizing tools for 2026
Civic education that is active, not passive
Media literacy for an AI-driven information environment
Spaces for dialogue, trust-building, and democratic repair
This growing collection is becoming more than a directory. It is a map of the infrastructure people need to learn, organize, vote, deliberate, and protect democratic life.
For educators, organizers, librarians, funders, journalists, and civic leaders, this month’s additions offer a timely toolkit: resources to prepare for elections, strengthen civic learning, rebuild trust, and invite more people into democratic participation.
Links
Voting rights and election integrity
Vote Safely in 2026 | Brennan Center for Justice: https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/vote-safely-2026
Resources for State and Local Election Officials | Brennan Center for Justice: https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/resources-state-and-local-election-officials
VOTE411:
Nonprofit VOTE:
Verified Voting:
Votebeat:
Grassroots organizing and community action
Field Team 6 — Voter Drive-in-a-Box: https://www.fieldteam6.org/voter-drive-in-a-box
Ground Control:
Indivisible Toolkit: https://indivisible.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Hands-Off-Our-Vote-2026-Toolkit.pdf
Hands Off Our Vote: Election Protection 101 & 201 | Indivisible: https://www.mobilize.us/indivisible/event/1000403/
Find a Group | Indivisible: https://indivisible.org/get-involved/find-a-group/
Sign Up to Protect the 2026 Elections | Indivisible: https://www.mobilize.us/indivisible/event/916480/
Civic education and classroom resources
Founding Forward:
AI and Civic Engagement: 75+ Cross-Curricular Activities to Empower Your Students: https://www.amazon.com/AI-Civic-Engagement-Cross-Curricular-Activities/dp/B0F9DLNMR7/
Civics of Technology:
Generation Citizen — Real-World Democracy Education:
Sphere Education Initiatives:
Made By Us:
Media literacy, AI, and public life
Media Literacy Now:
Libraries and AI in Public Life | DPLA:
https://dp.la/news/libraries-and-ai-in-public-life-a-recap-from-the-obama-presidential-centerAI and Human Dignity | Media Education Lab: https://mediaeducationlab.com/events/ai-and-human-dignity
Votebeat:
Bridge Entertainment Labs:
Bridge-building, dialogue, and social trust
Disagree Better:
Civi:
Interactivity Foundation:
American Public Square:
Alliance for Social Trust:
Make America Dinner Again:
Crossing Party Lines:
Dignity Dialogues:
Center for New Democratic Processes:
Center for Public Deliberation:
Democratic resilience and institutional trust
If You Can Keep It | Protect Democracy:
Rebuild Congress Initiative:
Horizons Project:
https://www.democracywithoutborders.org/
Team Democracy:
Center for Sustainable Democracy | University of South Florida: https://www.usf.edu/arts-sciences/centers/csd/index.aspx
Youth civic engagement
DONUTS + DEMOCRACY:
The Civic Success Project:
HeadCount:
Made By Us:
Institute of Politics | University of Chicago:
Polis: Center for Politics | Duke University: