Inspired on the 4th
What gives me hope this Independence Day
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Are you looking for some inspiration today? A few reasons to believe in our country and our path forward? Well, just in time for Independence Day, Substack, Facebook, and LinkedIn are buzzing with recaps of the 2026 Braver Angels Convention, which was held at Temple University in Philadelphia on June 25-28. Here are a few moments that inspired me. Disclaimer: there were a ton of other events, including a civic scholars symposium, debates, author talks, workshops, and more! Apart from this article, check out the Braver Angels You Tube Channel and articles by Courtenay Budd and Richard Davies. And the video hosted by Wilk Wilkinson, Braver Angels Director of Media Systems and Operations.
Citizen-Led Solutions. Braver Angels has focused for years on how we talk with others across political differences, and received pushback that people wanted more action. An energizing initiative called Citizen-Led Solutions transforms civic dialogue into working with others to solving real-world community issues- -think affordable housing, traffic safety and even later school start times for sleepy teens. You can learn more HERE.
Here’s a video by Braver Angel filmmaker Swati Srivastava that captures the excitement of citizen-led solutions. I was thrilled to be featured on the jumbo screen with Terra Ziporyn of Start School Later (and watch other examples too).
Public Health Events. Scientists Francis Collins and John Ioannidis were featured in a panel, moderated by Wilk Wilkinson, entitled Science, Humility, and the Courage to Rebuild Trust. I was most impressed by the humility the speakers conveyed - “What people deserve from a scientist, which is to speak with integrity, competence, and humility (56:30).”
The day before, I co-led a breakout session with friend and colleague Leslie Lopato entitled “Building Trust: Bridging Partisan and Cultural Divides in Public Health” with a diverse panel exploring how public health professionals (including from state associations and academia) and community members (including from MAHA Ohio) successfully collaborate on public policy even when disagreeing on broader issues. Our photo is below and bios and other materials are HERE.
Strategic Partners. It wasn’t just Braver Angels at the table. Multiple organizations were at the convention, including but not limited to the strategic partners below, several of which have done guest posts with Together Across Differences.
Music brings us together— informal jam sessions into the evening, a dance party, and a concert featuring Carrie Manolakos- take a listen to these words from “All Eyes on Us”
"How do you want to feel? Do you want to heal? How will you use your voice? Don't worry I'll go first. To love even though I hurt. To reach you through the noise."
And singing in the chorus with my friends- -what could be more fun!
“From now on, We won’t be divided by the fight, From now on, what’s waited ‘til tomorrow starts tonight. It starts tonight. Let this promise in us start, Like an anthem in our hearts, From now on…And we will come back home, Home again”
The People. My favorite part. Conservatives, Liberals, Independents. Authors. Speakers. Thought-Leaders. All coming together to inspire each other and restore our faith in our country.
My co-author Doug Teschner with Amanda Ripley, author of High Conflict (photo courtesy of Courtenay Budd)
Part of our Together Across Differences delegate team:
I’m hoping something in this article brought you a smile or inspiration. If so, take the next step and join Braver Angels or one of the more than 500 other organizations working to bring our country together.
Enjoy the weekend!
Great blog and videos. It captures some of the magic and connection from the Braver Angels convention.
When it comes to science and public health, do you know if there are efforts to reach out to science communicators (such as the Unbiased Science group)? I feel like there is still a big disconnect between the two groups that do have a common purpose, and that could contribute to ongoing distrust of science among the general public.