Mark Gerzon

Founder of Mediators Foundation
Mark Gerzon, president and founder of Mediators Foundation, has specialized in leadership that bridges divides. As an experienced facilitator in high-conflict zones, he has advised a wide variety of organizations including the US Congress, multinational corporations, and the United Nations Development Program. He is also a leading author of books in the field of conflict transformation, including A House Divided (1996), Leading Through Conflict (2006) and Global Citizens (2010).

Keiva Hummel

National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation (NCDD)
Keiva Hummel is the Executive Director of the National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation (NCDD), where she leads efforts to foster equitable and inclusive community engagement with a focus on strengthening democracy. For over 20 years, NCDD has served as a network dedicated to advancing dialogue and deliberation. As a resource clearinghouse and national convener, NCDD collaborates with individuals and organizations to address complex societal issues, from political violence to polarization. NCDD’s work spans many sectors to promote community and civic engagement, including education, government, libraries, healthcare, media, and journalism. A long-standing partnership with the American Library Association through the Libraries Transforming Communities initiative has expanded dialogue and facilitation skills across libraries nationwide, further positioning them as hubs for civic engagement. Recent initiatives include the Practitioner Mobilization for Democracy campaign, which connects and empowers facilitators to engage in democracy work. Keiva holds a B.A. in Communication Studies, a minor in Global Peace, Human Rights, and Justice Studies, and a Certificate in Conflict Resolution. Originally from the Bay Area, she now resides in Denver, Colorado.

Duncan Autrey

Omni-Win
I have worked in facilitation and conflict resolution for over fifteen years in diverse contexts ranging from rural Paraguay and Colombia to cities of Seattle, Washington, DC, Cuenca and Buenos Aires. I approach conflict from a belief that it arises from the diverse cultural expressions of common human needs. Every conflict or complicated situation, large or small, is an opportunity for deepening our relationships and improving the world we live in.I have extensive knowledge of a wide variety of the most state-of-the-art strategies, tools and technologies for facilitating groups in conflict and/or groups with a desire to have conversations that are transformative, productive and coherent.I have specific expertise with conflicts that arise between companies, communities and governments. I’m particularly prepared for supporting those that want to design systems for inclusive communication that is both sustainable and democratic.

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Kristina Becvar

Bridge Alliance
Kristina Becvar's professional journey has been nothing short of transformative. From a background in legal operational and change management, she followed her curiosity to explore the world of data analytics and research methods, opening up new career paths for herself. After dedicating years to optimizing legal service management and delivery, Kristina felt a strong desire to explore the potential of data analytics and research methods and explore new career paths.Returning to the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where she had previously earned her B.A. in Business Studies, Kristina pursued and successfully earned an M.S. in Data Analytics and Computation for Social Sciences. This two-year endeavor solidified her expertise in data analytics and research methods, preparing her for the challenges ahead.Beyond her professional interests, Kristina is deeply engaged in nonviolence advocacy, particularly for those affected by war and conflict in conflict zones and international security. Her experiences as the spouse of a disabled combat veteran have contributed to her desire to bring about positive change in this field. During her M.S. pursuit, Kristina delved deep into her passions while serving as a project manager at the Human Security Lab, supervising research on topics like nuclear taboos, Ukrainian conscription law, and post-U.S. withdrawal civilian voices in Afghanistan.Kristina remains eager to continue honing her skills and actively seeks opportunities to collaborate on future research endeavors. Her interests are diverse, spanning areas such as human security, combat veteran narratives, environmental justice, and conflict resolution on both domestic and international fronts.

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Kristin Hansen

Civic Health Project
As the Executive Director of Civic Health Project, Kristin is dedicated to accelerating the efforts of academics and practitioners who seek to reduce polarization and improve civil discourse in our citizenry, politics, and media.In addition to her role at Civic Health Project, Kristin serves on the advisory boards of AllSides, Business for America, and Listen First Project. She also serves as a year-round lecturer in Strategic Communications at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.Prior to her current work in civil discourse, Kristin held senior executive roles at Intel, IBM, and multiple start-up software companies. She holds a BA in Political Science and an MA in International Policy Studies from Stanford University, and an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

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William Ury

Possibilist
With this groundbreaking book, bestselling author and international negotiator William Ury shares a new “path to possible”—time-tested practices that will help readers unlock their power to constructively engage and transform conflict. Part memoir, part manual, part manifesto, Possible offers stories and sage advice from Ury’s nearly 50 years of experience on the front lines of some of the world’s toughest conflicts.
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David D. Chrislip

Innovative Leadership Insititute
For more than 40 years, David Chrislip has been helping people enhance their leadership capacities and collaboratively create visions and strategies for their organizations and communities. The broader purpose of his work is to build civil society. His work, both nationally and internationally, focuses on three areas: civic leadership development, collaboratively addressing complex community issues, and organizational strategy and development.
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Roshan Bliss

National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation (NCDD)
Roshan Bliss is an accomplished community organizer, policy advocate, and nonprofit leader based in Denver, Colorado. Roshan has helped to write, pass, and implement new laws at the state and local levels, and he has an array of experience working to build community coalitions and winning campaigns for ambitious social change. He is a certified mediator, professional facilitator, and public engagement specialist who’s spent hundreds of hours supporting small and large groups to learn, grow, and make decisions collaboratively. He helped launch and manage Denver’s first-ever participatory budgeting processes. and he previously spent seven years in senior leadership of mission-driven nonprofit organizations.

In his role as the Director of Democracy Innovations for the National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation, Roshan leads the efforts of a 20-year old professional network for scholars and practitioners of conflict resolution, dialogue, and democratic deliberation to shift its focus from internal field building to outward-facing efforts to address democratic dysfunction. Based in Denver, Roshan is a certified mediator and has over a decade of experience in public engagement and deliberative process, including  He holds a BA in Philosophy and Religious Studies from Purdue University, and his graduate studies in conflict resolution at the University of Denver focused on civic theory, participatory democracy, and collaborative governance.

Who We Are

Better Together
America

We are Better Together

Better Together America is catalyzing a national nonpartisan support network of local and state democracy hubs paired with a collaborative national funding campaign.

By connecting and accelerating place-based, collective impact organizing efforts across the country, we are empowering communities to reimagine democracy from the ground up. By increasing community resilience and fortifying civic capacity, communities across the country will be better equipped to solve their biggest challenges and reduce the risk of political violence and division after the 2024 election.

Our expanding network of state roundtables and local “Civic Hubs” is supported by a national network of organizations paired with a collaborative and collective funding campaign to catalyze, strengthen, and unite the pro-democracy sector. In addition to activating Civic Hubs and fundraising, we are creating learning communities, a resource center, communication amplification services, and a set of shared evaluation measurements.

Formulate Core Stratergy

A collection of local, nonpartisan organizations, groups, or individuals formulate a core team. This could include diverse sectors (e.g., government, bridging, media, mediators, academia, faith, business, etc.) or it could be one org or person willing to put the time in.

Community Visioning

The core team convenes and works with the community to understand the needs, vision, and priorities. This both helps identify potential needed collaborative efforts and builds civic capacity. Other civic capacity efforts include trusted local news, training, or identifying places for "democracy to sit down."

Connecting to Other Efforts

Where there are existing collaborative and participatory efforts related to priorities, the core team a) shares how important the public finds their work and any insights gathered, and b) works to build any needed connective tissue between such efforts.

Collaborative Problem Solving

Where new efforts are needed based off public priorities, the core team convenes members of the public, stakeholders, and decision makers to identify and solve challenges collaboratively and through inclusive participation.

Leader Accountability

The core team works with the collaborative solutions-oriented efforts to organize and build increasing accountability with relevant elected and appointed officials. Where leaders are not accountable, advocating for democratic reforms using the collaborative problem-solving model may be necessary.

Our Team

Jacob Bornstein

Executive Director and Co-Founder

Caleb Christen

Director of Hub Learning + Support and Co-Founder

Vinay Orekondy

Director of Partnerships and Co-Founder

Alyssa Newlon

Director of Development +
Strategic Communications and Co-Founder

Mesa Sebree

Development Associate

Ryan Murphy

Digital Marketing and Data Specialist

Introducing Our Advisors

Mark Gerzon

Founder of Mediators Foundation

Keiva Hummel

National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation (NCDD)

Roshan Bliss

National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation (NCDD)

Duncan Autrey

Omni-Win

Kristina Becvar

Bridge Alliance

Kristin Hansen

Civic Health Project

William Ury

Possibilist

David D. Chrislip

Innovative
Leadership Institute

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