About the Summit

Background

According to the national Civic Health Index, which measures civic participation along forty indicators, the United States has been on the decline for the past thirty years. This decline was found for most indicators; including our trust in one another and in major institutions, and in our connections to community. Our own home state of Massachusetts ranks 34^th in the nation for volunteerism and 16^th in the nation for voter participation. When civic involvement erodes, the health of our democracy and the civic welfare of its citizens are weakened. Long term quality life in a community is affected. Ultimately, Massachusetts’ economic social vitality is at stake. Finding ways to improve the civic engagement and trust is critical to the longer term health of the Massachusetts economy, democracy, and families.

Summit Purpose

The purpose of the Massachusetts Civic Engagement Summit is to raise awareness about the importance of civic involvement among government, business and community leaders, and engage them in finding effective ways to work together. The Summit will focus on major civic engagement sectors including volunteerism, neighborhoods and networks, civic education, and electoral politics and policy.

The Summit will highlight and uncover the range and scope of existing activities and infrastructure. It will serve as a platform to showcase best practices and models of innovation among corporations, government, community, education, and non-profit organizations. It will also afford participants the opportunity to engage in cross cutting discussions on topics ranging from evaluation, professional development, changing demographics and more. The Summit will end with a call to action for increased collaboration among civic leaders to address pressing needs of the community.

Audience

The Massachusetts Civic Engagement Summit will bring together a diverse group of formal and informal leaders with the passion and energy to increase the level of civic involvement in Massachusetts communities. The goal for the participation is 300 - 400 people representing a broad range of constituencies including: community leaders of civic and neighborhood organizations, clergy, educators, business leaders, local government officials, Chamber of Commerce leadership, youth leaders, public policy leaders, non-profit executives, corporate social responsibility officers and Corporate Volunteer Council members, and elected officials.

Benefits of attending

The Massachusetts Civic Engagement Summit will:

• Serve as a platform to showcase best practices and models of innovation among corporations, government, community, education, and non-profit organizations, while also encouraging collaboration across sectors
   
• Provide a venue for cross-cutting discussions on topics ranging from evaluation, professional development, changing demographics and more
   
• Provide inspiration so that attendees can take meaningful action to address the pressing needs of the communities around them – whether through volunteerism, neighborhood and network activity, civic education or electoral politics and policy.

Who should attend?

The Massachusetts Civic Engagement Summit will bring together hundreds of formal and informal leaders with the passion and energy to increase the level of civic involvement in Massachusetts communities.

The Summit is designed to attract a broad range of constituencies including:

• Business leaders
• Local and statewide government officials
• Community leaders of civic and neighborhood organizations
• Clergy
• Educators
• Public policy leaders
• Non-profit executives
• Youth leaders
• Association executives
• Many others!

Event Contacts

Sponsorships: Patrice Keegan
Promotional partnerships: Chris McCue
Registration questions: Danielle Holly
Join our mailing list: Chris McCue