DeForest Soaries

Religious and civic leader, author, and financial-empowerment advocate; founder and CEO of Dfree Global Foundation and former senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens. He previously served as New Jersey Secretary of State and chaired the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

A 10-Year Civic Campaign Aims to Turn Local Trust Into Action

At the Aspen Ideas Festival, Heather Gerken, Brian Hooks, Jane Wales and other civic and philanthropic leaders cast Be the People as a decade-long effort to counter civic isolation by reconnecting Americans with local problem-solving. Their argument is that Americans retain more trust, generosity and desire to contribute than national political narratives suggest, but need institutions, cultural messengers and community organizations that make that shared agency visible and usable.

The Aspen InstituteJun 30, 202616 min read