Daily Resource Highlight - 11/15/2021

Posted by on November 15, 2021 at 10:54 AM

Below are the highlights and featured resources of this past week’s Daily* Resource.

November 9. 2021 - Climate Change is a Right / Left Issue...But Not in THAT Way

There’s a consensus that often comes up when I talk to people about polarization and solution making; that we generally have similar goals as a society, but different ideas on how to achieve those goals. So it is with climate change and the environment.

On Sunday, the U.N. kicked off a climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, and it spurred voices on the “left” and “right” to give their two cents on how to tackle the issue. As shown by The FlipSide’s article, the left is eager to institute significant reforms to avoid potential catastrophe. This approach is reflected in the Build Back Better Act, which -- according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget -- would invest over $500 billion in climate infrastructure. This approach is supported by other members of the Alliance, such as Daniella Ballou-Aares of Leadership Now Project.

Large segments of the right agree that climate change is a significant issue, but advocate for market-based, entrepreneurial solutions (NFRPP). Within just the Bridge Alliance, American Conservation Coalition, Common Good, R Street Institute, and others argue that, properly incentivized, American businesses can play a huge, positive role in combating climate change. Additionally, the conservatives quoted in The FlipSide’s article argue for further investments into natural gas and nuclear energy.

Where do you come down on all of this? Express your thoughts and hear others’ perspectives on November 11th @ 8 PM ET with Braver Angels’ National Debate: Climate Change. And remember, we are all on the same team. Even if we disagree on the “how,” we generally agree on the “what” -- a healthy environment that future generations can thrive in. 

November 11, 2021 - We Are In the Business of Conflict -- Welcoming New Members

There are people who think that organizations and people that encourage dialogue -- like the Bridge Alliance -- want everybody to sing kumbaya and are conflict-avoidant. This is very much not the case. A democratic-republic cannot function without conflict. But that conflict must be accompanied by respect and trust that all parties are seeking solutions to mutual problems. Only then can we achieve the kind of innovation that Cities of Service is offering to city leaders (deadline November 19th).

That is why we are excited to welcome Divided We Fall into the Bridge Alliance. Divided We Fall’s mission is “to demonstrate productive civil discourse and bipartisanship,” and they do that by diving head first into controversial topics and inviting an exchange of ideas on those topics. As a Jewish American, my eyes were drawn to their article on the Israel-Palestine conflict. 

The authors of this piece have very different perspectives on the struggle, and there’s no kumbaya moment (heck, there’s barely any agreement), but there are also no personal attacks of any kind. Both authors had the opportunity to make their views known, and the reader is left with a good faith conflict on a very difficult subject.

The Bridge Alliance’s other new member -- Up To Us -- is also interested in promoting conflicting ideas. However, their focus is squarely on the National Debt, which is growing very, very quickly. They believe this presents a grave threat to the prosperity of future generations, and they are looking to empower young Americans to combat the problem.

So where’s the conflict? As you may have guessed, it’s in how to address the National Debt. Their Solutions page offers five different approaches, which range from capping entitlement spending to overhauling our entitlement system and paying for the overhaul with tax hikes. Up To Us doesn’t endorse any of the approaches, but instead presents them on equal footing as conversation starters to accomplish the ultimate mission of getting our nation on a path of fiscal sustainability. 

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