The Great Battlefield Building Local Democracy Hubs with Vinay Orekondy of Better Together America
Jan 26, 2026
Vinay Orekondy, co-founder of Better Together America and civic organizer, builds local democracy hubs to stitch nonpartisan groups into community networks. He discusses creating ladders of engagement, how hubs reduce polarization by fostering post-partisan identities, and strategies for scaling grassroots civic infrastructure nationally and internationally.
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Local Hubs Turn Civic Actors Into A Movement
- Vinay Orekondy argues local civic organizations share values and can be stitched into movement-building civic hubs.
- He views a ladder of engagement that sequences social activities to deep civic action to mobilize isolated people.
Use A Ladder To Grow Civic Engagement
- Sequence civic engagement: start with simple social activities and guide people up to participatory democracy and organizing.
- Use coordinated ladders of engagement so organizations feed participants into deeper civic roles.
Advertiser Boycott Sparked Viral Mobilization
- Vinay tells how an advertiser boycott against Alan Jones exploded on change.org and forced advertisers to drop the show.
- The campaign showed people a direct link between action and immediate impact, which drove mass participation.
