Forum for Democracy USA – Citizen Connect

Forum for Democracy USA LLC (FFD) is a non-partisan, mission-driven, Public Benefit LLC committed to empowering students to become informed and engaged citizens capable of promoting the welfare of the people, the health of the planet and the preservation of our representative democracy.

For Students and Engaged Citizens

Anyone who is 13 years old or older may sign up for free access to explore current national and foreign policy issues in real-time. You may vote on a new question each week in one of the three FFD forums representing the three branches of our federal government: Chief Justice, Capitol Hill and Head of State. By using digital democracy tools, FFD will harvest and deliver the collective wisdom of American citizens nationwide to the corridors of power in Washington, DC.

Additionally, the FFD Educator License delivers dynamic, real-time content for high school civics, journalism, speech and debate classes. Our civic-tech program, which can be taught safely online and/or in the classroom, is designed to empower high school students to advance positive change and social justice through civic engagement, civil discourse and creative expression.

Students can role play within the three branches of government and conduct in-class or virtual debates and speeches using fact-checked, reliable sources, and pose as members of the press.

Benefits

The FFD Educator License is designed to inspire and empower students to:

Become informed and engaged citizens
Develop critical-thinking skills through student-centered, project-based learning
Practice the art of civil discourse using the FFD Code of Ethics
Use the U.S. Constitution as a moral compass to create equal justice for all
Gain media literacy by using reliable sources and fact-checking tools
Enhance self-awareness, self-control, empathetic listening and other interpersonal skills through social-emotional learning
Enhance their public speaking and presentation skills with videos, charts and graphs from trusted sources
Express their unique creativity while collaborating with others
Use digital democracy tools to harvest collective intelligence through a National Polling Project

Founding Principles

Forum for Democracy USA (FFD) is based on the idea that we are intuitively ethical human beings. When we use digital democracy tools to harvest collective wisdom and intelligence, you will get, for the most part, fair and equitable policies to ensure that our liberty and freedoms are preserved. Yet we live in a time when many young people have little or no understanding of the freedoms guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution. Many Americans cannot explain the liberties guaranteed under the First Amendment or the concept of due process. They don’t comprehend the importance and limitations of free speech, a free press, the right to peaceably assemble, the right to keep and bear arms, the protection afforded citizens under our search and seizure laws, and other rights guaranteed to protect us under the Bill of Rights and the 17 additional amendments. How can we preserve, protect and defend our representative democracy if we don’t appreciate the principles upon which this nation was founded? We must find new ways to inform our young people of the value of the civil liberties we currently enjoy – and the dangers of losing them. It’s time for a new generation of Americans to step forward and answer the call to advance positive change and social justice.

Contact

Robert Aucone
bob@ffdusa.org

Headquarters

Novato, CA, USA

Organization Website

On-Demand

The FFD National Polling Project – Make Your Voice Heard!

The Forum for Democracy USA (FFD) National Polling Project offers students and citizens the opportunity to make their voice heard in Washington, DC with the ease of a click! A new topic is introduced weekly in one of three FFD forums – Chief Justice, Capitol Hill and Head of State. Anyone above the age of…