"It’s not just trust, it’s agency. Going back to this election—that anger is so often connected to people who feel like they are at the mercy of forces they cannot control." —Anne-Marie Slaughter, CEO of New America

As we enter 2025, perspectives increasingly diverge on issues of the economy, national and international politics, energy and artificial intelligence, and management of the environment. The greatest uncertainty may be whether the world at large will rally to the urgency of climate change. Yet in the face of such complex, large-scale challenges, effective local action remains as one of the most important determinants of our collective future.  

Washington, D.C.-based New America, a “think-and-action tank,” was founded in 1999 on the belief that the nation needed research and policy recommendations that could better support the more mobile and informed American public of the digital age. Their work elevates the stories of people closest to the public problems they seek to solve; investing in the next generation of leaders; and intentionally engaging with local perspectives. The organization has generated guidance and driven activity toward building resilience and public trust at all levels of government, serving as a platform for emerging social, technological and political thought leaders including Abrahm Lustgarten and Jeff Goodell.  

Under the leadership of Anne-Marie Slaughter, a renowned international law scholar and former first woman director of Policy Planning for the U.S. State Department, New America has infused these areas of study and problem-solving with an increasingly global outlook.  

Listen in as Ten Across founder Duke Reiter and Anne-Marie Slaughter reflect on the evolution of New America’s role in helping to provide evidence-based ideas, policies, and solutions to help inform governmental response to the future and to external conflict. They also explore the local, state, and regional leadership alternatives available in the Ten Across geography if the global community cannot effectively collaborate on mitigating climate change impacts in 2025.

Relevant links and resources:  

Anne-Marie is also the author or editor of nine books, including... A New World Order… The Idea that Is America, and… most recently...Renewal: From Crisis to Transformation in Our Lives, Work, and Politics.   

Friends or fellows of New America that have also been on the podcast:  

“James Fallows on How the News Media Influence U.S. Democracy and Elections”  
“How the 10X Region Can Plan for Climate Migration with Abrahm Lustgarten”  
“10X Heat Series: Covering Climate Change as it Unfolds with Jeff Goodell”
 “State Preemption is on the Rise: What it Means for Cities”  

Guest Bio: Anne-Marie Slaughter is a global leader, scholar, and public commentator. She is currently CEO of New America, a think and action tank dedicated to renewing the promise of America in a period of rapid demographic, technological, and global change. She previously served as a professor of international, foreign, and comparative law at Harvard Law School; dean of the School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University, and as the director of policy planning for the United States Department of State.