Statement of Principles
During his 2008 campaign, Barack Obama said of this generation, “We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”
In the wake of the historic 2008 election, a group of Washington, D.C. area citizen activists convened in response to President Obama’s call to mobilize and help bring change to our nation. Committed to bringing a new paradigm of broad and sustainable prosperity to fruition, we explored various avenues through which to help make the change agenda a reality. As we moved forward it became apparent that the promise of such change was being undermined by political compromises, ineffective mobilization of grassroots energy, and the ever-present institutional inertia evident across all branches of Government.
We recognize the need to create an environment where bold and principled leadership is rewarded and where the status quo is consistently challenged. However, the apparatus to enact such an agenda is noticeably absent from the current landscape. While many organizations exist with similar policy goals to ours, we believe organizations aiming to directly influence the policymaking environment rather than merely persist or meet a fundraising target are far too few in number. Despite laudable policy aims, such obsolete institutions are unwilling or unable to pressure their colleagues to achieve those aims. Ultimately, some politicians wish to pursue the people's business at the expense of powerful entrenched interests, but cannot count on allied organizations to provide the level of pressure necessary to fend off the tranquilizing drug of moderation in defense of the status quo.
The Carrots and Sticks Project is designed to help fill that void as a nonpartisan, policy oriented “action tank” with an authentic grassroots mentality. We are fighting to rebuild America's economic and physical infrastructure through equitable, sustainable and ecologically sound public policy outcomes by engaging in research and advocacy activities. And in doing so, we will demonstrate that ordinary citizens have the capacity to be powerful independent agents of change, not just cogs in an electoral campaign.
Carrots and Sticks adheres to a long term results-based strategy by:
-Constructing our organization to be flexible and responsive to the current environment instead of narrow institutional incentives;
-Utilizing knowledge of the policymaking process to identify key points of obstruction in the political system, and developing strategies to exert targeted influence at those leverage points;
-Mobilizing social networks and emerging technology in the model of past online organizing with new emphasis on building a new, enduring people-powered coalition for change;
-Engaging in a Beltway-oriented brand of grassroots policy advocacy, directly interacting with targeted policymakers on Capitol Hill and in the executive branch on a regular basis.
To get involved, please drop us a line.
What We Do:
Vision Statement:
The Carrots and Sticks Project is a grassroots DC-based action tank committed to rebuilding America's physical, economic and democratic infrastructure. As an action tank, we enable policy professionals and political activists to work together toward equitable and sustainable prosperity.
History:
In the wake of the historic 2008 election, Obama for America put out a call to host “Change is Coming” house parties to chart the organization’s future course. In response, Jeremy Koulish hosted a house party entitled “Talking Carrots and Sticks--Our Role in Enacting a Change Agenda.” Attended by over 30 area activists as well as NPR and National Journal reporters, the party led to a lively discussion of ways the Obama community could bring his campaign agenda to fruition. You can read more about that meeting here. It was clear that we were not prepared to sit back and simply hope for change.
Interest was strong enough that Jeremy called a second meeting, at which twenty people gathered. We decided to form the “DC Residents `Carrots and Sticks’ Coalition” to influence the formation of the upcoming stimulus bill. Our priorities emphasized green upgrades to transportation and infrastructure, equitable job creation and income protection measures, and investments in education and health care. One thing led to another, and before we knew it, we were having meetings with senior staffers for Senators Harry Reid and Max Baucus, among others. In these meetings, we laid the groundwork for realizing our concept of equitable, sustainable prosperity.
Since then, we’ve met with dozens of Congressional member offices and Senate offices, a number of Committees, and various policy makers in the Democratic party, all the time getting the message out that ordinary citizens are demanding our needs come before entrenched monied interests. We’ve also been reaching out to fellow activists, environmental and tax experts, think tanks and other policy players. We are determined to take the seeds of political change from the Obama movement and sow them in the halls of power.
Who We Are:
Jeremy Koulish, Executive Director
Jeremy has extensive experience working in the private, public and nonprofit sectors. Most recently, he was a Research Assistant at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities focusing on state fiscal policy. Jeremy is also an accomplished activist, having worked on a number of issue referendum and electoral campaigns. Most notably, he actively volunteered for the grassroots-driven campaigns of Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick and Maryland Rep. Donna Edwards, was a canvass director with the Mass. Ballot Freedom Coalition, and co-founded DC Turns Prince William County Blue in the summer of 2008 along with Christopher Brown. Jeremy holds a B.A. in Political Economy from Williams College, and is currently receiving an M.P.P. from the Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration at George Washington University. Email Jeremy, Jeremy on Twitter: @jkoul
Christopher Brown, Climate Action Director
Christopher has extensive experience working in the nonprofit sector. He previously worked at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and the Urban Institute. He is a long time activist and blogger. Along with Jeremy Koulish he co-founded DC Turns Prince William County Blue, an early effort to get DC based activists to target Prince William County and other traditionally underdeveloped areas. He received an M.A. in Political Science from the Catholic University of America. Email Chris, Chris on Twitter: @Chris_Sticks
Bronwyn Beistle, Logistics and Outreach Director
Bronwyn has worked at the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Energy and Environmental Study Institute, focusing on climate change, green jobs and sustainable city planning, but her primary work history is with political campaigns. Most recently, she worked on Donna Edwards' successful campaign for Congress in 2008. She also worked for the Kerry campaign in Florida in 2004, and with her partners got 2,974 more votes for Kerry than the Kerry campaign asked for out of a county that was over 70% Republican. After the election, she co-founded the Clay Action Network (CAN) with her fellow campaign workers to continue advocating for Democratic issues and candidates in Clay County, FL. She has been active in Democracy for America for years and served a stint as Chair of Democracy for Montgomery County. Email Bronwyn, Bronwyn on Twitter: @LiberalinMD