Dear {{Constituent First Name}},

In September, we gathered together with the TRUST Network stakeholders and engaged in US election scenario planning. In our smaller groups, participants shared that they felt energized by the ways their communities can be proactive in their communities. The facilitation included 4 scenarios that could be adapted to more acutely reflect your region.

Restoring Trust in Local Journalism

The September Stakeholder meeting featured an informative presentation from Jennifer Brandel, Co-Creator of Election SOS. Jennifer Brandel is a serial entrepreneur focusing on how media can better respond to community information needs. She'll share out the suite of initiatives she and her company Hearken are part of, including Election SOS, Democracy SOS, Democracy Day, the Democracy Toolkit and the Knight Election Hub.

Jennifer encouraged us to think about local journalists as potential partners in building social cohesion. Rather than point to national news outlets, how often do we reach out to reporters "on the ground" and networks with local reach? This is timely and empowers us all to think about our ability to positively impact journalism. The organization "Start with Us" is supporting just that. There are valuable tools in our resource library that focus on how to engage with the media. These tools are only useful if we are connected to media sources. Begin by creating a contact list of news outlets that have reach in your area. You can browse databases like this one.

The TRUST Network can hold space for communication-focused stakeholders to share templates, ideas, and support as we develop and foster these relationships with local journalists. If you are interested in joining this effort, please contact Jennifer Grubbs.

Connect With Us!

Sign up for our newsletter which has updates, and events, and frequently lists further ways to be involved. Sign up HERE.

Join the TRUST Network. Just by being a conscious, thoughtful observer of your local conditions, you make important contributions to the early warning/early action system as a Community Monitor. Then, together with your local colleagues and with the support of the TRUST Network, you can take positive action. Learn more HERE.

Leaders of organizations in positive peace actions, violence prevention, deradicalization, crisis data mapping, bridgebuilding, peacebuilding, social/racial justice, democracy, governance, media, and messaging -- we are here to melt the silos and offer you valuable collaboration. Please let us know if you're interested in joining the conversation by emailing us at info@thetrustnetwork.net.

Donate. We believe we can prevent escalation into violent conflict by building a national community cohesion and security infrastructure for the US, including an early warning/early action system. Help us achieve this by donating HERE.