Christina Gagnier, Senior Vice President, Policy & Strategic Communications

Mobilize.org

(510) 717-3022

MARCH 31, 2008

Mobilize.org Announces the First Democracy 2.0 Entrepreneur Grant Summit Focused on “Money in Politics”

Washington, DC— National youth civic engagement organization Mobilize.org announced its first Democracy 2.0 Entrepreneur Grant Summit for 2008 today. The organization, dedicated to Millennial-generated ideas and projects to tackle critical national issues, has adopted a unique strategy to getting Millennial plans into action: give them the financial support to make ideas a reality.

The first summit will take place July 25-27, 2008, in Denver, Colorado. The topic, “Money in Politics,” will focus upon the impact of special interest-funded campaigns on citizen-centered democracy. Emphasizing the problem at the national level, Mobilize.org and Common Cause will challenge Millennials from across the nation to compete for grant monies to support projects working to promote clean elections practices.

The call for projects will address campaign finance reform, focusing particular on clean election practices like the public financing of elections, targeting the eighteen states that Common Cause is currently working on public financing within.

Maya Enista, Chief Executive Officer of Mobilize.org, commented on the partnership: “Mobilize.org is looking forward to working with Common Cause on our first grant summit and on bringing attention to the important issue of money in politics. The energy of our network will bring renewed energy to the fight to end the stranglehold that money has on our electoral process. Mobilize.org feels that it is up to this generation, and the Democracy 2.0 movement, to finally level the playing field.”

These summits exemplify Democracy 2.0, the theory of change that is the foundation of the work that Mobilize.org engages in with members of the Millennial Generation. Our theory of change starts with the individual citizen identifying problems at the local, state, and national levels. Once problems are identified, citizens must engage in conversations searching for innovative solutions to the problems they have identified. Mobilize.org seeks to take the individual actor past the deliberation stage, enabling members of the Millennial Generation to implement their solutions. Through the success of citizen-generated initiatives, Mobilize.org’s end goal is to institutionalize citizen-generated solutions as a staple of American governance at all levels.

Ian Storrar, Director of Youth and Volunteer Programs for Common Cause, explains the importance of Democracy 2.0: “ The Democracy 2.0 movement is all about empowering every voice, every citizen to be politically effective.   Common Cause has worked for years to make sure that citizens have the tools and the opportunities to be active citizens. This summit is an amazing collaboration to support young social entrepreneurs who want to redress the imbalance of special interests in the political process by putting citizens back at the center.”

For further information on these projects or Mobilize.org, please visit Mobilize.org’s website at http://www.mobilize.org or contact Mobilize.org’s Chief Executive Officer, Maya Enista, at 866.MOBILIZE.

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Democracy is an unfinished project. It’s time we upgrade.

We, the Millennial Generation, are uniquely positioned to call attention to today’s issues and shape the future based on the great legacy we have inherited. Our founding fathers intended for every generation to build, indeed to innovate, on the American experience. We realize that as young people we are expected to be the leaders of tomorrow, but we understand that as citizens we are called to be the leaders of today.

We are compelled by the critical state of our present democracy to establish a new vision.

In a world often damaged by conflict and intolerance, we must commit to develop common ground through equality and open mindedness.

In a world often damaged by social isolation and materialism, we must commit to community at the family, local, national and global levels.

In a world often damaged by instant gratification, we must commit to creating sustainable solutions.

In a world often damaged by apathy and disillusionment, we must commit to civic participation and inclusion of all voices.

The present state of our democracy impedes opportunity for real change. We must connect the specific issues failing our population with their underlying systemic causes.

Our government seems unable or unwilling to adequately address our broadest problems, including economic inequality, America’s role in the world, and the effect of money on the democratic process. But we must remember, our government is only as effective as the sum of its citizens. Low civic participation means the most disadvantaged people in society are neglected and we overlook many potential solutions to our problems.

Our generation is telling a different story. We are uniquely positioned to foster community engagement through social networks of all kinds. It is our responsibility to use information and technology to upgrade democracy, transform communication and advance political engagement and civic participation.

We are social networkers, we are multi-taskers, we are communicators and we are opinionated. The informality of our generation breaks down traditional barriers and opens doors for inclusiveness and equality. Most importantly, we are leaders in a society that yearns for leadership.