Possibility Lab’s Engaging with Possibility Summit

Californians want a government that listens, learns, and responds. In an era of declining trust and growing polarization, what bold steps can state government take to better engage residents and incorporate their voices into decision-making?

That question was the focus at UC Berkeley last Friday as more than 100 leaders from government, philanthropy, community organizations, media, and academia gathered for the Possibility Lab’s Engaging with Possibility Summit.

The timing was intentional. California is in a moment of extensive transition, with a new governor taking the reins next year. UC Berkeley professor of political science and public policy and executive director of the Possibility Lab Dr. Amy E. Lerman called this our state’s own “chrysalis moment” in her opening remarks. While this means there’s a lot of uncertainty, Lerman says, it is also a potential opportunity for a meaningful reimagining of how government and communities work together.

The day began with a challenge from UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons. Too often, institutions default to “no, because,” he argued. What would happen if we instead approached problems with a “yes, if” mindset?

That spirit of possibility carried throughout the summit.

Governor Newsom’s Chief Deputy Cabinet Secretary, Lila Mirrashidi, offered a window into how the administration has approached civic engagement.

Agency leaders including California Environmental Protection Agency Secretary Yana Garcia, Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency Secretary Tomiquia Moss, and Health and Human Services Agency Secretary Kim Johnson spoke candidly about the realities of governing in an era defined by overlapping crises.

Their message was striking: meaningful engagement requires more than public meetings and comment periods. It requires coordination across agencies, stronger relationships with communities, and support for the public servants who carry out this work every day.

As the conversation shifted to media, other themes also emerged. For instance, the ways Californians receive information have fundamentally changed. Government communications are often slow to keep up.

The Lab’s Senior Advisor Jesse Melgar led a discussion with CalMatters CEO Neil Chase, LA Local Executive Editor Kristen Muller, and LA TACO Director of Engagement and multimedia journalist Memo Torres, who described a rapidly evolving media landscape where trust is fragmented, audiences are dispersed, and traditional assumptions about how information reaches communities no longer hold.

That theme carried into conversations with leaders from philanthropy and community organizations led by Interim Director of the Governor’s Office of Community Partnerships and Strategic Communications Aubrie Fong, CEO of the Unity Council Chris Iglesias, EVP of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation Moses Zapien, Director of Government Relations at California Wellness Joseph Villela, and Director of the Department of Angels Christine Kwon.

Participants called for a new model, one built on deep partnerships and not transactional exchanges.

Residents. Government. Philanthropy. CBOs. Media. Academia. And others.

The future of civic engagement, many argued, will depend on these sectors working together.

In his keynote, Don Howard, president and CEO of the James Irvine Foundation, challenged attendees to think beyond traditional roles and responsibilities. Philanthropy, he argued, has an opportunity to help government innovate by funding pilots, testing new approaches, and investing in regions and communities that have historically been overlooked.

Then the summit shifted from discussion to design.

Attendees gathered around tables and worked through real-world scenarios government leaders face: A climate emergency. A public health crisis. Artificial Intelligence changing the workforce. They discussed:

Who needs to be involved?

Whose voices are missing?

How can government know if engagement is actually working?

The conversations were lively. The answers were not always simple. But clear patterns emerged.

People want government to meet them where they are and when they are available.

They want technology used to expand participation in a responsible way but not in place of authentic relationships.

They want trusted messengers from community organizations to have the same access lobbyists and donors have, and to be engaged early and often.

And, they want government to view engagement not as just a box to check, but as a core responsibility of governance.

At the end of the day, attendees were asked: What’s your big idea to share with California’s next governor to improve civic engagement and build civic infrastructure?

Over the coming months, our team at the Lab will be combing through their suggestions and we’ll have more to share out this summer.

But what emerged clearly is that the future of civic engagement will not be built through a single program, platform, or public meeting. It will be built through experimentation, partnership, and innovation.

That is why the summit coincided with the official launch of the Possibility Lab’s State of Engagement Fellowship.

The fellowship is bringing together leaders from across sectors who are positioned to study, test, and advance the ideas that surfaced throughout the day and are already leading within state government. The goal is to build a network for action focused on identifying what works, sharing lessons learned, and helping shape the next generation of civic engagement in California.

The questions raised in Berkeley are too important for just one summit. While we were proud to bring diverse sectors and voices to campus, we know many others were still missing from the conversation.

The work continues.

And if the conversations last Friday were any indication, there is no shortage of people ready to help reimagine how California can become a stronger and more inclusive state of engagement, and help build the vibrant civic infrastructure that will get us there.