{"id":97,"date":"2014-03-21T11:21:38","date_gmt":"2014-03-21T11:21:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chesapeakecitizens.org\/?page_id=97"},"modified":"2020-10-30T13:40:27","modified_gmt":"2020-10-30T13:40:27","slug":"progressive-cabinet","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/chesapeakecitizens.org\/?page_id=97","title":{"rendered":"Backbone Campaign Partnership"},"content":{"rendered":"

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2017- I am producer and cohost of a new webinar video interview series on electrified trains for freight and passengers, powered by distributed solar and wind:\u00a0Solutionary Perspectives<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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2016<\/strong><\/p>\n

We combined forces to conduct\u00a0Cove Point Spring Break<\/a>\u00a0to protect Lusby Maryland and the Chesapeake Bay Watershed from the ravages of Dominion Energy’s disastrous LNG facility in Cove Point<\/a>. Thank you, Backbone Campaign!<\/p>\n

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2005-2013<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"backbonecabinet\"<\/a><\/p>\n

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Interviews,\u00a0Conversations with the Cabinet.<\/em>\u00a0An original progressive shadow cabinet interview series consisting of 87 podcasts and a Progressive Cabinet Summit\u00a0.\u00a087 archived interviews for our ‘Conversations with the Cabinet’.\u00a0<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

HERE’s a brief video description\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0(starts at 4 minutes).<\/p>\n

Background: As a former resident of the U.K., I had grown accustomed to robust debates about real policy alternatives. And I had left the Democratic Party in the wake of the first stolen election in 2000, and had begun to contact media and political progressives, requesting, amongst other things, a roundtable discussion on forming a shadow government. As the Backbone Campaign had also\u00a0independently already begun creative research<\/a> on a unified set of progressive policy alternatives, we joined forces. Our outstanding team also included: co-host and Backbone Director Bill Moyer, Sound Engineer Roger Fulton and others.<\/p>\n

Our objectives were bold: to model progressives moving from protest to policy, to demonstrate that progressives have a unified vision for government,\u00a0to define the specific policies needed, and to introduce leaders to people around the country. We used new technology and unusual partnerships, we were our own media<\/em>, and we invited anyone around the country to participate.<\/p>\n

Our project articulated a solution-oriented unified policy agenda for government and for social movement building beyond\u00a0<\/em>class, race, culture and gender inequities, political party constraints, election cycles, and corporate media blackouts.<\/p>\n

In this\u00a0social sculpture<\/a>,\u00a0all participants constructed our media\u00a0and<\/em>\u00a0our message. Our project was a creative experiment in systems design & cross country collaboration, research and new media — all for ecosystem sustainability, justice, fairness, and democracy.<\/p>\n

Our online tools for the nomination process were available to anyone with internet around the country<\/strong>. As an evolving and listening team, we identified, researched, and interviewed progressive policy experts, our ‘nominees’ for executive branch cabinet positions. We examined domestic and foreign policy, and our Conversations often pioneered new paradigm thinking.<\/p>\n

We created a Department of Peace, the position of Secretary of Sustainability, and we repeatedly explored other big changes needed – \u00a0renewable energy instead of fossil fuels, housing & quality education for all, moving taxpayers’ dollars from war to domestic needs, and greater bioregional governance.<\/p>\n

Some of our outstanding nominees:<\/p>\n