The Zietlow Civic Engagement Project

Carolina Public Humanities is pleased to announce the creation of the Zietlow Civic Engagement Project. Funded with a generous gift from Miriam and Tom Zietlow, this Project seeks to help North Carolinians better understand the importance of democratic institutions, voting, and participation in civic life. These goals converge with the University’s current strategic plan, “Carolina Next: Innovations for the Public Good”, which includes an initiative to promote democracy.

The goal of the Zietlow Civic Engagement Project is to foster well-informed participation in civic life through new kinds of communication – especially on social media – which will enhance public knowledge of the history, civic traditions, and democratic institutions that sustain our democratic political culture. In particular, encouraging young people to use their voices to engage with civic institutions in their communities and to strengthen our democracy will be a major goal. This project will provide another communication vehicle for advancing the ongoing commitment of Carolina Public Humanities (CPH) to support public education, sustain a vital civic culture and contribute to a more humane world. For more on CPH programs and their mission, visit humanities.unc.edu.

The Zietlow Civic Engagement Project aims to pursue its statewide goals with a diverse leadership team that will include:

• A Post-Doctoral Fellow to provide overall direction
• Graduate and undergraduate Fellows to create and lead the creation of new social media and digital content and facilitate its deployment through various platforms and public programs
• Social media communication experts and web designers to support the creation of new digital communications content across multiple platforms
• Partners at Community Colleges and Libraries to help build new collaborations to bring the new digital content to their communities
• Advisory Board members to provide guidance and wider networks of support,
• Teachers to help students and colleagues expand the discussion of civic issues at public schools

Carolina Public Humanities and the Zietlow Civic Engagement Project welcome all who would like to join in this innovative program to enhance participation North Carolina’s public life.

“Oh, The Humanities” with Aaron Keck on 97.9 The Hill

Every month, Aaron Keck welcomes UNC’s Carolina Public Humanities to the studio for a regular feature called “Oh, the Humanities!” spotlighting humanities work and upcoming events on campus, and in April 2024 he sat down with postdoctoral fellow Kylie Seltzer for their “Oh, the Humanities!” feature to discuss the Zietlow Civic Engagement Project and introduce undergraduates Sarah Soson and Sofia Nyiri, whose research explores the issues of “forever” chemicals (Soson) and abortion (Nyiri) and their impact on public participation!