Curtis Valentine

Progressive Policy Institute

PPI's mission is to define and promote a new progressive politics for America in the 21st century. Through its research, policies, and perspectives, the Institute is fashioning a new governing philosophy and an agenda for public innovation geared to the Information Age. PPI's mission arises from the belief that America is ill-served by an obsolete left-right debate that is out of step with the powerful forces re-shaping our society and economy. The Institute advocates a philosophy that adapts the progressive tradition in American politics to the realities of the Information Age and points to a "third way"​ beyond the liberal impulse to defend the bureaucratic status quo and the conservative bid to simply dismantle government. The Institute envisions government as society's servant, not its master -- as a catalyst for a broader civic enterprise controlled by and responsive to the needs of citizens and the communities where they live and work. The Institute's work rests on three ideals: equal opportunity, mutual responsibility, and self-governing citizens and communities. Building on these cornerstone principles, our work advances five key strategies to equip Americans to confront the challenges of the Information Age: * Restoring the American Dream by accelerating economic growth, expanding opportunity, and enhancing security. * Reconstructing our social order by strengthening families, attacking crime, and empowering the urban poor. * Renewing our democracy by challenging the special interests and returning power to citizens and local institutions. * Defending our common civic ground by affirming the spirit of tolerance and the shared principles that unite us as Americans. * Confronting global disorder by building enduring new international structures of economic and political freedom.