The political landscape in the United States has become increasingly polarized, with hostility and division dominating public discourse. In response to this challenging environment, the National Governors Association (NGA) has taken a significant step forward by launching the Center for Dignity in Politics. This initiative, co-created with Dignity.Us aims to equip governors with the tools and resources necessary to model respectful leadership and strengthen democratic culture.
The center’s mission is to provide governors with strategies for leading through disagreement while maintaining respect, discipline, and a shared commitment to public service. By offering tailored training, cross-partisan dialogue, facilitated problem-solving, and public engagement, the center seeks to help governors strengthen relationships, navigate complex challenges, and foster greater civic trust.
Key Objectives of the Center for Dignity in Politics
The Center for Dignity in Politics has outlined four interrelated outcomes that will serve as its guiding principles:
Creating a Culture Rooted in Dignity
The center will support governors and their teams in modeling leadership that reflects respect, discipline, and humanity across disagreement, crisis, and public service. Tools and materials provided will include the Dignity Index skills training for reducing contempt and strengthening dialogue, models for gubernatorial problem-solving, strategies for responding to violence and disaster with dignity, and case studies in legislative and political problem-solving.
Defining and Advancing Dignified Leadership
The center will establish dignity as a visible, measurable, and repeatable standard for public leadership and civic engagement. It will also localize and expand the Dignity Barometer a tracking poll that enables governors to monitor cultural shifts within their states.
Measuring the Impact of Dignity
The center will research changes in leadership language, civic trust, public discourse, and indicators of democratic health to better understand the role dignity plays in effective governance. It will also uplift the voices of Democratic and Republican governors who disagree with dignity and hold convenings around the country to amplify the power of disagreeing with dignity.
Developing a National Cohort of Leaders
The center will cultivate a cross-partisan network of governors who serve as national models for dignified leadership, constructive engagement, and respectful governance. It will establish new communities of practice, including collaborations among speechwriters, press secretaries, legislative directors, political directors, communications directors, and others who want to deepen their own capacity to lead with dignity.
Building on Previous Initiatives
The initiative builds on Disagree Better an influential NGA chair’s initiative launched by Utah Gov. Spencer Cox in 2026. Disagree Better aimed to improve discourse by modeling productive disagreement among all Americans, including elected leaders. Now an independent nonprofit, Disagree Better is expanding nationwide through bold campaigns and partnerships with athletes, artists, influencers, and political leaders to show what respectful disagreement looks like in action.
Governors Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma and Wes Moore of Maryland, who serve as NGA Chair and Vice Chair respectively, have expressed their support for the new center. They emphasize the importance of bipartisan collaboration in addressing the concerns of Americans and delivering meaningful results for their communities.
Partnerships and Support
The NGA is also partnering with Matter Neuroscience to relaunch The Party Line project, an initiative that connects two public phones in different U.S. cities to invite real conversations between strangers. This project aims to create direct, unmediated human encounters between strangers separated by geography, culture, and presumed politics, offering a unique opportunity to examine how curiosity, dignity, and human connection can emerge from political division.
The Ibis Group a nonprofit organization committed to providing students with access to high-quality civics education, is the founding supporter of the Center for Dignity in Politics. The Ibis Group recognizes NGA’s unique position to elevate the national discourse and strengthen democratic values through this new center.
The launch of the Center for Dignity in Politics was announced during NGA’s first-ever governors “Common Ground” town hall, a national media event to discuss the issues that matter most to Americans. This initiative represents a significant step toward rebuilding civic trust and promoting respectful leadership in the United States.
