UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — A group of Penn State faculty has joined together for the 2025-26 academic year to explore the relationship between sustainability, democracy and truth. The “Our Common Purpose” cohort drew its name from the Our Common Purpose report created by the bipartisan Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship, a project of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. This initiative is supported by Sustain Penn State and Laurel Pearson, education subcommittee lead for the College of Liberal Arts Sustainability Council.
In the leadup to the United States’ 250th birthday, the Our Common Purpose faculty cohort is examining the question: What will it really take to create an inclusive and flourishing nation with freedom, justice and accountability for all? These dozen faculty members are incorporating relevant events into their classes spanning the 2025-26 academic year.
“Our Common Purpose has not only provided resources that I am able to share with my students, but it has also expanded my own awareness on various topics related to sustainability, justice and democracy,” said Lucy McClain, associate teaching professor in the Department of Recreation, Park, and Tourism Management. “On a more personal level, there is a fellowship among the members of this group that provides a space for those of us teaching some of today’s toughest and heaviest topics to speak candidly, practice mindful presence, and find support in one another.”
Our Common Purpose recently participated in Deliberation Nation. The event was hosted by students of Rhetoric and Civic Life, an honors general education sequence co-directed by Our Common Purpose cohort member Jessica O’Hara, teaching professor of communication arts and sciences. Members of the community and stakeholders were invited to address several issues important to the community in dozens of events held over a three-week period.
"Students learn valuable lessons in devising, hosting, and moderating a deliberation," O'Hara said. "Most of all, they learn that when people come together for value-based, directed discussion with well-established ground rules, dialogue about any topic can be respectful and productive. Deliberation Nation shows us how to have healthy public conversations, and I hope students carry these skills with them into their futures."
During the fall semester, the Our Common Purpose cohort participated in varied activities, including an annual event commemorating the 1963 March on Washington, We the People Roundtables hosted by Constitution Day Centre and WPSU, a screening of the film “Merchants of Doubt,” and a Town Hall Mini COP.
At the Mini COP, the Local Climate Action Program (LCAP) brought together staff from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Pennsylvania municipal leaders, and students to provide input to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s 30th Conference of Parties (COP). The day’s events helped the commonwealth and Pennsylvania communities prioritize actions to reduce emissions and bolster the democratic process.
“Participation in this cohort has opened my understanding of what democracy can involve,” said Autumn Graham, educational coordinator for BISC3: Environmental Science. “It has been refreshing to hear from other faculty members about their thoughts during our meetings.”
More recently, the cohort attended a discussion and signing of Liberal Arts Endowed Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences Jeremy Engels’ new book, “On Mindful Democracy: A Declaration of Interdependence to Mend a Fractured World.”
“[Engels’] ‘Declaration of Interdependence’ offers a wonderful discussion ‘guide’ to launch conversation on First Amendment freedoms, and responsibilities for our students, who truly do care deeply about the world and truly do often feel disillusioned by the state of public discourse,” said Jo Dumas, associate teaching professor in the Bellisario College of Communications.
At 5 p.m. on March 19, the Our Common Purpose cohort will attend a talk featuring Harvard University political theorist Danielle Allen hosted by the McCourtney Institute for Democracy. Allen will present the lecture “250 Years of Our Declaration of Independence: Why an Old Text Still Serves Us Now” in the HUB-Robeson Center’s Freeman Auditorium. Allen was co-chair of the Our Common Purpose commission at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, which released a report in 2020 outlining structural and cultural changes needed to fortify American democracy by the country’s 250th birthday. Visit the McCourtney Institute’s calendar of events for more information and to register.
Other upcoming events include but are not limited to the Strategies for Justice Annual Symposium on April 2 and the Climate Solutions Symposium on May 18-20. Our Common Purpose also encourages participation in Juneteenth on June 19 and the 250th birthday of the United States and the Declaration of Independence on July 4 this summer.
For further information, contact Peter Buck, director for education with Sustain Penn State, at peterbuck@psu.edu.