When we launched the NYU Law Democracy Project five months ago, we set the goal of fostering dialogue across ideological boundaries about the sources of disaffection with democracy in the United States and abroad. We hoped for analyses that were “institutional, empirical, and comparative in approach, informed where possible by the best available research,” and within that frame, our emphasis has been on exposing readers and ourselves to a broad range of ideological perspectives.

To that end, we opened with our “100 ideas in 100 days” series. That series has exceeded our highest hopes. We have had the privilege of publishing, day in and day out, original, short-form writing from a remarkable range of commentators. As of today, we have published 87 such pieces. The topics have been comprehensive: to name only a few, technology, leadership selection processes, legislative and judicial performance, philanthropy, the family and democratic culture, corporate responsibility, free speech, voting systems, money in politics, government ethics, education policy, citizen engagement, and the role of expertise. Our authors have varied backgrounds as legal scholars, political scientists, business executives, philanthropic thought leaders, and legal practitioners. We have been privileged to receive contributions from authors in the UK, Poland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, and Australia.

What’s next? As it happens, that is the title of the next series we are launching today.  That series will take us to the next step, with a focus on potential responses, including constitutional and legal reforms, to the issues identified in the “100 days” pieces. As always, we will be seeking views on all sides of the questions, those with reforms to propose and others with doubts about their wisdom or efficacy. We expect to publish both new perspectives on long-standing reform debates but also original suggestions, drawing on various disciplines, for addressing the pervasive challenges roiling nearly all democracies today.

Even as we launch “What’s Next?”, we will continue to publish short-form pieces in the “100 days” series as we near the hundred-day marker. But we are fortunate to have received well over one hundred excellent contributions that we will also share with our readers over the coming months. In addition, we will publish more Special Features—longer-form treatments of various issues. Beyond that, we will be putting on programming and events that will bring together many of our authors and others, often those with conflicting views, in an effort to engage directly with one another in exploring the topics the Project is committed to covering.

We are very grateful for the broad interest in the Democracy Project.  Above all, we cannot thank enough all those whose excellent work we have been honored to publish. We look forward to welcoming both their further participation in 2026 and new additions to the roster of contributors.