Projects

American Idea Conference

The Center for American Progress held a two-day conference in Washington, D.C. on 11-12 October 2011 to focus on the core progressive values and ideals that have animated progress in our country since our founding. It brought together thought leaders and policymakers to define and promote a progressive vision of American exceptionalism—one grounded in freedom and equality, empathy and compassion, collective action, and shared sacrifice for common purposes.

American Worker Project

CAP Action's American Worker Project conducts research to increase the wages, benefits, and security of American workers and promote their rights at work. It creates and advocates for innovative solutions to help workers have meaningful employment and opportunities for advancement, receive a fair share of their labors, and enjoy a secure retirement after a lifetime on the job.

Campus Progress

Campus Progress works to help young people—advocates, activists, journalists, artists—make their voices heard on issues that matter. Through an online magazine and campus journalism projects, public events, multimedia projects, and grassroots issue campaigns, Campus Progress acts to empower new progressive leaders nationwide as they develop fresh ideas, communicate in new ways, push policy outcomes in a progressive direction, and build a strong progressive movement.

California Office

American Progress opened its first office outside of DC in California in 2007. American Progress’ mission in California is to advance and support a progressive national policy agenda and lay out our vision of a progressive America. The initial goals of the California office are to: (1) broaden our policy development by drawing on ideas from California; (2) actively engage influential audiences who shape the public and policy debate; (3) build a robust progressive movement beyond the beltway; and (4) expand our donor base to ensure that we are building lasting institutional support for progressive change.

Climate Migration Security

The intersection of climate change, human migration, and conflict presents a unique challenge for US foreign policy in the 21st century. These three factors are already beginning to combine in ways that undermine traditional understandings of national security and demand a rethink of traditional divisions between diplomacy, defense, and economic, social and environmental development policy abroad.

Doing What Works

Doing What Works promotes government reform to efficiently allocate scarce resources and achieve greater results for the American people. This project specifically has three key objectives: (1) eliminating or redesigning misguided spending programs and tax expenditures, focused on priority areas such as health care, energy, and education; (2) boosting government productivity by streamlining management and strengthening operations in the areas of human resources, information technology, and procurement; and (3) building a foundation for smarter decision-making by enhancing transparency and performance measurement and evaluation.

The Enough Project

Enough is a project of the Center for American Progress to end genocide and crimes against humanity. With an initial focus on the crises in Sudan, Chad, eastern Congo, and northern Uganda, Enough’s strategy papers and briefings provide sharp field analysis and targeted policy recommendations based on a “3P” crisis response strategy: promoting durable peace, providing civilian protection, and punishing perpetrators of atrocities. Enough works with concerned citizens, advocates, and policymakers to prevent, mitigate, and resolve these crises.

Faith & Progressive Policy

The Faith and Progressive Policy Initiative works to identify and articulate the moral-ethical and spiritual values underpinning policy issues, to shape a progressive stance in which these values are clear, and to increase public awareness and understanding of these values.

Just Jobs

Just Jobs recognizes that creating enough jobs is one of the most pressing challenges confronting the United States and economies worldwide. But creating jobs domestically depends, in part, on creating them abroad. Without a global focus on jobs complete with appropriate compensation, social protections, labor rights, and opportunities for economic mobility, promoting broad-based, sustainable economic growth anywhere is just an aspiration. We must turn aspiration into reality.

Leadership Institute

The Leadership Institute's goal is to increase the participation of progressive people of color among the thinkers, shapers, and planners of policy at every level of government, nonprofit organizations, and groups that influence public policy.

Legal Progress

Legal Progress is the legal policy program at the Center for American Progress. Its primary purpose is to help make the third branch of government better reflect the values of liberty, equality, and opportunity enshrined in the Constitution that have resulted in America’s progress since its founding. Legal Progress focuses on issues related to the judiciary, including the urgent need to confirm progressive judges; exposing the detrimental impact corporate courts have on people’s lives and their ability to achieve justice; and engaging the public on the Constitution.

Middle East Progress

Middle East Progress helps develop and highlight practical approaches to and voices involved in managing—and resolving—the Arab-Israeli conflict, with a primary focus on achieving a sustainable, secure, democratic Palestinian state alongside sustainable, secure, and democratic Israel. We believe such action will improve U.S., Israeli, and regional security, and America’s global standing, and reflects the will and aspirations of a vast majority of Israelis and Arabs living the conflict every day.

Progress 2050

Progress 2050 is a project of the Center for American Progress that develops new ideas for an increasingly diverse America. The United States will become a nation with no clear racial or ethnic majority by the year 2050. This expected transition provides the progressive movement with an exciting opportunity to help America live up to its ideals of equality and justice for all.

Progressive Studies Program

The Progressive Studies Program is a unique interdisciplinary project exploring the history, intellectual foundations, and public understanding of progressivism in America. The program seeks to increase public awareness of progressive ideas and values, and educate public officials and policymakers through lectures, seminars, articles, public events, book discussions, new media tools, and training seminars with activists and young people.

Science Progress

Science Progress proceeds from the propositions that scientific inquiry is among the finest expressions of human excellence, that it is a crucial source of human flourishing, a critical engine of economic growth, and must be dedicated to the common good. Scientific inquiry entails global responsibilities. It should lead to a more equitable, safer, and healthier future for all of humankind. Our objective at Science Progress is to improve the understanding of science among policymakers and other thought leaders and to develop exciting, progressive ideas about innovation in science and technology for the United States in the 21st century.

Sustainable Security

Sustainable security redefines how we think about national security in today's shifting, globalized world. Instead of focusing solely on traditional threats, we also need to help spur greater prosperity, encourage effective international development, and work to protect innocent civilians. Such an approach is good for us and good for others. While we need to maintain a highly capable military, diplomacy and development can often be more cost-effective investments that create new opportunities, prevent crises before military force is required, and better manage our shared challenges. In short, sustainable security is thinking long term about America and the world.

Working Nation

When we look back over the 20th century and try to understand what has happened to workers and their families, the movement of women out of the home and into paid employment stands out as one of the most important transformations. Workplaces are no longer the domain of men: Women now make up half (49.8 percent) of employer's payrolls. Quite simply, women employed outside the home changes everything. We need to ensure that everyone—men and women, parents and non-parents alike—is able to meet the challenges of the workplace, while being able to provide care for their family. We need new ground rules that recognize this transformation. Working Nation explores research and policy ideas behind and beyond this fundamental change in how we work and live.