More in Common

It is such a pleasure for all of us at More in Common to see the team growing in all seven countries where we're present, with new colleagues joining in the US (welcome Samantha Hasani and Rabhya Mehrotra), Brazil (Helena Vieira and Maria Gabriela Feitosa dos Santos), Spain (Luis Aguado), the UK (Chris Annous and Louis O'Geran), Poland (Agnieszka Bubak), Germany (Melissa Medina-Márquez and David Nonhoff) and France (Clémentine Guilbaud Demaison)! Welcome to all of you! cc: Destin Commun More in Common Deutschland More in Common Polska More in Common España Pablo Ortellado Jason Mangone Tim Dixon Adam Traczyk Laura-Kristine Krause Laurence de Nervaux Luke Tryl

Today, Americans vote for their next President. As they head to the polls, what issues are most important to the Hidden Tribes? Read our latest Substack post: https://lnkd.in/eVhdqWgX

Our team spent much of the last year interviewing Americans about GenAI and its implications for society and politics. You can read our brand new, mixed methods report here.  https://lnkd.in/gNkatwVy We heard a bit of everything. --Enthusiasm: “AI could help achieve feats that humans alone would find impossible…” --Terror: “It will make it difficult for our future kids to survive…if everything is done by AI. They will become useless.” --Perspective: “There will certainly be unforeseeable problems, but they will be overcome. In the end, people will simply have more choices in the way they choose to use their time.” When we presented 9 different AI roles to Americans, ranging from AI teachers and judges to boyfriends and elderly helpers, Americans rarely showed a consensus view. The details matter, and large numbers see an equal mix of help and harm. The exception is with AI romantic partnerships, which yield a strong collective ‘ick’! But what we didn’t expect was the incredible alignment between Republicans and Democrats. While they recognize that it matters, Americans are simply not polarized on AI. Republicans and Democrats are almost indistinguishable in their skepticism of AI, their doubts about effective regulation, and their concerns about having a voice. They fear that AI will make society more divided, more distrusting, more dependent on technology—and, bluntly, make it dumber. All of this reveals a window of opportunity for political and corporate leadership in 2025. Host town halls with affected communities to hear their voices. Launch research initiatives to measure effects early. Create working groups and strategies to help Americans navigate the many changes ahead. More in Common’s efforts to restore a sense of connection and commonality in the United States requires that we notice — and seize — windows of opportunity when they appear. The United States is the home of the leading GenAI companies, which brings both a point of pride and a duty of responsibility. Americans see both the technology’s promise and its peril. In a dispiriting moment, action on AI can remind us that we have the power to come together, listen to differing perspectives, and shape groundbreaking technologies in a way that gives Americans a sense of agency over their lives.

On the eve of a high-stakes election, some analysis of Texas Latinos via the American Nations and More in Common's Threads of Texas, and the implications for politics, courtesy of Nationhood Lab at the Pell Center at Salve Regina University: https://lnkd.in/eRzYD53B

Reminder that Team US's webinar "Beyond the Headlines: Unpacking Misperceptions about Christians in America," co-hosted with Center for Christianity and Public Life is tomorrow, October 23rd, at 1:00 PM ET. Register here: https://lnkd.in/gbgc7YTV

Among my very favorite projects we've worked on at More in Common over the years is The Endless Sea, led by our former colleague Giuliano da Empoli - now among Europe's best-selling authors (if you haven't read 'The Wizard of the Kremlin', you must!). The Endless is a hopeful narrative project that aims to understand the aspirations, ideas and visions that might help shape a positive story of tomorrow. The project's final report remains as needed today as when it was first published. It draws inspiration from pop culture to politics and from citizen movements to amusement parks to glean insights into what a unifying story of tomorrow could look like. And boy, do we need that! Take a look: www.theendlesssea.com.

Register for our upcoming webinar with Center for Christianity and Public Life on Wednesday, October 23rd from 1 to 2:30 PM. Link here: https://lnkd.in/gbgc7YTV

A year on from the October 7 attacks on Israel, our colleagues in France (Destin Commun) just released a study on antisemitism and islamophobia in France, home to Europe's largest Jewish and Muslim populations. A few key findings: - While 64% of the French support Israel’s right to exist as the homeland of the Jewish people (though only 1 in 3 among 18-24 year olds), 63% criticize the lack of media coverage of civilian victims in Gaza - Concern over antisemitism (73%) and racism (72%) is higher than concern about Islamophobia (61%). Both French Jews and Muslims share frustrations over the casual stereotyping of their respective communities. Full study can be found here (in French) and in La Tribune Dimanche, as well as Ouest-France, Public Sénat and other media outlets. https://lnkd.in/dR2wE--c

Still buzzing (if slightly exhausted) after a fantastic Party Conference season, with More in Common having held our biggest ever programme of 25 events across the Labour and Conservative Party Conferences, covering some of the big issues of our time - from net-zero, to migration, to the politics of respect, attitudes to equality diversity and inclusion and national security. We had some absolutely fantastic speakers from across the political divide, from politics, journalism and civil society. But my highlight was being able to work with such an amazing range of partners to deliver these events, and so if you're interested in working with us at next year's party conferences please do get in touch.