The Institute on Religion and Democracy (IRD) , founded in 1981, stands at the sacred intersection of faith and public life. Its founders knew the Church’s witness was never meant to stay behind sanctuary walls but to speak God’s truth into every sphere of society. The IRD exists from the conviction that historic, biblical Christianity holds enduring wisdom about freedom, human dignity, and moral responsibility; truths rooted not in opinion but in the character of God Himsel

Editor’s Note: This guest post is written by Meg Jang, whose service with the City of Austin and Sunrise Homeless Navigation Center highlights the compassion, innovation, and heart behind community-driven solutions. About the Author I have always known I wanted to do work protecting human rights and equity for people who have been historically and often intentionally underserved. For high school I attended an International Baccalaureate school, setting me up with the awarene

By: Naomi Corbi This article investigates the rise of sovereign access networks (SANs)—specifically, the AERIE system—and their potential integration into U.S. national security architecture. Originating from the architectural security firm SAFE, AERIE represents a highly advanced, privately operated network of autonomous, crisis-resilient compounds designed for elite clientele. These systems often outmatch government infrastructure in te

Advocates for Cardiovascular Health At the heart of every emerging economy and community lies the health of the individual. Locally and internationally, consumers are being exposed to a variety of nutritional, physical and educational options for optimal health and well being. Additionally, there are also ubiquitous advertisements on food and meal options that may lead to an imbalance in the daily intake of vital nutrients growing bodies and minds need to function. Advocates

Oya! COME OUT NA CAR! COME OUT! COME OUT! COME OUT! The shrieks coming from the mouths of the gentlemen with poorly positioned face masks reverberated across the travel bus… Yet the AK-17 firearms they carried quickly shifted both power and authority back over to these four men. The passengers began to scurry out of the bus… frantically stepping over one another… pressing their bodies as far away from the bandits as possible. These bandits had been targeting select routes to

I am sorry, Mr. Evans...but we do not have the results of your fecal stool sample. But we do need you to report back first thing in the morning with the next sample. Please recall the procedure involved: you will need to save your defecation and store it in a cool environment for 24 hours. We will run your stool analysis in time to determine whether or not your belief that you have a parasite is founded on medical testing. Mr. Evans scratched his head. Another stool sample? H

Note from Faith: Hello everyone, it is an honor to share an excerpt from one of our supporting partner organizations called Helping Survivors. I strongly encourage you to review their website and page. The information is applicable, palatable and inviting for all of appropriate and consensual age to learn for growth. When we learn and practice how to communicate even the uncomfortable, we become emboldened and confident. This is the season where we truly break out of our comf

An Overview Assessment on H.R. 2746 The Fix Moldy Housing Act: A Long Overdue Federal Remedy for a Silent Destroyer Note from the Author: Please connect with me before you read this righteous call to action. I want you to do me a favor, many of you may notice it… some if blessed, will not. If not, I want you to connect with someone who may... so that you are informed and aware. Now- connect with me, look up at your ceilings… in your workplace primarily, in your school primari

Why the U.S. Department of Education and MOHELA need to remember who they work for Every few weeks, I hear another story about someone losing hours or even days trying to reach their student loan servicer. I’ve experienced it myself: endless hold music, dropped calls, wrong information, and no follow-up. It’s not just inconvenient, it’s a failure of civic responsibility. The U.S. Department of Education (ED) and its federal contractors like MOHELA are funded by taxpayers to s

A Note from the Author Hello dear one, I am sending my sincere blessing and salutations to you today. I am currently sitting on a dark brown relativelty cozy lazy-boy. The sun is illuminating the far east corner of my room. There is brightness everywhere. While navigating very necessary discourse, there is something that I would very much love to share. Every policy has a human story behind it. Laws designed to protect can sometimes collide with the realities of trauma, espec