Cognitive Policy Works

This week the Supreme Court is considering a case about the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and legal protections granted to same-sex couples in states where gay marriage is now legally recognized.  This is a watershed moment in US cultural history and internet activists are doing their part to make a collective [...]

We are excited to announce that our first round of research is complete. The climate meme has now been analyzed and is ready for public viewing. Thanks to everyone who made this possible! This is the first ever glimpse of the cultural memes that tell us how to think, feel, and act on the threat [...]

At the heart of the climate crisis is a profound clash of worldviews. People live in different ideological camps — beholden to their own beliefs, values, judgements, and ideas about the relationship between humans and the natural environment. The failure of climate activists to engage the broad public effectively is largely attributable to this great [...]

Ideas have been shaped by the same evolutionary forces throughout human history that produce the great diversity of life on Earth. The skill sets and fashion sensibilities of each culture arose in a particular geographic setting — attuned to local climates, landscapes, flora, and fauna. The cave dwellings of Paleolithic European people, for example, differ [...]

This article was co-authored by Joe Brewer and Lazlo Karafiath Pick any of the great challenges confronting humanity today and ask yourself “Is the quality of public discourse good enough to address it?” You’ll find that for every single issue — be it global warming, resource depletion, chronic poverty, or what have you – the [...]

Go here to help crowdfund this vitally important project! Thanks to all of you who have shared your memes with us so far!  We are gathering climate memes on Facebook and Twitter (by using the #climatememe hashtag) and encourage you to get involved and bring us the memes you don’t want us to miss! We [...]

Have you ever noticed that some things in the world like to be disrupted? Rogue militant groups set out to garner counter-attacks that distract their opponents while draining their resources. Viruses encourage multi-cellular organisms to activate their immune systems in attempts to wipe them out. Teenagers seek the disdain – and occasional wrath – of [...]

Earlier this year, I had the profound honor of bringing together a team of frame analysts, data technologists, and international development experts to focus on one of the most critical problems in the world today — our rigged global financial system.  We worked closely with the campaign team at /The Rules to uncover important insights [...]

This article is co-authored by Joe Brewer, Martin Kirk, and Adriana Valdez Young.  It was originally published on the Gates Foundation blog. It’s time we called out the great myth that mass poverty just is, as if it were a natural part of some universal moral order. Such thinking is profoundly untrue and disastrously misleading. [...]

This article is co-authored by Joe Brewer and Lazlo Karafiath It’s almost the end of 2012 and a leadership vacuum continues to plague the nations of the world on our single biggest global threat. Our climate is changing. And while the increase in extreme weather we have experienced in New York City and around the [...]