The CGA exists to build power between movements and government. We help elected officials, their staff, and movement leaders learn how to collaborate to shape and move a shared agenda.

Donors spend substantial sums preparing candidates to win elections—but significantly less to help them grow, learn, and thrive once they’re in office. This lack of investment has left many elected officials from our communities isolated and under-resourced, while movements and voters grow disillusioned when they don’t see the material change they fought for.

The result is a widening disconnect between movements, government, and the people they serve—one that erodes trust in democracy and strengthens the conditions for authoritarianism to rise.

CGA addresses this gap by bringing elected officials, their staff, and movement leaders together. Through shared learning and organizing practice, participants strengthen relationships, bridge institutions, and build strategies that sustain democratic power.

Staff often find themselves translating between policy and people. CGA strengthens that bridge by helping all three groups:

• Use power mapping for strategy and coordination
• Develop shared language across roles
• Translate organizing skills into governance
• Turn alignment into action

When movements and elected leaders see each other as governing partners, our collective power grows stronger and more sustainable.

At a time when many have lost hope in democracy at the federal and state level, local governments and communities are stepping up to protect what matters most. CGA strengthens this collective work by helping elected officials, their staff, and movement leaders build the trust, relationships, and shared strategy needed to defend communities from rising authoritarianism and to govern with alignment and purpose.