“One nation, undivided, with liberty and justice for all.”

I remember those words well from my days as a schoolboy, reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

Decades later, after I’ve spent years living in the the District of Columbia and writing about governance and technology, those words are imbued with a special poignance and power for me.

We live in extraordinary times, yet access to opportunities, capital and the law is not equal.

We can hear the voices of people crying out for help and justice from around the world at an unprecedented scale and velocity, yet our leaders do not always listen.

We can separate fact from fiction and publish the data that underlies those arguments, yet our capacity to reason and compromise is not always augmented.

We, the People, can do better. Whenever I run down to see Mr. Lincoln and stare out at the Mall, imagining what he might think of our own historic moment, I can’t help but conclude that he would agree.

I intend to share the stories and voices of people who are doing better here, drawing from years of interviews, reporting and exploration. You’ll find analysis, original essays, pictures, videos and data, mixed together and presented in what I hope will be a compelling mix. I hope that you find it worthy of your time.

-Alexander B. Howard