A Nurturing Nation

America is in the midst of a monumental struggle. The question before us is whether we will rebuild the nation so that domestic tranquility and the general welfare once again guide our common life—or whether we will continue down a path in which greed, lawlessness, cruelty, and indifference to human suffering increasingly shape our public institutions.

The stories mount. Children are terrified when parents are seized by ICE. Families lose access to health care or medication they depend on. People who have lived in our communities for years are treated as if their suffering does not matter.

The majority of Americans are deeply distressed by what they are seeing. Yet many are unsure what they can do and doubtful that their actions would make a difference.

What is missing is a practical way for ordinary people to work together to change the conditions that are harming families and communities. For that reason, Values to Action has created A Nurturing Nation.

We created Values to Action after more than forty years of research on preventing the problems that lead to poverty, illness, and premature death. However, over those decades, it became clear we were learning a great deal about how to create conditions in which people thrive—but much of that knowledge has rarely been used.

Research consistently shows that people flourish in nurturing environments: places that minimize toxic stress, promote cooperation, and ensure that basic needs are met. Yet many of our policies and institutions create the opposite conditions. Values to Action exists to help communities apply what science has already shown can improve human wellbeing.

Across the country, a movement for a more nurturing society is beginning to take shape. Widespread resistance to harsh immigration enforcement and the refusal of many Americans to accept policies that tear families apart reveal that millions still believe our nation should protect and nurture the wellbeing of every person.

The first step is developing the psychological readiness to act—even when we have doubts about our ability to succeed. Thanks to advances in psychology, we now know how to help people develop the skills needed to persevere in difficult struggles while also experiencing meaning, connection, and satisfaction in working together to improve their communities.

The second step is identifying concrete actions that can contribute to the change we seek. Ultimately, we must restore democratic control of government and reduce the power of wealthy interests and large corporations whose influence has distorted public policy. But the path to that change begins in our communities.

National institutions are distant and difficult for ordinary citizens to influence directly. Communities, by contrast, are places where people can come together, learn from one another, and begin changing the conditions that shape everyday life. No single community action can solve every national crisis. But communities can begin where they have leverage: by reducing hardship, strengthening families, protecting vulnerable people, and demonstrating that public life can be organized around care rather than cruelty.

Research over the past several decades has identified many policies and practices that communities can adopt to immediately improve wellbeing. One of the most powerful is increasing family economic security. Family poverty undermines parents’ ability to meet their children’s needs and increases the likelihood of abuse and neglect. Increasing family income can prevent serious health problems and behavioral difficulties among children.

A number of communities and states have already shown that it is possible to increase the income of lower-income families through practical local initiatives. One striking example comes from Baltimore, where community organizations and volunteers worked together to increase the number of eligible families claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit. By helping thousands of families access tax credits they were already entitled to, the effort brought millions of additional dollars into the pockets of working families—money that helped parents pay rent, buy food, and stabilize their lives.

Other goals that communities can pursue include preventing antisocial behavior, reducing drug and alcohol addiction, decreasing consumption of unhealthy food, ensuring children’s academic success, and reducing homelessness. Our ability to help communities make progress on these issues is grounded in more than forty years of research conducted by us behavioral scientists.

The third step is bringing people together to make change happen. Values to Action helps people create Action Circles—small groups of ten to twelve people who work together to advance a clearly defined goal. We provide training and guidance so that these circles can work effectively, support one another, and make steady progress.

Virtually every major improvement in American life has grown out of a social movement: abolition, the Progressive Era, the labor movement, civil rights, women’s rights, disability rights, gay rights, tobacco control, and the movement against drunk driving. In each case, ordinary people found one another, clarified what they stood for, and organized sustained action.

When people work together to strengthen families, improve schools, protect children, increase economic security, and reduce addiction and homelessness, they begin creating the foundations of a more nurturing society. These local efforts improve wellbeing directly. They also demonstrate practical alternatives to systems that place profit, punishment, or indifference above human flourishing.

As these efforts spread from community to community, they can mobilize millions of Americans around a shared vision: a society that measures success by the wellbeing of its people. Over time, that growing movement can generate the political will needed to reform state and national institutions.

But there is something deeply important to recognize: the work itself matters. Acting together for values we care about—justice, dignity, care for children, and shared responsibility—can be profoundly sustaining. Even in difficult times, collective action can create meaning, connection, and hope.

That is why Values to Action is launching ACT for a Nurturing Nation. The program draws on major advances in psychology to help people develop the resilience and psychological flexibility needed to face discouraging news, uncertainty, and conflict while continuing to move toward what they care about most.

Through the program, participants will clarify what they want to contribute, meet others who share their desire to build a more nurturing society, and begin forming Action Circles—small groups that work together to advance specific goals in their communities.

This is how change begins: people developing the readiness to act, joining with others, and taking practical steps that improve life where they live.

If you are looking for a way to move toward the country you want to live in, we invite you to walk with us.

---

This essay marks the launch of A Nurturing Nation—an initiative to bring evidence, lived experience, and coordinated action together to advance policies that reduce suffering before it occurs.

---

Join the Effort to Build a Nurturing Nation.

If this vision resonates, here are ways to engage—starting small, and deepening as you’re able. https://valuestoaction.org/nurturing-nation#getinvolved :

• Stay connected. Subscribe on Substack to follow the work, reflect on the ideas, and amplify the effort by sharing pieces that resonate with people in your life.

• Help shape the conversation. Comment, respond, or send reflections. This movement grows stronger as we learn from one another and clarify what a nurturing society could look like in practice.

• Stand publicly for the vision. Add your name as an endorser (or endorse anonymously) to affirm that a society that puts human wellbeing before profit matters to you.

• Help build the capacity to act. We aim to raise $50,000 over six months to expand public education, support local Action Circles, and connect people across the country who are ready.