The mission of the William D. Ruckelshaus Center is to help parties involved in complex public policy challenges in the State of Washington and the Pacific Northwest tap university expertise to develop collaborative, durable, and effective solutions.
The Center envisions a future in which government leaders, policy makers, and citizens routinely employ tools of collaborative decision making to design, conduct, and implement successful public policy processes. The Center is a joint effort of Washington’s two research universities
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Condoleezza Rice Discusses the Future of Democracy
Over 500 Ruckelshaus Center supporters gathered on October 16 for the seventh annual Chairman’s Circle Luncheon, featuring 66th US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Attendees enjoyed a conversation between Secretary Rice and the Center’s founder and Advisory Board Chair, Bill Ruckelshaus, on the “Future of Democracy.” In addition to her new book on democracy, Secretary Rice discussed her personal history and the current political climate. Thanks to all who attended and contributed to collaborative, university-based solutions. TVW carried the event and can be viewed here, alongside an inspiring joint testimonial video from the WSU and UW Presidents.
Simplifying Outdoor Recreation Passes and Fees
In November, the Center reported to the Washington State Legislature on ways to improve simplicity, consistency, and equity in the passes and fees required to recreate on state and federal public lands, while maintaining the fiscal health of the land management agencies. The Center facilitated a Leadership Team representing diverse outdoor recreation interests in reaching consensus on options and recommendations, and presenting findings to relevant committees of the Legislature and other audiences. The Leadership Team based its recommendations on research and analysis from the universities and other sources, including a survey completed by more than twenty thousand Washingtonians. Click here to read the report (to be finalized and released on December 1) or to learn more about the process.Welcomes and Farewells
At its October meeting in Bremerton, the Ruckelshaus Center’s Advisory Board welcomed three new members: 1) Former US Secretary of the Interior and REI CEO Sally Jewell; 2) Interim UW Law School Dean Anita Krug (ex-officio); and 3) UW Law Faculty Liaison Christine Cimini (alternate). The Board also warmly thanked departing members Ernesta Ballard, Jack Creighton (joining Bill Gates, Sr. as an Emeritus member), Jay Manning, and Terry Williams.Since the last eNews, the Center has benefited from the talents of several new staff members:
- WSU Communication graduate Haley Hughes, Communication Coordinator;
- UW Evans student Terri Gu, Development Intern;
- WSU graduate Shane Carnohan and UW Evans student Alexa Schreier, Project Coordinator and Research Intern (respectively) for our Recreation Fees project; and
- Renske Dyedov (formerly with the Emerging Leaders in Science and Society Program) who served as the coordinator of our 2017 Chairman’s Circle Luncheon and fall 2017 Board meeting.
With Shane and Renske departing, we thank them for their outstanding work while looking forward to continuing to work with Haley, Terri and Alexa.
Health Policy Initiative Continues to Grow
The Center continues to build momentum in expansion of its work into health and healthcare policy, with four recent and diverse projects representing local community, statewide, and federal policy issues:
- provider shortages and workforce development;
- statewide Medicaid healthcare delivery and financing transformation;
- community co-creation efforts around health/wellness/prevention; and
- public health governance, funding and care transformation issues.
We’d love your help introducing our health policy work to legislators, agencies, funders, and potential sponsors (non-profit, for-profit, civic, and public sectors) who recognize the value of collaborative and consensus-building methods to solve difficult health-related policy and implementation challenges. Additional information here.
Remember the Center in Your Year-End Giving!
Somehow the holiday season has already arrived and 2017 will soon be over. We hope that in considering your year-end giving, you will include the Ruckelshaus Center in those plans. As Chairman’s Circle Luncheon attendees know, the Center works in the background to enable collaborative solutions to complex policy challenges. The WSU and UW presidents said they are “awed by what (the Center) has achieved.” Congressman Derek Kilmer described the difference the Center has made in preparing the Washington coast to show resiliency in the face of extreme weather and natural disasters. Development Committee Co-Chair Bob Drewel called supporting the Center an “investment in the future of democracy.”
We hope you will agree: there is no more important investment you could make at this moment. To donate, visit our I Want to Give page or call 206-428-3021. Schedule a call or sit-down to learn more about the Center’s work with Chris Page at 206-770-6060 or c.page@wsu.edu. Thank you so much for your support!