We had a good turnout at our Minneapolis meeting on March 4—a convivial group of newcomers and old hands—despite a winter storm that was beginning to rage.

The topic our conversation was civic virtue. There was a broad consensus that we’re going through a period where people with power—and many who people who have very little power—feel unconstrained by ethics or concern for others.

One of the challenges we face is rebuilding a sense of community and a sense of responsibility for the well-being of others. Simply meeting with new people who share an interest in building a community is a step , but we need much more. Many of the people who attended are already doing things, but finding out what to do, when to do it, where to do it all seem daunting.

It’s important to recognize that rebuilding a community is hard—and it’s even harder when people are isolated. So talking to friends, neighbors, and even complete strangers can help. One of the people attending mentioned that she has made it a project to talk to people at the YWCA when she goes for her workouts, to let people know what role federal funds play in the work that organizations like the Y do.

Another way to reach out is to share what we know and what we believe with others. Another small step is to engage with people in the state by writing letters to the editor. To that end, there’s a list of newspapers on the site now with contact information. You can retrieve all the daily papers simply by clicking a button—and begin writing.

Some updates to the site: there’s the list of newspapers; there’s a new “group” feature that allows registered members to join a conversation; and the site should be a little cleaner. In the next few days, there will be a small documents / tools library that will include things like the readings we’ve done, templates for letters to the editor, and other useful things.