About
The Effective
What works in local government.
Our mission
It is one of the happy incidents of the federal system that a single courageous State may, if its citizens choose, serve as a laboratory; and try novel social and economic experiments without risk to the rest of the country.Justice Louis Brandeis, New State Ice Co. v. Liebmann, 1932
As Brandeis put it, one of the happy accidents, or core intentions, of federalism is that state and local governments serve as laboratories of innovation for the challenges of today. At a time when government feels stagnant, divided, and out of touch, it is important to highlight where government is working, and the lessons we can take from these effective programs.
The Effective reports on which programs worked, and what made them most impactful. We aim to give a broad overview of the program, metrics to prove its effectiveness, and links to helpful resources for policymakers interested in replicating the program, or tailoring it to their own towns.
We also link to other reporting we are enjoying — work by newsrooms elsewhere that highlights successful local programs in other cities. Those pieces are gathered in our reading list, on the front page and at the foot of every section. They are always credited to the newsroom that did the reporting, they never carry our byline, and every one of them links straight to the original.
Who this is for
Our target audience are everyday citizens who care about what is going on in their communities, academics who are looking for effective local programs, and policymakers across the country who are considering how best to solve problems in their own communities.
How we work
A program earns coverage here when there is evidence it did something.
On images: photographs are real photographs, altered no further than crop and exposure. Illustrations may be AI-assisted, are always visibly stylized, and always carry a credit line saying so. We do not publish synthetic images of real people, places, or events.
Who writes it
Corrections, and arguments are welcome at communications@theeffective.org.
please submit tips through our suggest a program form, which is the fastest way to get something on our list, or tips@theeffective.org.