Orbit
Welcome to Orbit
The latest news and events aligned with our mission and values. Orbit will keep you informed about current happenings and opportunities.
While The Collective focuses on deeper strategic conversations and collaborative work, Orbit serves as your go-to for essential upcoming public events.
Explore Orbit to stay connected on the ground.
Advancing Callin In: A Four Week Course
Advancing Calling In is a four week course, meeting twice a week to dive deeper into Calling In; loosely themed chats with Loretta J. Ross and team that establish community through experiences, stories, and questions.
Advancing Calling In will build on Calling In with a deeper emphasis on interactivity and focus on technique, as well as solid grounding within the context of the human rights movement.
To sign up for this course, please click here.
Course Schedule ($20 total for all four weeks; $5 for the first week only):
FOUR Tuesdays | 7pm-9pm EST | October 7, 14, 21, and 28
FOUR Thursdays | 7pm-9pm EST | October 9, 16, 23, and 30
Policy 101 from the Aspen Institute
Join the Aspen Institute’s webinar to learn the basics of the policy process. This program will teach you how to think about policy expansively, and introduce you to a framework for understanding how to change policy on the issues you care about. It also gives an overview of the six steps of policy impact.
To register, please click here.
October 8, 2025 | 2pm - 3pm EST
22nd Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference
The conference will feature thoughtful policy and legal analysis and discussion from leading experts, policymakers, attorneys, advocates, and more.
Writing an Op-Ed | Aspen Institute
In the Aspen Institute’s Writing an Op-Ed instructional webinar, participants will learn how to draft an op-ed — or any kind of opinion piece, whether in print or digital media — in order to advance a broader goal of policy change. An effective op-ed requires having a clear point, an understanding of your audience, and the unique voice of the writer. This webinar will go into the basics for achieving all of those points, as well as discuss strategies for pitching an op-ed to media stakeholders to reach the audiences that matter most for impacting policy.
To register for this event, please click here.
October 15, 2025 | 12pm - 1pm EST
The Thing About Falling by Tarriona "Tank" Ball
Join us at Lost City Books as Tarriona “Tank” Ball, New Orleans-based slam poet and Grammy-winning recording artist, as she discusses her book, The Thing About Falling.
After getting “vulnerable AF” on her 2021 book tour, Tank realized she was truly ready to move on from her first love. In The Thing About Falling, she writes about that experience as well as what followed—a period of shallow comfort, followed by a much deeper transformation.
To RSVP for this free event, please click here.
Lost City Books | 2467 18th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
Aspen Ideas: Economy
Aspen Ideas: Economy is an essential forum designed to bring the public into direct conversation with leaders, scholars, and innovators whose perspectives and decisions are shaping our economic future.
Financial Well-Being and Wealth Among Young Adults
To help policymakers and practitioners better understand the challenges and opportunities for young adults, the Urban Institute’s Early Life Wealth Building Learning Community is inviting researchers, implementation partners, and experts from existing programs to come together.
The event will focus on understanding the financial health and wealth of young adults in America. We will uplift research across Urban related to young adults’ financial health and well-being, including intergenerational wealth transfers, debt, barriers to wealth building, and long-term projections for national changes in household wealth.
Check-in begins at 1:30 p.m. A networking reception will follow the program, concluding at 5:00 p.m.
To register for this hybrid event, please click here.
Urban Institute (500 L’Enfant Plaza SW, Washington, DC, 20024)
How to Tell Governments What You Think | Aspen Institute
Governments work for the people, so it’s important for government officials to hear from ordinary citizens what we think about what they are doing. Yet most of us don’t know how to effectively share our opinions with governments.
Join the Aspen Policy Academy from the Aspen Institute to learn how to tell government actors across all branches of government what you think about their ideas. This program will teach you broad principles for communicating to policymakers, as well as specific tips for sharing your opinions with Congress, executive branch officials, and even the courts.
To register, please click for this virtual event, please click here.
September 24, 2025 | 12pm - 1pm EST
Congressional Black Caucus Foundation 54th Annual Legislative Conference
The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s 54th Annual Legislative Conference (ALC) is the leading policy conference on issues impacting African Americans and the diaspora.
Book Launch: The Double Tax: How Women of Color Are Overcharged and Underpaid
Award-winning researcher, speaker, and writer Anna Gifty Opoku-Agyemen is releasing her new book, The Double Tax: How Women of Color Are Overcharged and Underpaid, at a critical moment when research and advocacy on the advancement of women of color are needed more than ever.
Book Talk with Professor Royal C. Gardner
Join Professor Royal Gardner as he discusses his new book, Waters of the United States: POTUS, SCOTUS, WOTUS, and the Politics of a National Resource, published by the Island Press.
Opening Reception for "Solace & Sisterhood"
Join us at the David C. Driskell Center for the opening reception of the “Solace & Sisterhood” exhibition which brings the powerful dynamic of sisterhood to the forefront by showcasing the work of three contemporary Black female artists: Lavett Ballard, Amber Robles-Gordon, and Evita Tezeno. Guest curated by Dr. Lauren Davidson, this show explores the depth of Black sisterhood, highlighting the strength, resilience, and bond that unite these women.
To register for this free event, please click here.
The David C. Driskell Center | 4095 Union Lane #1214 College Park, MD 20742
Thursday, September 11 | 3pm - 6pm
Fixing the Immigration System to Strengthen the United States
The Trump administration’s cruel assaults against immigration and the rule of law have been turbocharged by congressional Republicans’ recently passed reconciliation bill—the One Big Beautiful Bill Act—gifting the administration dramatically increased funding to further weaponize their harmful immigration agenda.
Join CAP for a timely conversation with Reps. Veronica Escobar (D-TX), Tom Suozzi (D-NY), Teresa Leger Fernández (D-NM) and CAP President and CEO Neera Tanden on solutions to actually fix our immigration system and strengthen border security.
To RSVP for this online and in-person event, please click here.
Event Details:
Center for American Progress (1333 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20005)
9:30am - 9:35am: Opening remarks by Debu Gandhi, Senior Director
9:35am - 10:30am: Panel Discussion with Neera Tanden, President and CEO, and Reps. Escobar, Suozzi, and Fernández.
The Future of Equal Opportunity, featuring Stacey Abrams
Join us to hear our esteemed panel to explore the implementation of equal opportunity, emerging challenges, and the strategies needed to protect and strengthen opportunity in the American workplace.
Why Gender-Based Violence Is an Economic Issue
Gender-based abuse and violence has a deep impact on the economic security and financial prosperity of women and their families. Join us to learn how we can uplift both challenges and solutions.
The Algorithm Will See You Now: Policy Essentials for AI in Healthcare
Health policy leaders will convene to discuss the impact of artificial intelligence on healthcare.
Future of R&D Infrastructure
Hear from experts assessing the future of research and development infrastructure.
What Does Well-Being Mean for Black Men and Boys in the US?
Presenting key experiences and research findings from communities across the country.
Future of Automation Workshop
Sharing key insights outlining potential trends, disruptions, and opportunities to inform and guide science and technology policy at both state and federal levels.
Healing Traumatic Stress Through Embodied AwarenessA Workshop With Licia Sky
Join somatic educator and Co-founder and Global Ambassador of the Trauma Research Foundation, Licia Sky, to learn a gentle process of listening to bodily sensations that incorporates orienting, focusing attention, breath, sound, and movement.
The Juneteenth Celebration - DC (Volunteer)
DPR is excited to invite you to volunteer at our annual Juneteenth Celebration event, taking place on Saturday, June 21st at Franklin Park (address: 1332 I St NW, Washington, DC 20005).
2025 AMA Marketing and Public Policy Conference
Join leaders in academia and government to explore evidence-based knowledge and co-create impactful policy solutions through marketing innovation.
Children’s Legacy Theatre presents: “Fannie Lou Hamer - Until I’m Free” play
Children’s Legacy Theatre, Inc. creates theater experiences that educate and challenge young people and their communities. Our mission is to inspire teens to explore, think and connect, through imaginative theater, to other people and ideas using inductive reasoning. Come join us to celebrate Juneteenth.
2nd Annual Juneteenth Community Day - VA
Honor and celebrate the strength, determination, resilience and integrity of those who weathered in the pursuit of liberation and freedom!
Located in Arlington, VA.
What’s Next? Discover Meaningful Work in Financial Services
If you’re navigating a career transition or looking to connect with high level professionals in the DMV - this event is designed with you in mind.
The BIG Conference (Basic Income Guarantee)
The 23rd annual gathering focused on basic income, bringing together advocates, researchers, and policymakers to discuss strategies and challenges in the movement.
Share Our America: The Summit
Hear from thinkers, leaders, and citizens who are not giving up on America. They’ll focus on how we can show up for each other and lean into all that connects us to rebuild trust and collaboration, starting where we live.
Author Talk: Amanda Nguyen – Saving Five: A Memoir of Hope
Join Amanda Nguyen, civil rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize nominee, as she discusses her new memoir, Saving Five: A Memoir of Hope. In conversation with journalist Weijia Jiang, Amanda will share insights from her journey advocating for survivors of sexual violence and her work in shaping policy reform.
What’s Next for CX in Government?
Hosted by the Better Government Lab, this event will explore strategies to enhance access to government services by investing time, knowledge, and resources effectively.