Hartford Public Library

The Hartford Public Library’s Hartford History Center, in collaboration with the Digital Media Center at the University of Connecticut, will develop “Find Your Voice,” a nationally replicable model for the integration of libraries’ humanities collections with their civic engagement programs. This interpretive, mobile-optimized website will use interactive media to engage a diverse public in exploring historic individuals who found their civic voice through poetry, performance and other expressive forms. Additionally, multimedia tutorials will connect past traditions of civic engagement to contemporary concerns, strategies, and voices. “Find Your Voice” not only situates present-day visitors to the website within a centuries-long local tradition of civic literacy and involvement, it will also empower them to discover how they, too, can help build a more equitable, vibrant, and democratic society at the community level.