"I want to zero in on the one piece of this puzzle that is in our individual control, and that is cultivating an unwavering belief in the value of our own voices. It sounds simple, maybe even trite, but it is absolutely essential to protecting our democracy."

Ann Hunter-Pirtle spent 5 years working in the White House working on environmental policy before returning to Nebraska to start a nonprofit organization center around public education. Ann shows us how we can find our voice and break down barriers to get involved in public policy and democracy. Ann is a Lincoln native and enjoys traveling, cooking, and playing the guitar badly.

She has spent 20 years observing American politics, beginning at age 14 with the 2000 presidential election. She holds a BA in Political Science and French and an MS in Agricultural Economics from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. After spending 5 years in Washington, DC, working on environmental policy at the White House and as a speechwriter to the head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, she returned to Lincoln in the summer of 2016. Here, she founded Stand For School - a nonprofit dedicated to advancing public education in Nebraska. In this role, she is a close observer of the Nebraska Legislature. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx