Adlai Stevenson Center on Democracy

Board of Directors
Adlai E. Stevenson III, Chair
Ralph Martire, President
Howard Dubin, Treasurer
Wayne Whalen, Secretary
Carol Spielman
Edison Dick

Steering Committee
Charles Benton
Ken Bode
Marshall Bouton
Doug Cassell
Caroline Cracraft
Katherine Hamilton-Smith
Lawrence Hansen
Bill Kurtis
Frances Mautner-Markhof
Peter Nardulli
Adele Simmons
Terry Stephan
Nancy Stevenson

Executive Director
Alan Teller

Background and Mission

The international Adlai Stevenson Center on Democracy is a newly organized non-profit corporation which seeks to enhance the global understanding and practice of democracy. It brings veterans and practitioners of politics together with scholars to seek information and ideas from history and the world. No ivory tower, the goal of the Center is to address challenges to democratic systems of government and conceive practical solutions that make governments more accountable. Non-partisan and non-ideological, its integrity enables it to challenge conventional wisdom with inconvenient truths when necessary, in keeping with the legacy of Adlai E. Stevenson II.

The Center is located at Stevenson’s former home near Libertyville, Illinois, restored with a grant from the State of Illinois and now a property of the Lake County Forest Preserve District. Participants in its activities come from research and policy organizations as well as from the world of politics, journalism and other fields, thus representing a broad spectrum of expertise and practical experience. The non-partisan Center strives to influence opinion and the political process through public education, the media and other means. It aims to bring practitioners from on the ground and throughout the world together with policy analysts and researchers, bridging the gap between theory and practice, ideas and action. Its international perspective and operation offer a unique contribution.