Democracy Center Announces New Podcast and Art Series with Gratitude Blooming

LOS ANGELES, CA – The National Center for the Preservation of Democracy (Democracy Center) in partnership with Gratitude Blooming will launch the Empathy and Democracy podcast and pop-up art series on July 15, 2023 from 4 p.m.–6:30 p.m. Admission to the pop-up art exhibit is free. Visitors coming for KCRW Summer Nights can also visit the pop-up at the Democracy Center. Tickets for the live podcast are $20 for general admission and $10 for JANM Members. All tickets include Gratitude Blooming’s Garden of Curiosity Notecard Collection. Tickets are available at janm.org/events/calendar.

A subseries of the Gratitude Blooming Podcast with the theme “The Plant is Present,” this new, live, four-part podcast gives people with different worldviews the tools to connect with each other. The Empathy and Democracy podcast and pop-up art series will follow the seasons of the year, explore people’s fears and hopes for democracy, and discover how people can navigate their lives and collective governance with greater intention, compassion, and imagination.

“The Democracy Center is committed to hosting conversations that expand our understanding of what it means to belong to a democracy. By presenting this unique perspective, we can examine our individual and collective roles in protecting and improving our democracy for everyone now and into the future,” said James E. Herr, director of the Democracy Center. 

The Empathy and Democracy podcast will feature Gratitude Blooming’s Omar Brownson, Belinda Liu, and Arlene Kim Suda. Brownson is a storyteller, poet, entrepreneur and the co-host of the Gratitude Blooming Podcast who builds heartful spaces for a gratitude ecosystem and regenerative economy. Liu is a nature-inspired visionary, land steward, and the co-founder of Gratitude Blooming who creates new ways of being and belonging. Suda is an artist and co-founder of Gratitude Blooming who makes art to bring awareness and healing to the world.

The Plant is Present pop-up art exhibit will feature several reflection booths modeled after a voting booth. Each booth will house a plant, found gifts from nature, and the Gratitude Blooming cards. Visitors will be encouraged to notice and name the emotions they feel, leave a note with a message about their experience, and participate in the live podcast discussion about it. 

“Let’s reimagine the voting booth as more than just a space for casting ballots. It can be a transformative space for self-reflection, connection to what matters, and the expression of our hopes and dreams for democracy,” said Brownson.

Upcoming dates for the series are October 21, 2023; February 10, 2024; and May 4, 2024.

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About the Japanese American National Museum (JANM)
Established in 1985, JANM promotes understanding and appreciation of America’s ethnic and cultural diversity by sharing the Japanese American experience. Located in the historic Little Tokyo district of downtown Los Angeles, JANM is a hybrid institution that straddles traditional museum categories and strives to provide a voice for Japanese Americans as well as a forum that enables all people to explore their own heritage and culture. Since opening to the public in 1992, JANM has presented over 70 exhibitions onsite while traveling 17 exhibits to venues such as the Smithsonian Institution and the Ellis Island Museum in the United States, and to several leading cultural museums in Japan and South America. JANM is open on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday–Sunday from 11 a.m.–5 p.m. and on Thursday from 12 p.m.–8 p.m. JANM is free every third Thursday of the month. On all other Thursdays, JANM is free from 5 p.m.–8 p.m. For more information, visit janm.org or follow us on social media @jamuseum.

About the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy
The National Center for the Preservation of Democracy (Democracy Center) is a place where visitors can examine the Asian American experience, past and present, and talk about race, identity, social justice, and the shaping of democracy. The Democracy Center convenes and educates people of all ages about democracy to transform attitudes, celebrate culture, and promote civic engagement; educates and informs the public and public officials about important issues; creates strength within and among communities to advocate for positive change; and explores the values that shape American democracy. The Democracy Center looks for solutions that engage communities in self-advocacy, explore the evolving idea of what it means to be an American, and result in actions that bring everyone together. 

About Gratitude Blooming
Gratitude is for everyone—the practice of noticing with our hearts—is needed now more than ever.  As a social emotion, gratitude invites us to come together as a community as well as to overcome the personal challenges we face. 

At the heart of our practice is the Gratitude Blooming cards, a collection of thirty-nine mindful reflections and gratitude practices inviting people to explore the beauty and wisdom of nature.

Combining poetic imagination, nature and social impact, Gratitude Blooming is a collaboration between an artist, a poet and a land steward, three Asian Americans who aim to create sacred spaces that inspire us to notice and name the emotions we hold deep inside and build a better relationship with them. Together, we believe we can better navigate our lives and collective governance with greater intention, compassion and imagination.