As we near an election that may be stressful for many, we recognize that many of us turn to research, opinions and other resources for moments of reflection. The following resource list was compiled by Library & Research Services at HKS.
Vote!
- Harvard Votes Challenge can help you register to vote, check your registration status, determine where and how to vote, understand voter ID laws, encourage others to vote, and more.
- If you're a Massachusetts voter, track your mail-in ballot.
Volunteer to be a poll worker
- Though some municipalities have already closed their calls for poll workers, you can find the nearest area still looking for staffers through Power the Polls.
Volunteer for a candidate
- Find which candidates are on your ballot through BallotReady, then visit their websites to find out how to volunteer.
Find a local organization
On the current election cycle
- For state-by-state projections and polling data, as well as tips on avoiding election anxiety, visit FiveThirtyEight.
- Dig into different parties' stances on critical policy issues from Time's list of political blogs, NPR's "Tracking the Issues in the 2020 Election" series, and the NYPL's Election Reading Lists.
- For clarity on the issues surrounding the 2020 Election itself, try Richard Hasen's Election Meltdown: Dirty Tricks, Distrust, and the Threat to American Democracy or reports from the Congressional Research Service.
On the history of U.S. elections
- Learn about the transformations of voting rights in the U.S. with The Right to Vote: The Contested History of Democracy in the United States by Harvard professor Alexander Keyssar or by watching Whose Vote Counts, Explained on Netflix.
- Understand the persistence of the Electoral College with Professor Keyssar's new book Why Do We Still Have the Electoral College? (and watch HKS librarian Alessandra Seiter's interview with Professor Keyssar on Behind the Book for an introduction).
- Learn about the contested history of early U.S. elections with Uncommon Sense's reading list or the Ben Franklin's World podcast.
- Grapple with the history of U.S. voter suppression in Tova Wang's book The Politics of Voter Suppression: Defending and Expanding Americans' Right to Vote and FiveThirtyEight's podcast The Gerrymandering Project.
Get outside and away from the news
- Massachusetts State Parks
- Trustees of Reservations
- Amazing New England Hikes (Boston Magazine)
- Ten (mostly) outdoor museums to take in some art and history this fall (Boston Globe)
Find advice on building emotional resiliency
- Advice for Dealing with Uncertainty - From People Who've Been There (Life Kit Podcast)
- The Happiness Lab (Podcast)
- The Gratitude Project: How Cultivating Thankfulness Can Rewire Your Brain for Resilience, Optimism, and the Greater Good (Ebook)
- Positive news stories from Solutions Journalism's Story Tracker
Find meditation and mental health resources
- Harvard's Center for Wellness & Health Promotion
- Ten Percent Happier app
- The 21 Best Meditation Podcasts to Listen to in 2020 (Very Well Mind)
- BIPOC Mental Health Resources (National Alliance on Mental Illness - New Hampshire)
Enjoy the arts
- Classical music, jazz, and world music from Naxos Music Library
- Concerts, operas, ballets, and more from Medici.tv
- Alexander Street Press Film & Music Collections
- Streaming Video & Harvard LibGuide