When Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan took office in 2013, his city had just filed for the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history.

Today, business is booming, crime has fallen to a 60-year low and it’s no understatement to say that Detroit is back.

Mayor Duggan, now running for governor of his state as an Independent, joins former Mayors Michael Nutter and Kasim Reed, along with Citizen Co-founder Larry Platt on this episode of How To Really Run A City to roll up their sleeves and lift the hood of Detroit’s success.

“The last time a [Detroit] City Council member was elected mayor was 1947,” Mayor Duggan told our hosts. “For the last 75 years, the city was going so badly that nobody wanted to vote for anyone who had been associated with it. My successor, who won the primary in a landslide, is president of City Council. It shows how much politics has changed. People are proud of their city government now.”

“You decided to run as a White man for mayor of Detroit,” Reed said. “What were the mechanics of that decision?”

“Sometimes I was the only White person in the room for six blocks around,” Duggan responded. “But I listened to very powerful stories. And it’s a funny thing, when you sit in people’s homes and break bread with them, what divides us fades to the background. The average Detroiter isn’t interested in us vs. them, they just want a better quality of life.”

Join us for a powerful conversation about turning an entire city around, despite the challenges and barriers that had entrenched decades of decline. Remember to subscribe to the podcast to keep up on all the latest episodes. Watch and follow new episodes on YouTube.

As cities go, so goes the nation!

When Denver, Colorado Mayor Mike Johnston isn’t sparring with congressional Republicans over immigration (and being threatened with jail time), he’s pushing his city to eliminate homelessness, continuing his crusade for high-quality, affordable education and inspiring Denverites to give five hours of volunteer service each month.

“I love the Give5 Mile High program,” said Citizen co-founder Larry Platt. “It’s kind of the answer to Trumpism, right? All of us coming together in common purpose?”

On this episode of How To Really Run A City, former Mayor Michael Nutter and former Mayor Kasim Reed, with Platt, join Mayor Johnston to dissect the initiatives that are making Denver a prosperous and communitarian city for all its citizens.

“What I try to do is bind people,” Johnston says. “I bind together people that are broken. I bind together people who have been pulled apart from each other. I feel like this is the work mayors are called to do.”

“And that’s why we do this podcast,” Reed says. “It is so important for people who care about this country to hear stories like yours.”

Join us for an energizing conversation about everyday citizens rising to meet the expectations of their city and charting a path out of the tribalism that grips the nation. Remember to subscribe to the podcast to keep up on all the latest episodes. Watch and follow new episodes on YouTube.

As cities go, so goes the nation!

“Just keep doing the next right thing, even though it’s hard.”

This mantra has become a political north star for Scranton mayor and recurring How To Really Run A City guest (and sometimes host), Paige Cognetti. She knows that what drives a city forward is everyone doing their parts at all levels.

“It’s the colleges and universities,” former Mayor Michael Nutter interjects. “It’s the corporate communities. It’s the committee people. It’s the block captains. Cities are living, breathing entities.”

Cognetti and Nutter recently joined Citizen co-founder Larry Platt for a special live taping of the podcast at Philadelphia’s OpportUNITY Summit hosted by United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey. It was a rousing conversation that included a lot of teasing of Nutter by Cognetti, but also included some high-minded reminders that the future of cities depends on practical local government reformers.

“What can all of us do to move the [political] needle back to sanity?” Platt asked.

“Tell the stories that reflect your reality,” Cognetti said.

“Vote,” Nutter immediately answered. “Put down the phone, go to the voting booth and do your thing. Then you can get back to TikTok. Better yet, make a video about how you voted!”

Join us for an uplifting live conversation about civic duty and the motivations of true city changemakers. Remember to subscribe to the podcast to keep up on all the latest episodes. Watch and follow new episodes on YouTube.

As cities go, so goes the nation!