A former elected official recounts the true story of a small town that descended into anti-government chaos. This cautionary tale explores how to strengthen democracy by tuning in to local government. With humor and real-world examples, Dr. Pearson walks the audience through her step-by-step civic engagement model. In a time of political polarization and tribalism, this talk is a non-partisan primer on wielding the power of people to be good neighbors and good citizens. Dr. Nancy Pearson is a local government evangelist. She came by this organically, after becoming deeply connected to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, through community organizing, serving on city council, and pursuing her PhD, where she conducted research on civic engagement with local government. Nancy believes becoming civically engaged can be empowering and sexy. She now splits her time between Portsmouth and Miami Beach. 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