The Alliance for Democracy 21 Main St. Hudson MA 01749 978-333-7971 afd (at) thealliancefordemocracy.org
National Council
To contact National Council members, please send an email through our contact page, or call 978-333-7971.
Nancy Price, Co-Chair
Davis, California Nancy is Western coordinator of the Alliance's Defending Water for Life campaign, and a representative on the California Trade Justice Coalition.
David Delk, Co-Chair
Portland, Oregon David is president of the Portland OR Alliance for Democracy, and is an active member of the Portland Public Banking Alliance. He is the host of "Populist Dialogues," a twice-monthly interview program produced at Portland Community Television and aired on public access stations in several communities across the US.
Ruth Caplan, Vice Co-Chair
Washington, DC Ruth Caplan has been active with the Alliance since its founding convention in 1996 where she was elected national co-chair with Ronnie Dugger. She spearheaded the Alliance's first national campaign as part of a successful international campaign against the Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI). She co-chairs AfD's Corporate Globalization/Positive Alternatives and Defending Water for Life campaigns, and is a key organizer with the DC Public Banking Center.
Bonnie Preston, Vice Co-Chair
Blue Hill, Maine In addition to co-Vice Chair duties, Bonnie Preston coordinates AfD's Local Food RULES! campaign and represents AfD on the board of the Maine Fair Trade Campaign. She also organizes locally on peace and justice issues, and is a member of her county Democratic committee.
Steve Scalmanini, Secretary
Ukiah, California Steve has been active with AfD since 2003. In addition to his board secretary work he is the co-host of "Corporations and Democracy," running since 1998 on KZYX-FM, the Mendocino County public radio station, with co-hosts Annie Esposito and Linda McClure. He is also a Ukiah City Council member, an active member of Veterans for Peace-Chapter 116 (Mendocino County, CA) and has volunteered with successful local campaigns that prohibited growing GMOs, prevented excessive retail-commercial development, and banned fracking and corporate personhood.
Vikki Savee, Treasurer
Sacramento, California Vikki has served as AfD Council Treasurer since 2000, after two terms as Secretary. In her role as Treasurer, she handles Alliance bookkeeping with the assistance of national office staff and professional auditors. In addition to her volunteer role with AfD she is the all-around support person for a heavy equipment sales firm and a very proud mother, grandmother and great-grandmother.
At-Large Members
Joan Horton
Joan is one of the original founders of the Alliance's Portland (OR) chapter, following Ronnie Dugger's tour of Oregon with longtime progressive activist Harry Lonsdale. She writes, "Eliminating corporate dominance is only way to create effective and permanent social change. It is also the most difficult since corporations are fully aware of what they are doing."
Ethan Scarl
Portland, Oregon Ethan's background in computer science led to his interest in the integrity of the vote-counting process in US elections. His work includes organizing a panel discussion on election integrity at the 4th National Media Reform Conference, interviewing EI experts for radio, serving on the Election Integrity caucus of the Oregon Democratic Party, and voter education. He has been a member of both the Portland OR and Boston-area Alliance chapters, as well as a member of the Hub Public Banking working group.
Dave Lewit, ombudsman
Boston, Massachusetts Dave Lewit formed the Boston-Cambridge Alliance which he co-chaired through 2013 when it joined forces with North Bridge members and morphed, with several independent others, into the Hub Public Banking working group. For 13 years he edited the BCA Dispatch, archived at www.NewEnglandAlliance.org. With Ruth Caplan, he co-chairs AfD's Campaign on Corporate Globalization and Positive Alternatives.
Jim Tarbell, editor, Justice Rising
Caspar, California Jim edits and produces the Alliance's journal, Justice Rising: Grassroots Solutions to Corporate Power. He is an author and occasional host on "Corporations and Democracy," and a founder of the Grassroots Institute, which holds regular classes on the history of corporate influence on government and policy.
Barbara Clancy, national campaigns coordinator
21 Main St. Hudson MA 01749 978-333-7971 afd (at) thealliancefordemocracy.org
Barbara handles communications with our members and supporters through our e-news, newsletters, website and social media. She is locally active on trade and democracy issues, and is a founding member of Hub Public Banking, which hopes to institute a state or city public bank in Massachusetts.
Lois Voltmer, national office assistant
In addition to working at the Alliance office, Lois is active in local work on behalf of a constitutional amendment to say that money isn't speech and corporations cannot claim the rights of human persons.