CIVIC ENCOUNTER RECAP: Kamy Akhavan on Bridging Divides, Mentorship & Hope for Our Political Future (S2 E14)
- JCI Blog
- 4 days ago
- 3 min read
When asked to share a childhood memory that shaped him, Kamy Akhavan begins not with a typical anecdote, but a journey that traces his life from being born in the backseat of a taxi cab in Tehran, Iran to facing new challenges as he transitioned to new home in South Louisiana. “My background is a little bit weird,” he laughs, “but you know, we're a nation of immigrants, and you ask any immigrant for their story, and it's going to sound a little bit weird.”
Born in Iran and raised in South Louisiana, Akhavan learned early what it meant to live between worlds. As a child named Kamy, he inevitably stood out and quickly learned to navigate a culture shock and being disconnected from his own roots. By the time he turned 20, Akhavan had lived in 25 homes. These early years of constant movement instilled a lifelong ability to connect across differences. “We all have to bridge the divides with our identities all the time,” he recalls, “and we learn from each other because of difference. So in that case, difference is fantastic because that's how we learn and that's how we grow.”
Today, as Managing Director of the USC Center for the Political Future, Akhavan helps students and the broader public navigate some of the most divisive issues of our time.
He draws on lessons from his earlier career at ProCon.org, a platform that presented balanced arguments on controversial issues like immigration, gun control, and the death penalty. Within this work, Akhavan witnessed that people would remarkably change their minds. In surveys, up to 40% of users reported shifting their stance on an issue after reading the site. “When a person feels heard, their defensiveness just drops,” Akhavan states. He discovered that when readers saw their own perspectives represented clearly and respectfully, their walls came down, making space for genuine consideration of opposing views. There became critical, proven value in making others heard and offering a listening ear.
At USC, Akhavan applies that same principle to campus dialogue. He remarks, “Sometimes the best tool you have is not your mouth, it's your ears.” True listening, he explains, isn’t waiting for your turn to speak, but building trust through curiosity and empathy. Once people feel understood, “it’s hard to hate up close.”
In discussing the power of podcasts like Civic Encounter, Akhavan highlights how long-form conversations combat the loneliness and disconnection of the digital age. “We are a hyper connected world,” he says, “but at the same time, we are increasingly lonely.” Unlike short-form content that rewards instant gratification, podcasts offer space for deeper connection—something he calls “story mode.”
Akhavan’s teachings extend beyond politics. In his USC course, Doing Good, he helps students and nonprofit professionals develop impactful, sustainable organizations. His advice is straightforward: ask for what you need, and be authentic in building genuine connections. “Without those relationships, you won't get the money,” he reminds us.
His lessons come from experience. At one point, his team sent out more than 100 grant proposals and received zero responses—a failure that taught him the importance of relationships and building a network. “What matters way more is who is reading that grant
proposal, and does that person know us,” he says.
For Akhavan, nonprofits play a crucial role in healing division. “When a person is in line at a soup kitchen or receiving a free meal for Thanksgiving because they can't afford one, the person who is doling out the food is not asking, ‘Are you a Democrat? Are you a Republican?’” he expresses. “They don’t care. They just care about providing the service.” In that shared act of service, he sees a model for a focus on human needs first, and politics second. As Akhavan reminds us, “It’s not about avoiding disagreement – it’s about disagreeing better.”
Despite the challenges of polarization and disconnection, Akhavan remains hopeful. His source of optimism returns to his natural gift of connection and nurturing honest relationships with people. When the world feels heavy, he scrolls through his phone, picks a name, and calls someone he hasn’t spoken to in years. “It's just a human to human connection that… can help fulfill our lives,” he says.
For Akhavan, bridging divides is an intuitive action and something that permeates every thread of his life. It’s a phone call, a conversation, and a listening ear that builds the bridge one person at a time.
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