Cristin F. Brawner is Executive Director of the National Issues Forums Institute. She has dedicated her career to helping communities and our democracy thrive. As a nonprofit executive, Cristin has led dynamic staff teams, built partnerships, and developed coalitions for improving civic life. As a consultant, she helped clients manage large teams and projects successfully, engage diverse communities thoughtfully, build partnerships strategically, and communicate effectively.

Cristin is the former Executive Director of the David Mathews Center for Civic Life in Alabama, where she oversaw the growth of the organization’s programming, partnerships, and impact. She is a former Associate with the Kettering Foundation and the former Project Coordinator for the Equitable Neighborhoods Initiative. She is also the founder and facilitator of the Southern Deliberative Democracy Network, an informal group dedicated to strengthening democracy and dialoguing across differences.

Cristin is a graduate of the University of Montevallo and a member of Class II of Leadership Alabama’s Alabama Leadership Initiative (ALI). She is a member of the David Mathews Center for Civic Life Board of Directors.