CoLab Debate

CoLab Debate: A Learning Center for Debate and Cooperative Leadership

CoLab Debate is a startup nonprofit program with a mission to catalyze a new generation of collaborative community leaders through innovative and inclusive debate education. CoLab scholars gain the skills they need to win debate championships, and learn to use those skills to bridge divides, shape policies, and create positive change.

Democracy is in crisis, and longstanding global threats continue to grow. Academic, political, and administrative institutions are in a state of unprecedented precarity. Young people are poised to remake the world in radically new ways. 

Part workshop, part research center, part organizing network, CoLab Debate offers its unique curriculum through educational programs, including summer debate camps for high school students. We use forensics to teach not only competitive excellence but essential portable skills, including creative problem solving, critical thinking, technology/media literacy and strategy, consensus building, organizing, deep listening, and conflict resolution. Our guest lecture series at camp gives students the priceless opportunity to learn from the best and network with an expansive roster of prominent activists, public servants, and change-makers from across the country. 

We fully fund camp scholarships for underserved and systems-impacted students who are motivated to fight for change in their communities. In doing so, CoLab Debate aims to empower young people to reshape the world, not just climb existing ladders. 

With your support, by summer 2026 we will:

• Hire our all-volunteer staff as employees
• Launch our website, including virtual opportunities for students to access our curriculum
• Host a pilot project of our summer debate camp
• Provide full scholarships (including room, board, and transportation) enabling 20 underserved/systems-impacted students to attend our 2026 summer debate camp

You can make checks payable to ISI with the project name included in the memo & send checks to ISI.
Mailing address: 887 Sonoma Ave, #23, Santa Rosa, CA 95404