Former high school English teacher, fundraiser, union activist, entrepreneur and political candidate, founder Andy Thorburn has spent his life committed to social justice. During his many years as an executive who successfully led a multi-national corporation providing health coverage to international clients – the majority of whom were in the developing world –  he developed a private foundation to give money back to these same communities.

After selling the business, Andy shifted his focus to domestic issues, creating the Contemporary Policy Institute in 2011 as a private foundation. Recognizing the proliferation of misinformation being spread across our country, he prioritized the mission of this nonprofit to countering false narratives by developing factual content to inform public debate on any number of current issues.

As an outgrowth of the global Covid pandemic, CPI started Wound Walk OC, a project to help the local unhoused population. This project is now the street medicine team of Lestonnac Free Clinics.

CPI soon expanded into defending public education, where misinformation was rampant. To support this effort, in 2023, CPI developed a public nonprofit foundation, Contemporary Policies Institute, to fund the Public School Defenders Hub.

From local concerns to national issues, needs are ever-changing. CPI’s goal is to be responsive and impactful with the resources we have. 

In addition to leading CPI, Andy serves on numerous non-profit boards of directors and is currently the National Chair of Americans for Democratic Action.