The past is present. These women are shaping the future, using history as a tool to guide and inspire.

As we look back, we must also look around. In honor of Black History Month, we asked several young Americans how their experience growing up Black in America has been shaped by history, both lived and learned. History is a collection of experiences remembered. By amplifying the voices of young Black Americans today, their words become a powerful record for future generations.

It’s more than apparent that the future is female — but let’s not forget that the past is female too. We draw inspiration from the stories of Native women leaders like Nanyehi “Nancy” Ward, a member of the Cherokee Nation who believed that women would be critical to establishing peace with white settlers.

Without a broad and accurate grasp on the origin of today’s issues, we cannot appropriately resolve them, much less build a stronger America for all. That’s why prioritizing education inside and outside the classroom is the first step in creating a better America.

Young people have always driven change; after all, we have to live the longest with the outcomes of the decisions happening now. When we asked our Gen Z fellows their wish for the future of the United States, what they decided on is a statement that might just help us all.

Need some inspo to get started? Meet the world’s youngest certified genealogist, Alex Trapps-Chabala.

For museums, this kind of engagement is encouraging; it’s an opportunity to provide trusted expertise, sources and scholarly context. But to join their conversation, we have to make room at our decision-making tables for Gen Z leaders and creators, embracing the accountability they’re putting in place.

Across the country, over the last few weeks, people tuned into reports from D.C., Minneapolis, Atlanta and Los Angeles with emotions running high. One common reaction wove its way through the clutter of news articles, opinion pieces and tweets: a craving for history to help us understand how we got to where we are, and how to find a way forward.

If we had a wish, it would be, like our ancestors Ida B. Wells and Madam C.J. Walker, that the opportunity to have a voice in politics as both voters and public servants truly made available to all.

Rodney E. Slater, vice chair of the National Archives Foundation Board of Directors, partner at Squire Patton Boggs, and a former secretary of transportation, reflects on the founding promise stated in our most treasured documents – and the work, and faith, required to make it real.

Books can open our eyes to new circumstances, but they can also help us develop a radical empathy for others and for the ties that bind us to the past, present and future. They put us in the story and connect us to our shared humanity.

The challenges we face now are unique and devastating, but the way to tackle them is the same: let us band together, share what we have and what we know, and grow our capacity to thrive among new-ness. That’s the engine that powers Made By Us, and we’d like to invite you to join us for the ride.

We turned to our partners to create a crowdsourced, digital version of an annotated bookshelf.