POCATELLO — A local community-based nonprofit seeking to educate Idahoans in civic responsibility and a culture of principled and self-oriented governance is hosting a free seminar Wednesday led by three federal judges.

The event, titled "Democracy, Individual Rights, and the Constitution: Why Every Citizen Should Care," is the fourth seminar organized by Idaho Civic Hope Project. It runs from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the ICCU Bengal Alumni Center, 1601 E. Bonneville St., with doors opening at 6 p.m.

Idaho State University is co-sponsoring it as part of America 250 commemorations.

The forum will feature three federal judges, who will explain how they interpret the U.S. Constitution and discuss the individual rights enumerated within it, along with the amendments and clauses that protect them. The judges will also detail landmark and high-profile cases that often set precedent within the United States.

The panelists include N. Randy Smith, a senior judge on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Ryan D. Nelson of the 9th Circuit, and B. Lynn Winmill, a senior U.S. district judge for the District of Idaho.

"Our intention here is to give people an overview of the judicial branch, how it operates and how there isn't a black-and-white definitive way to interpret the Constitution, given the context of some of these important cases that judges are looking at and ruling on," said Ryan Cameron, a co-founder of Idaho Civic Hope Project.

Cameron said organizers chose the topic partly because the courts are being asked to rule on so many prominent cases.

The evening will begin with opening remarks and introductions. Judges will then give a 15- to 20-minute overview of constitutional rights and the precedents behind them. Each judge will present a case they have handled or followed and describe how they approached the legal questions involved. The judges will then discuss the cases with one another in a panel format.

The final 20 minutes will include moderated questions from the audience. Organizers are asking attendees to focus on the judicial process rather than on specific rulings.

"Our hope is that people will walk away understanding the complexity of some of these issues that the judiciary is facing," Cameron said. "Judges are people. They are public servants and they're doing the best that they can with a tremendous amount of training."

Idaho Civic Hope Project was founded about two years ago by three Pocatello couples who now run its six-member board: Justin and Jamie Wood, Dave and Danielle Bagley, and Trissa and Ryan Cameron. The civic-centric nonprofit primarily focuses on Pocatello and Bannock County.

Cameron said the idea for Idaho Civic Hope Project grew from a shared desire to have a positive influence on local politics, along with a shared realization about how much they, and others, could collectively learn about government.

"We didn't know enough about how our government, especially local government, worked," Cameron said.

For the Camerons, along with many of their friends and neighbors, the lesson was deeply personal. Many of the board members were opposed to School District 25's plans for Washington Elementary School. Despite their efforts, led largely by a fledgling citizen initiative called the Washington Advocates, they were unsuccessful in keeping the school open.

Cameron said the experience made them see how easily busy families, his own included, let civic responsibilities slide.

"We feel like the rights that we have come with obligations, and that obligation is to be educated about how the system works, to be educated on who your candidates are and what policies they might promote, and to make sure that they're hearing your voice in an educated way, not just in a Facebook post or a tweet, but through real civic engagement," Cameron said.

Much of what Idaho Civic Hope Project entails was born out of that philosophy and a shared goal to create a better-educated and informed citizenry.

The group is strictly nonpartisan. It does not host candidate forums or campaign events and does not advocate for specific policies. It instead focuses on inviting current and former public officials to explain how government processes work.

"Our focus is, again, not policy but procedure and the way things work," Cameron said.

The group's first seminar addressed the importance of an educated citizenry and how voters can think critically about policy and candidates. The second examined how school districts and school programs are funded through federal and local sources.

The third, "Legislative 101," followed a bill through the Idaho Legislature. A Republican state senator and a Democratic state senator presented together. Organizers skipped July and August because they expected lower attendance during summer vacations.

A common roadblock for the nonprofit, like many nonpartisan, politically focused groups in the area, is attracting people under 40 to attend events like these. Cameron said attendance at past events skewed toward those on the older side, and many in attendance are already civically engaged.

For this seminar, Cameron said, they have focused more on promoting the event on social media and have invited government and political science teachers at high schools within the area to bring their students. They also are working with Idaho State University.

The group is currently planning a seminar in October, before the November general election, on how elections are run and kept secure at the county and state levels. Organizers have contacted the Idaho secretary of state's office and are seeking local election officials as speakers, though no speakers or dates have been confirmed.

"If you understand how elected officials or public servants operate and the constraints they have, and the time and the way and the manner in which you approach people, your voice can be heard and can be a positive influence," Cameron said. "The goal is for all of us to walk out of there having more faith in the system, more trust in the system through understanding its intricacies."

More information about the nonprofit and its board is available at idahochp.org.