Honolulu ( CNN ) -- The Internet loves a list . Lists spark conversation . They start fights . People see a list and come away asking questions : Why is n't my song on The Atlantic 's list of `` 10 best songs about the subway . '' Or why is my state on Gawker 's ranking of the `` worst 50 states in America . '' ( Their winner/loser : Arizona . Ready , set : debate . ) Lists , in short , `` are awesome , '' as Buzzfeed 's CEO put it in a memo earlier this year . That site , which is the undisputed king of the Internet list , is known for using rankings , lists and GIFs to make people read about all kinds of wacky topics they never would have cared about , or even imagined , before . As I 'm writing this , the site has lists for `` 11 DIY recipes for your favorite '90s snacks , '' `` 29 insanely elaborate custom coffins from Ghana '' and `` 4 delightfully sexist political ads from the '50s '' on its homepage . I 'm not ashamed to say I totally would read that stuff . But I want to push the idea in a new direction . I 'm heading up a new CNN project called Change the List . It aims to appropriate everything that 's great about lists -- shareability , intrigue , digestibility -- to the end of creating change in some of the places that need it most . For each project , we will start with some sort of ranking that deals with a pressing social issue . CNN will send me , your lucky guide to all things list-y , to the place at the bottom of the list . I 'll report on what 's going wrong , why the issue matters , and what could be done to help . Then I 'll enlist ( pun intended , sorry ... ) you , CNN 's dutiful readers , in a social campaign created to help bump that place off the bottom of the list . It 's a collective experiment in make-a-difference journalism . The goal is that , together , we can change the list . The first Change the List project focuses on voter participation in the United States . You may have heard there 's this little election coming up in November ? Despite the fact that pundits have been yacking about the race for years , and candidates are spending unprecedented dollars on attack ads , millions of Americans will wake up on November 6 and go about the day as if they were n't blessed with the opportunity to help decide the future of the world 's pre-eminent democracy . They wo n't vote . This is particularly true in Hawaii , where fewer than half the state 's eligible voters cast a ballot in 2008 . That 's the case even though Barack Obama is Hawaii 's ( for-real , certifiable ) native son . Hawaii , rather consistently , has the lowest voter turnout rate in the United States . Less than 49 % of eligible people voted in the 2008 presidential election , according to data crunched by Michael McDonald from George Mason University . Compare that to the top state , Minnesota , where almost 78 % voted . I 'm in Hawaii this week to look into why that 's the case -- and to see what people there are trying to do to increase voter participation in paradise . The trip will include a meeting with Kanu Hawaii , a nonpartisan group that 's going door to door to register first-time voters . Volunteers are uploading photos of these new civic participants -- the people who actually have the power to change the list -- to iReport . Photos submitted via Instagram and Twitter with the hashtag # changethelist also will pop up soon on this CNN page . ( If you 've never voted , please make a pledge to do so here ) . I 'm also planning to visit the district with the lowest of the low voter turnout rates in Hawaii ; a meeting with a homeless candidate who won the Republican primary for a U.S. House of Representatives race ; and conversations with people in the state who do n't vote because they say the United States is illegally occupying the islands . When I get back , we 'll try to create a conversation that could change the list -- that could bump Hawaii out of 50th place . Look for a stream of content on voter turnout between now and November , when I 'll report back on our successes and failures . The aim of Change the List , by the way , is not to shame the countries , cities or states that fall at the bottom of the lists . It 's to seek understanding that could lead to solutions . No finger pointing here . Just action . There 's a fair chance the concept may leave you thinking something like this : `` Hey , but wo n't another place fall to the bottom of the list when it 's over ? '' Know that you 're right . But I think of it this way : By trying to boost a place off the bottom of the list , we hope to raise standards for everyone . You can follow this journey -- to Hawaii and beyond -- on the new Change the List Tumblr . Sign up for an e-mail newsletter to get updates on how you can help with this project . For a primer on voting in Hawaii , also check out these links : . The list : Hawaii has the lowest voter turnout rate . Why does n't Hawaii vote ? Some hypotheses . On who votes and who does n't ... In the early 1960s , 94 % of Hawaiians voted . To up voter turnout : Say 'thank you ' Map : Hawaii voter turnout by precinct . And if you have questions , please ask , either on social media or in the comments section on this post . I 'll do my best to find answers . Until then , mahalo !
Change the List is a new CNN journalism experiment . Current project : Bumping Hawaii off the bottom of the U.S. voter turnout list . Stories will focus on creating change where it 's needed most . Comment: