Democracy

Framing ethical perspectives

Democracy is a form of government in which political control is given to the people, whether directly or through the election of governing officials. Currently, large numbers of people have lost faith in this form of government and some elected officials have been working to dismantle democratic institutions. Our programs, events, and experts strive to better understand this development.

Featured Democracy Resources

State of global democracy, U.S. global engagement, and more

JUN 9, 2021 Podcast

Illiberal Democracy on the Rise: Examining Brazil, Hungary, & India

APR 19, 2022 Podcast

Why Democracy vs. Autocracy Misses the Point, with Jean-Marie Guéhenno

Senior Fellow Anja Kapsersen is joined by Professor Jean-Marie Guéhenno for a conversation about virtual communities and the advent of the age of data.

FEB 23, 2024 Article

What Do We Mean When We Talk About "AI Democratization"?

With numerous parties calling for "AI democratization," Elizabeth Seger, director of the CASM digital policy research hub at Demos, discusses four meanings of the term.

Explore Our Democracy Resources

CREDIT: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/arselectronica/7406755166/in/photostream/">Ars Electronica</a> (<a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.en">CC</a>).

AUG 1, 2013 Article

Policy Innovations Digital Magazine (2006-2016): Briefings: The 'Copter Will See You Now

As countries develop policies for civilian and commercial drones, it is important to apply ethical standards that are permissive of innovation.

Colored Cosmopolitanism: The Shared Struggle for Freedom in the United States and India

JUL 25, 2013 Article

Book Review: Colored Cosmopolitanism: The Shared Struggle for Freedom in the United States and India

"South Asians and African Americans learned from each other in ways that not only advanced their respective struggles for freedom but helped define what freedom ...

Street corner in Yangon, Myanmar. CREDIT: Devin Stewart

JUL 24, 2013 Article

Burma's Reforms and Regional Cooperation in East Asia

"Though the 2010 elections that brought a civilian government to power were not free and fair, the new president, Thein Sein, has embarked upon a path-breaking ...

<a href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-129779477/stock-photo-senso-ji-temple-in-tokyo-japan.html">Senso-Ji Temple in Tokyo</a> via Shutterstock

JUL 23, 2013 Article

Now That Abe Won Control of the Government, the True Test of Abenomics Begins

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, his ruling Liberal Democrat Party, and his "Abenomics" economic revitalization platform won solid victories in Japan's recent upper house elections. But ...

CREDIT: Devin Stewart

JUL 11, 2013 Article

Globalization Is the Unsung Champion of the Protests Happening Around the World

Through the late 80s and 90s, protests everywhere from Berlin to Seattle revealed a common target of public unrest: globalization. Now, however, globalization has become ...

Political Philosophy in the Twentieth Century: Authors and Arguments

JUL 11, 2013 Article

Book Review: Political Philosophy in the Twentieth Century: Authors and Arguments

This collection of essays edited by Catherine Zuckert provides an overview of the work and lives of 18 thinkers who made significant contributions to the development ...

CREDIT: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/guilhermececilio/3699393345">guilherme cecílio </a> (<a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/deed.en">CC</a>).

JUL 8, 2013 Article

Policy Innovations Digital Magazine (2006-2016): Briefings: UNDP Uses a New Human Development Eco Footprint

The 2013 Human Development Report has brought hybrid economic-ecologic metrics into a new era, providing a clear path to a broader meaning of development.

JUN 27, 2013 Transcript

The Ethics of Globalization and the Globalization of Ethics

In this rousing and eloquent speech in Rio, given during the biggest protests there in 25 years, Michael Ignatieff salutes the protesters' "patriotic anger" and discusses ...

JUN 13, 2013 Podcast

Ethics Matter: Jeremy Scahill on the World as a Battlefield

In the name of the "war on terror," the U.S. is conducting covert warfare and targeted killings, and it dismisses the resulting deaths of ...

Presidential Leadership and the Creation of the American Era

JUN 11, 2013 Podcast

Presidential Leadership and the Creation of the American Era

Joseph Nye asks: "If the United States starts out the 20th century as a second-tier power and it ends up the 20th century as the ...