Strengthening Democracy at Democracy Network Conference 2024
I had the great pleasure to spend two days with activists, campaigners, researchers and politicians at the Democracy Network Conference (DNConf24) back in early January. Here’s what Alastair Binnie-Lubbock from the Sortition Foundation; Lara Parizotto from Migrant Democracy Project; and Jessie Joe Jacobs from Democracy Network had to say about structural inequalities in their movement:
Regardless of your field of interest or expertise, there is a lot to learn from the democracy movement. It has a unique ability to describe the structural challenges contributing to the democratic crisis. From a lack of accountability, to a lack of representation, to severe under funding and a lack of autonomy. The exclusion of millions of voters, the lack of opportunity for regional governments to influence and lead central government, the challenges are many.
But credit to the team at the DNConf24, the two day event enabled participants to celebrate the wins ( a wave of citizen’s juries growing in ambition), identify the possibilities (voter reform, independent media, political leadership) and leave with a pragmatic hope for the future.
It was encouraging to hear and see a commitment to the Structural Inequalities Alliance’s founding principle of participation. In order to change the structure of society, we must change who gets to design it, and this was an evident priority for so many at DNConf24.
This event report was written by Caroline Tosal Suprun, the Structural Inequalities Alliance Manager