Youth Democracy Forum

The Global Liberal Arts Alliance  is joining with Deree-The American College of Greece as Education Partner for the prestigious Athens Democracy Forum (ADF) to be held in Athens, Greece, September 27-29, 2023. The  Forum is organized by the Democracy and Culture Foundation in association with The New York Times and attracts a broad range of participants from around the world. Panels and workshops will emphasize the “Do” part of the Democracy and Culture Foundation’s Think-Talk-Do impact chain.

The 2023 Forum will explore signs of resilience among democracies that have been challenged in the last few years. Is this resilience real? Do we dare to hope? In considering these questions, the 2023 Athens Democracy Forum will explore parallel trends: the backsliding of democracy, and the relentless and innovative pursuit of it. The Forum’s sessions will include regional case studies, “rethinking” key issues, and practical and innovative new tools.  Regional case studies will include China and the U.S.: One Step Forward or Two Steps Back?, The Good Fight in Africa, The Long View on Ukraine, and South America – The People Have Spoken. Now What?  Rethinking sessions will include Agriculture: Food as a Weapon, Security: When Threats are Invisible, Crypto: Is there such a thing as Democratic Finance?, and Climate: Mass Exodus. Tools for Democracy sessions will include Digital Diplomacy and Youth Beyond Lip Service.

Through a two-level competitive application process, 24 students from schools in the Global Liberal Arts Alliance have been selected to participate in the Forum as student delegates. We aspire for the student delegates to make meaningful contribution to the Forum, to communicate their thinking and experiences both to their home campuses and to the Alliance, and to present a plan of action to their home institutions for addressing a specific challenge identified at the Forum.