The European Endowment for Democracy has joined the Global Democracy Coalition, a multi-stakeholder coalition for democracy bringing together pro-democracy organisations from around the world to galvanize a global conversation on democracy, as inputs to the Summit for Democracy which will be held on 9 and 10 December 2021.

On Tuesday 7 December 2021, The Global Democracy Coalition will gather for a 24-hour virtual forum, with over 30+ webinars, organized by as many organizations and bringing together over 70+ democracy organizations, activists, advocates, experts, academics, students, politicians, and thought leaders from all over the world to discuss challenges, opportunities, and solutions to reinvigorate democracy worldwide.

At the forum, EED is hosting the following panel:

Creating and maintaining democratic spaces in times of uncertainty | Tuesday, 7 December 11:00-12:00 CET

It can be challenging for civil society actors to navigate the constantly fluctuating democratic environments in which they operate.

Yet, across the European neighbourhood, a new generation of activists are creating new democratic spaces and are maintaining existing space for civil society and the media. These energetic activists are constantly creative and remain positive, even in the face of creeping authoritarianism and increased restrictions on freedom of speech and of the media. They are focused on ensuring that local and national authorities are kept accountable and they constantly push for democratic change.

In this session, our panel of speakers from across the European Neighbourhood will relate how they keep engaged in this civil society work and how they involve the broader community in their actions, despite ongoing fluctuations in democratic freedoms. They will discuss their experiences of working to keep democratic space open in their contexts, and how this space can be sustained.

Speakers:
- Ammar Hamoda, Sudan Bukra (Sudan)
- Tinatin Maghedani, Gavigudet (Georgia)
- Yaşar Adnan Adanalı, Centre for Spatial Justice (Turkey)

Moderator:
- Shada Islam, commentator and analyst

Register here