The European Parliament will be celebrating the International Day of Democracy tomorrow (Tuesday), with a conference titled “EU leadership for democracy” with the keynote speech to be given by Stavros Lambrinidis, European Union Special Representative for Human Rights.
The event which is organised in partnership with a number of NGOs (the European Endowment for Democracy (EED), the European Network of Political Foundations (ENoP), the European Partnership for Democracy (EPD), the Office of International IDEA to the European Union), the European Commission and the European External Action Service, participants will discuss the current challenges facing democracies, the role of social media in politics and ways to advance democracy through female leadership and engagement.
The Democracy Day participants include leaders and practitioners working in the field of democracy support in Brussels and internationally, EU policy makers, civil society organisations, academics, researchers, and interested citizens.
The morning session will focus on the EU’s role in supporting democracy worldwide, the internal and external challenges facing the EU’s leadership and ways to be more inclusive to citizens, thus countering the populist discourse.
The afternoon session will be structured around four themes:
- Technology and the changing public sphere
- Political leadership for engagement
- Advancing democracy through female leadership
- The state and the future of democracy
The conference will be wrapped up by former MEPs Veronique de Keyser and Edward McMillan-Scott.
