Stories

Member Story
Shadows of the Past: How Soviet Inferiority Narratives Hinder Democracy in Moldova and Ukraine
Post-Soviet countries like Ukraine and Moldova are deeply influenced by inferiority narratives — pervasive beliefs of national inadequacy rooted in Soviet-era legacies. This article examines how these narratives shape...
IDC Theme of the Month
From Backsliding to Breakthrough: Civil Society as Democracy's Last Line of Defence
Democracy does not vanish overnight; instead, it erodes step by step. Authoritarianism grows in the cracks, but so does civic resistance. Around the world, civil society is proving that when democratic institutions weaken,...
California´s Coming Election Has More in Common With Brexit Than You Think
For a century, politicians in the most populated US state have relied on government-triggered initiatives and...
European Union
Democratic Idea Goes Around The World
Citizens' initiatives are a tool of modern direct democracy. Invented as an idea in the late 18th century,...
United Kingdom
Brexit And The Case For More, Not Less, Direct Democracy
Direct democracy can be overwhelming and even dangerous, or so some people now believe after the vote for...
How To Cure A Democratic Hangover?
For #Regrexit-fans and other voters, who found themselves uninformed on a major decision, experiments in the...
United Kingdom
Brexit-Vote Triggers Global Debate on Modern Direct Democracy
The decision by the British electorate to leave the European Union has created worldwide momentum for...
United Kingdom
"A democratic emergency call"
People2power Editor-in-Chief Bruno Kaufmann says the outcome of the Brexit-vote is "a democratic emergency...
Switzerland
Goes Direct Democracy Digital?
Political campaigns increasingly take place on the internet, and in Switzerland, initiatives and referendums ...
Philippines
The Excited and Enthusiastic Voters of the Philippines
The Philippines is a sports-loving nation - from boxing to basketball. Seven years ago, the government even...
Switzerland
What You Can and Can’t Learn from Switzerland
Modern direct democracy is unfinished: in his new book Swiss political scientist and global democracy...
Switzerland
Basic Income And The Power Of Direct Democracy
Swiss voters are due to decide on a people´s initiative to introduce an unconditional basic income on June 5...