The National Democratic Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to support and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide through citizen participation, openness and accountability in government.

The Westphalian Treaty, signed 365 years ago, created the “framework for our modern world” by establishing sovereignty and setting national borders for European countries. But with the birth of the Internet came global networks of information that went beyond borders, challenging dicatorships and censorship and changing the way people participate in democracies.

Presented by The Middle East Program at the Woodrow Wilson Center. 

Speakers:

The 2011 change in Yemen’s government has brought with it a first for the country – the chance for ordinary Yemenis to publicly question their political leaders about the economy, unemployment, transitional justice and other issues on their minds. 

The challenges that many Arab Spring countries currently face are similar to those faced by other countries who have gone through major revolutions in the past several decades.

As Libya prepares to mark the 2nd anniversary of its revolution, nationwide protests against the current authorities are expected, while authorities are calling for “vigilance and restraint.” Though many Libyans are frustrated with the pace of change since the revolution and want to hold their government accountable, they understand that they elected the current authorities in office. Civil society and protest groups are also underscoring the legitimacy of the current government.

Presented by the Global Gender Forum. Sponsored by the George Washington University's Global Gender Program which is part of the Elliott School's Institute for Global and International Studies.

Co-sponsored by the National Democratic Institute.

Keynote Speaker: Mona Lena Krook Associate Professor of Political Science, Rutgers University "Electoral Quotas and Beyond: Strategies to Promote Women in Politics"

Panelists:

The French advance through Mali has pushed back Islamist militants, but restoring Mali’s territorial integrity will be more difficult. The country faces challenges like a “Malian military with little credibility and discipline, political institutions that have atrophied, Tuareg separatism, continuing tensions between north and south (including allegations of human rights atrocities), vast uninhabited areas that could be bolt-holes for militants, and a refugee crisis.”

Millions of Ghanaians voted in a close election last December that returned incumbent President John Dramani to office by a margin of less than 3 percentage points. An independent vote count by a local election monitoring organization that used SMS technology to verify returns from around the country gave many voters the confidence necessary to ensure a peaceful election process—both during the voting and in the days following.