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‘Leave no one behind’ (LNOB) is the central, transformative promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Hence, SDG 5—‘Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls’—is an intrinsic enabler for sustainable development and representative democracy for each country and the world at large.

The root causes of conflict and violence, such as injustice, inequalities and decline in the quality of democracies, rarely emerge and remain within the national borders of a single country: they increasingly spill over into surrounding regions, compelling a regional response.

El secretario general de IDEA Internacional, Dr. Kevin Casas-Zamora, participó en un debate de CO.OP LAB titulado “Amenazas crecientes a la democracia y los derechos humanos”, organizado por la Dirección de Cooperación para el Desarrollo de la OCDE el 14 de septiembre de 2021.

The Secretary-General of International IDEA, Dr Kevin Casas-Zamora, participated in a CO.OP LAB discussion entitled “Rising Threats to Democracy and Human Rights”, organized by OECD Development Co-operation Directorate on 14 September 2021.

When risks materialize and vulnerabilities exist, crises occur. Preparedness is what separates those who are overwhelmed with the turn of events from those who can effectively prevent, withstand and resolve difficult situations.

With the growing evidence of democratic backsliding, and understanding that democracies are vulnerable in times of crises, initiatives to protect the integrity of electoral processes and results they yield become ever more important.

Climate change poses an existential threat for humanity and has become the defining issue of our time. The outcome of the climate crisis will depend on whether democracies can drastically reduce their carbon footprints in the coming years. Climate change already has an impact on democratic governance through its effects on food security, conflicts, water scarcity. migration and natural disasters, among other consequences.

This Discussion Paper was drafted for an International IDEA webinar on Taming the Incumbency Advantage (25 May 2021), the first of a series on innovative constitutional design options. It has been revised and updated to reflect contributions from webinar participants: Professor Juvence F. Ramasy (Madagascar), Professor Ridwanul Hoque (Bangladesh) and Professor Gabriel Negretto (Latin America), among others.

On 15 August, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called for a snap election. This September election, a full two years before the next elections were due, was an opportunistic move. As leader of the Liberal Party, Trudeau had been governing with a plurality (but not a majority) of the seats in the House of Commons since 2019. In the summer of 2021, the Liberal Party was polling well, and the election call was an attempt to translate that polling support into a majority government.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, numerous countries invoked different constitutional provisions and laws to respond to the unexpected health crisis. Constitutional INSIGHTS No. 6 examines the use and non-use of state of emergency powers by countries across Asia and the Pacific in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the implications for other democratic rights and processes.

Countries with a federal form of government responded in distinctive ways to the health and economic crises caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Constitutional INSIGHTS No.7 explores what can be learned from this experience about the purposes, design and operation of federations, including for the division and allocation of powers and fiscal resources; collaboration and cooperation between levels of government; and the challenges of democratic accountability.

The Covid-19 pandemic has seen the marked centralization and exertion of executive power, and, more broadly, a focus on the response of other elected organs. However, the pandemic has also shone a light on the key roles played by unelected independent institutions and international bodies, from public health actors to courts to international organizations and beyond. Constitutional INSIGHTS No.

International IDEA’s Secretary-General Dr Kevin Casas-Zamora took part in a panel discussion on 7 September 2021, on mitigating the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on democracy, as part of the Fifth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament (5WCSP).

El secretario general de IDEA Internacional, Dr. Kevin Casas-Zamora, participó en un panel de discusión el 7 de septiembre de 2021, sobre la mitigación del impacto de la pandemia Covid-19 en la democracia, como parte de la Quinta Conferencia Mundial de Presidentes de Parlamento (5WCSP).

In view of ongoing and recent contestations between the president and prime minister, and president and legislature in Tunisia and in Sri Lanka, International IDEA’s Constitution-Building Programme organised a webinar on the ‘Value and Perils of Semi-Presidentialism in Transitional Contexts’ on 2 August 2021.

Gender inequalities and marginalisation of segments of societies remain a persistent challenge in democracy building across all regions of the world. What measures have been taken to promote gender equality in democracy building processes—on political partiticipation and representation(political parties, parliaments, local government councils), constitution building, electoral processes? What are the pros and cons of gender quot

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La democracia no es solo un sistema de gobierno, sino el reflejo de una aspiración humana y el único tipo de régimen que nos permite vivir con autodeterminación. Pone límites al poder, posibilita la libertad de expresión y garantiza nuestra participación. 

Public participation has become a core element of modern constitution-building. Robust participation is credited with a range of benefits—from improving individual behaviours and attitudes to democracy to shaping elite bargaining dynamics, improving constitutional content, and strengthening outcomes for democracy and peace. Yet it is not well understood whether and how public participation can achieve these ends.

This Primer examines the recognition, roles and rights of the opposition and the legislative minority in democratic constitutions. Opposition parties operating in democracies rely upon a wide range of constitutional protections, such as the freedoms of association, assembly and expression, backed by an independent judiciary and an impartial civil service.

When electoral risks are not understood and addressed, they can undermine the credibility of the process and the results it yields. Electoral management bodies (EMBs) encounter numerous risks across all phases of the electoral cycle. They operate in environments that are increasingly complex and volatile and where factors such as technology, demographics, insecurity, inaccurate or incomplete information and natural calamities, create increasing uncertainty.

Dr. Kevin Casas-Zamora is the Secretary-General of the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), with over 25 years of experience in democratic governance as a researcher, analyst, educator, consultant and public official. Here he discusses the role that democracy plays in mitigating climate change.