The Ashburn Institute
&
The American University SIS Undergraduate Council

Present a Special Interactive Forum

IS DEMOCRACY THE KEY TO GLOBAL PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT?

Thursday, March 3 rd , 2005
American University
5:30pm - 8:00 pm

The Ashburn Institute is a promising non-profit organization dedicated to uniting democratic nations through facilitating global learning and development. In fulfilling our mission, we host various types of programs including conferences and videoconferences, student forums, roundtable discussions and transnational learning programs. We truly believe global education and cross-cultural interaction enable our future leaders to gain insightful knowledge and varying perspectives which are essential in a world of increasing interdependence.

This fall, the Ashburn Institute, in partnership with the American University SIS Undergraduate Student Council, is hosting a unique forum that will bring together university students with professionals and academic scholars to discuss the complex issues dealing with democracy, broad-based sustainable development, and global peace.

Since the end of the Cold War and the collapse of communism, democracy has emerged as the dominant form of governance. In today's world, it is widely accepted as essential to the development of a stronger and more peaceful society in which development is real for every aspect of life. However, in practice, there have been limitations to what democracy can do especially for developing nations. In the study of developing countries, the issue of democracy as a primary condition of progress has created a contentious debate as countries continue in their quest to democratize. For broad based sustainable development, good governance is an interlinking factor for creating not only political stability, but also a stable society and economic prosperity. In practice, however, the transformation to democracy has brought into question what we know about development as the developing world continues to strive towards it. For developing countries, democracy does not translate well considering their unique historical experience and existing conditions. Therefore, we must contemplate the issue of democracy so that it is more adaptable to facilitate broad based sustainable development and peace.

In this forum, we will discuss the benefits of democracy and how countries can adapt this form of government in different regions of the world so that everyone may benefit from the freedom and prosperity democracy has to offer. We will address such questions as: How can we redefine the ideas and principles of democracy so that it can translate into developing regions? Is a transition to democracy a first step towards stability and peace or should we look to other issues of development before governance? What is the connection between democracy and economic prosperity, if any, and how should economic structures change when making such a dramatic institutional change? How does the popular idea of democracy affect indigenous cultures and societies? What is the role of the international community have in promoting democracy and how is it accountable when its mission fails? The discussion will be organized around a panel of experts from academic and professional fields. Students will be asked to join and interact for an engaging discussion and debate.

Please click HERE for the AGENDA.

Admission is open to everyone.