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CONSTRUCTING DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE

The Constructing Democratic Governance book series, coordinated by Michael Shifter at the Dialogue and Jorge Dominguez at Harvard University, is concerned with democratic institutions and practice in the hemisphere. Three volumes have been published by Johns Hopkins University Press and a fourth is forthcoming. These volumes undertake a systematic and wide-ranging examination of the state of democratic governance in Latin America. The book includes country chapters as well as a careful review of a number of salient thematic questions. In preparation of the chapters and coinciding with the release date, the Dialogue gathers the authors of the volumes and experts on democracy to present and critique the book's chapters as well as to discuss the pressing issues in governance to a broad audience. MORE

DIALOGUES ON DEMOCRACY

The Dialogue, in cooperation with the Organization of American States, conducted a series of well-prepared, two-day national workshops with approximatley thirty well-known political analysts whose views carry weight with politicians, policymakers, the private sector, the media, and citizens interested in politics.  Workshops were held in Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, and Guatemala. Participants discussed the condition of democratic governance in their country and developed concrete benchmarks by which to measure their  country's democratic development. Each workshop was followed by a report on the country prepared by one of the participants. The findings and recommendations of the country report are used to promote broader public exchanges on democratic governance and consolidation. MORE

PRESS FREEDOM

Since 2000, the Dialogue has maintained a sustained focus on press freedom issues. Our conferences and publications on access to information have supported efforts to formulate, enact and implement relevant legislation throughout the Americas. Our annual symposiums on Capitol Hill bring together U.S. government officials and members of Congress with analysts and practitioners (from the U.S. and Latin America) to review the status of press freedom in the region. The Dialogue also focuses on violence against journalists and impunity towards that violence. MORE

WOMEN'S LEADERSHIP

The Dialogue has carried out its work on women’s leadership under the auspices of the Women’s Leadership Conference, a hemispheric network of women leaders. The group has worked to assure that women’s concerns are specifically addressed in international forums, monitor progress that countries are making to address women’s issues, and hold governments accountable. It was instrumental in getting women's concerns on the agenda of the first Summit of the Americas. The Dialogue regularly consults womens groups in the Americas to help identify priority areas for discussion and action. MORE

WORKING GROUP ON DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE

The Dialogue, International IDEA, and the Organization of American States (OAS) have convened a working group designed to analyze democracy in Latin America with a focus on two themes: the current state of the rule of law in Latin American democracies, and the OAS Democratic Charter as an instrument for defending democracy. The group has met twice in Washington, in January and in May 2010, for discussions led by OAS secretary general José Miguel Insulza, Dialogue senior fellow Genaro Arriagada, and IDEA regional director for Latin America, Daniel Zovatto. MORE

ARTICLES AND OP-EDS