Our curated library is packed full of knowledge, know-how and best practices in the fields of democracy and culture.
Read the latest on the Russian invasion of Ukraine and other critical world events in our library of democratic content. Gathered from trusted international sources, the curated library brings you a rich resource of articles, opinion pieces and more on democracy and culture to keep you updated.
Take a look at curated library below and search by keyword (i.e. Ukraine or authoritarianism) or format (i.e. article or report) and find a tailored list of resources on the topics you're most interested in.
CDD Series: Poverty Alleviation
"This brief discusses various aspects of the Citizens’ Charter approach to poverty reduction. These include incorporating a deeper understanding of poverty dynamics into the program’s architecture, engaging provincial and district level authorities and programs, promoting the strategic use of poverty data to inform policy makers, and testing and then scaling up pro-poor initiatives" (Institute State Effectiveness, 2019).
CDD Series: Afghanistan’s Nomadic Kuchi Population
"Afghanistan’s Nomads and Semi-Nomads are highly vulnerable and are generally excluded from development interventions. The Citizens’ Charter intends to work with this population to provide key services. This brief lays out key areas that have to be considered in the design of a pastoralist program" (Institute for State Effectiveness, 2019).
Participatory Development: The Case for Substantive Facilitation
"Afghanistan’s Citizens’ Charter (CC) program is national in scope… the core model of facilitation must be able to adapt to a broad range of socio-economic environments. This brief unpacks the black box of ‘community,’ illustrates why facilitators matter…, lays out the substance of facilitation and the follow up that is needed" (Institute for State Effectiveness, 2019).
Connections 2019: Exploring the Relationship between the Public and the Government
"The Kettering Foundation’s 2019 review of research focuses on the relationship of the public to governments at every level. The relationship between the public and government has been a troubled one for many years as citizens have lost confidence in institutions and institutional actors have questioned the public’s ability to productively address the difficult problems we face" (Matthews et. al., 2019).
Kettering Review Winter 2019
"Public goods are often seen as the domain of institutions and experts. This issue of the Review considers matters a little differently. How might formal public institutions work with informal publics? How can organizations and institutions align themselves with the work of a democratic citizenry to foster a better functioning democracy?" (McAfee et. al., 2019).
Africa's youth: jobs or migration? Demography, economic prospects and mobility
This 2019 report explores the demography, economic prospects, and mobility of Africa's youth, focusing on jobs and migration.
Citizens' Assembly Websites: Practical Guidance
This guide discusses "broad design and editorial principles, as well as information that should be included. While we include what we consider good practice from previous assembly websites, this is very much a first attempt at consolidating good practice rather than a definitive document" (Crow, Nixon, and Parsons, 2019).
The State of Digital Public Engagement
As part of the joint mySociety and Democratic Society project Public Square - this literature review p"rovides an overview of current academic research into the themes relevant to the goal of developing a meaningful, participative and collaborative digital environment, and "draws out salient points to inform the development of tools and approaches to be created as part of the project" (Rumbul 2019).
Digital tools for democratic participation
This new report examines the role digital tools can have in helping democratic participation in local government - and the obstacles to success. "As a companion paper to a review of current academic research in this area, this report examines how digital tools can be used by local authorities" (Parsons, Rumbul, and Brook, 2019).
Digital Tools for Citizens Assemblies
"While there is no unified Citizens’ Assembly digital service, there are a number of different tools that can be used to enhance the process... We also tried to identify where innovative tools could be put to new uses, while always bearing in mind the core importance of the in-person deliberative nature of assemblies" (Parsons 2019).
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