WHY THE WORLD SHOULD INVEST IN UKRAINE'S DEMOCRATIC FUTURE Earlier this month, members of the private sector, governments, and various international and civil society organizations convened in London for the Ukraine Recovery Conference. Ahead of the conference, Peter Erben, IFES’s Principal Advisor & IFES Ukraine’s Sr. Country Director, and Gio Kobakhidze, IFES Ukraine’s Deputy Country Director, wrote a piece for the Atlantic Council outlining why it is critical for the private sector to support efforts to continue to advance democracy, like countering corruption and promoting free and fair elections. In the news: Tony Banbury spoke to Ukrinform, the national news agency of Ukraine, about the work of civil society and state bodies in empowering Ukrainians to advance democracy in the face of the war against Russia. Story spotlight: Rashyd Bilalov, a Ukrainian student who serves on the Consortium for Elections and Political Processes (CEPPS) Youth Democracy, Rights, and Governance Cross-Sectoral Advisory Group, spoke with us about how an IFES-implemented course led him to form a non-governmental organization, with other students to engage young people across the country. SACRED BALLOTS: ENGAGING WITH RELIGIOUS ACTORS IN THE ELECTORAL CYCLE During election season, religious dynamics are, at times, implicated in the rise of authoritarianism. However, religious actors can also serve as resources for promoting robust electoral institutions by lending legitimacy, moral authority, and organizational capacity to pro-democracy efforts. Vasu Mohan, IFES’s senior global adviser for Conflict, Displacement, and Minority Rights, coauthored a paper about how government institutions and election management bodies can help assess and respond to how religious actors shape electoral cycles. Read it here. |
