Opening Spaces; the Podcast about Democracy

A recent brutal crackdown against LGBT people in Chechnya has cast a new spotlight on the small Russian republic's authoritarian regime. In this episode of Opening Spaces, we discuss the gender and human rights situation in the country with guest Raisa Borshchigova, a Chechen human rights activist and current Galina Starovoitova Fellow at the Wilson Center's Kennan Institute.

The current U.S. administration’s foreign policy will likely expand the U.S. government’s effort to detect and deter violent extremists, and will build on President Obama’s effort to make the emerging strategy of countering violent extremism (CVE) a global development priority. Despite the increased focus and the significant resources devoted to understanding the challenge, the U.S. and its allies remain uncertain about the causes and characteristics of violent extremism. In this episode, we discuss what exactly we mean by violent extremism, and how the international development can counter the global phenomenon, with Democracy International's Kelsey Allagood.

Election monitoring is often viewed as a fundamental component of democracy assistance. But autocrats are increasingly learning how to manipulate elections. Is monitoring them still a worthwhile endeavor? What makes a good election? And how exactly are elections connected to democracy? In the fourth episode of Opening Spaces, we discuss these questions and more with Dan Murphy, DI’s Director of Elections and Political Transitions.

Latin America has the unfortunate distinction of being the most violent region in the world, accounting for nine percent of the world’s population but 33 percent of its homicides. Democracy International has been actively working in the region with our partners at USAID to advance effective responses to the epidemic of crime and violence, which has spillover consequences in the United States. In the third episode of Opening Spaces, we discuss how the international community can more effectively prevent crime and violence in the Americas with Yemile Mizrahi, DI’s Director of Analytical Services.

Following the unexpected success of Brexit and the Trump campaign, public opinion research is facing unprecedented scrutiny. In the second episode of Opening Spaces, we discuss the use and purpose of public opinion research with Glenn Cowan, CEO of Democracy International and an international polling expert.

In the inaugural episode of Opening Spaces, we sit down with Eric Bjornlund, President of Democracy International, for a conversation on the history and future of democracy assistance, its relationship to democracy promotion, and what it means for the incoming U.S. administration.