WASHINGTON, D.C. /eNewsChannels/ — The Community of Democracies (CD) will convene a series of meetings in New York from September 23-25 on the margins of the UN General Assembly. Following significant reforms and revitalization over the last two years, the CD has emerged as a key platform for collaboration among governments and civil society organizations working to support democracy worldwide.
CD sessions in New York will highlight the organization’s commitment to strengthening young democracies and empowering civic activists. Secretary Clinton’s Senior Advisor for Civil Society and Emerging Democracies, Dr. Tomicah Tillemann, will represent the United States at all CD proceedings.
On Sunday, September 23, Dr. Tillemann will come together with representatives of other CD countries and Dialcom at the Social Good Summit for a panel discussion on the CD’s new LEND Network. LEND provides leaders engaged in new democracies with technology, information, and real-time access to leading experts on democratic transitions. The Social Good Summit is being organized by the United Nations Foundation, Mashable, 92Y, Ericsson, the United Nations Development Programme, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
On Monday, September 24, the Permanent Mission of El Salvador will host a meeting of the CD’s Executive Committee. El Salvador will assume the biennial presidency of the CD from Mongolia in the spring of 2013. The Committee will review plans for the CD’s April Ministerial in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
On Tuesday, September 25, the CD will hold its Fifth Governing Council meeting at the UN Headquarters North Lawn Building. The Council will receive reports from CD Task Forces supporting transitions in Moldova and Tunisia, assess opportunities to restore democratic rule in Mali, and launch an exploratory effort with the goal of supporting ongoing reforms in Burma. The CD will also hear from working groups on topics including empowering women, defending civil society, and democracy education. A convening of the UN’s Democracy Caucus, first organized by the CD in 2004, will follow.
The CD has worked closely with the United Nations since it was founded by U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Polish Foreign Minister Bronislaw Geremek in 2000. At the organization’s inaugural meeting, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan welcomed its creation and called for a “renewed global commitment to making this century a century of democracies.”
