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Developing an Active Citizenry through Civic Education
It is critical to examine how a sense of citizenship develops within these young people, as well as the methods through which societies educate them about their roles and responsibilities as active citizens. Nurturing a sense of citizenship is fundamental to building sustainable democracies. In this podcast, Augusta Featherston, IFES Program Coordinator, highlights why the role of youth civic education is so essential to democracy.
News & Updates
Feature
Youth: Power of Democratic Change
Today’s youth are tomorrow’s leaders. In many countries, young people have already started to step into leadership roles. IFES engages the world’s young people in a variety of activities that educate them about their rights and responsibilities. This level of involvement empowers and prepares the next generation of leaders to have a voice in the way they are governed. IFES’ photo gallery illustrates the participation of youth in the political process.
News & Updates
Interview/Speech/Testimony
In Morocco, Fostering Youths as Agents of Change
Ismail Ilsouk spent six weeks at IFES as part of the Middle East Partnership Initiative’s Leaders for Democracy Fellowship this summer. In this role, he examined the vibrancy of Morocco’s youth-oriented civil society organizations. In this interview, he tells us about the low levels of youth civic engagement in his country and why this matters.
News & Updates
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Planting the Seed: Translating Civic Education into Citizen Engagement
Youth is a transitional stage of life. During this time, an individual’s relationship with their government changes from passive to active. As individuals reach the age of enfranchisement, and later become old enough to stand for office, they are able to formally participate in their country’s political processes. The general perspective is often that young people are uninterested and disengaged, and efforts spent on their inclusion do not translate into meaningful engagement. The panel discussed the role of civic education in the development of active citizens.
News & Updates
Interview/Speech/Testimony
Inspiring Youth to Take a Seat at the Table: A Q&A with Judith Lobos
Judith Lobos, who recently worked with IFES in Honduras, shares lessons learned from over 20 years of experience in engaging youth in the political process.
News & Updates
Feature
Fostering Democracy Through Education
The recently published Best Practices Manual on Democracy Education by the Council for a Community of Democracies provides a myriad of examples and case studies of democracy education programs for countries at all stages of development and transition. IFES hosted this event featuring two of the manual's authors as well as other democracy-promotion experts for a conversation on how best to empower citizens to become informed and take part in their government.
News & Updates
Feature
IFES Civics Course Alum Serves as Precinct Election Commissioner
Prior to participating in IFES’ Democracy and Citizenship course, Nika Markozashvili possessed only basic knowledge about citizenship and the responsibilities of citizens in a democracy. The course content had a profound impact on Markozashvili’s understanding of his role in public life. “As I passed the course, [in] time I realized my role in building democratic society,” he said.
News & Updates
Feature
A Rights-Based Approach to Electoral Security
In India, Maoist rebels killed 14 people in attacks in Chhattisgarh state as part of a campaign of violence aimed at disrupting the ongoing five-week national election in the world’s most populous democracy. Similarly, in the days leading up to the April 5 presidential election in Afghanistan, the Taliban unleashed a campaign of violence to discredit the electoral process and keep voters from the polls. Many hope this election will be known for delivering the first peaceful transfer of power in the country’s history.
News & Updates
Feature
Elections Worth Dying For? A Selection of Case Studies from Africa
The book Elections Worth Dying For? A Selection of Case Studies from Africa examines the roots of violence within election processes in Africa from a variety of perspectives. Watch this special book launch event. IFES' event, took place during the week of the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, underlines the importance of engaging in questions of potential election violence and how to best mitigate it through a series of broad-ranging case studies.
News & Updates
Feature
Service Learning: Fostering Citizenship and Democracy
Service learning programs provide participants opportunities to apply their skills and education to community-level issues. The International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) incorporates service learning in a variety of programs, from our university courses in Georgia to democracy camps in the Maldives. For this podcast IFES Youth Adviser Augusta Featherston spoke with her counterpart Susan Stroud, Executive Director of Innovations in Civic Participation, about service learning trends and how it can foster the foundations of democracy.