Can democracy safeguard the future? We need a broad wave of innovation around participation, says CUSP (and A/UK)
Our founder and co-initiator Indra Adnan very much out and about in the digital public sphere last week… here Indra is participating in an event hosted by the Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity (or CUSP). The informative blurb is below:
The event marked the launch of the new book by Prof Graham Smith, Chair of the Foundation and Director of the Centre for the Study of Democracy at the University of Westminster.
In his book ‘Can Democracy Safeguard the Future?’ (Polity, 2021), Graham asks why democracies repeatedly fail to safeguard the future. He sets out ways of reshaping legislatures and argues that forms of participatory and deliberative politics should be at the centre of the democratic response to protecting the interests of future generations.
The publication comes at a critical time when the policy window may be more than “slightly ajar”. The Foundation is intent on using this moment to contribute to the momentum for change that is evident through such developments as the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act in Wales, the proposals led by Lord Bird and Caroline Lucas MP for similar legislation in Westminster and the forms of participatory democracy such as climate assemblies.
The launch event will be an opportunity to engage with Graham and leading activists—including Indra Adnan, Nitasha Kaul and Jonathon Porritt—on these key themes, with the intention to establish work streams that take the case for change forward and build the momentum needed to force open the policy window.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Prof Graham Smith is Professor of Politics and Director of the Centre for the Study of Democracy (CSD) in the School of Social Sciences, and chair of the FDSD; he is the author of the book we are launching with this event: ‘Can Democracy Safeguard the Future?’ (Polity, 2021). https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Can+Democ...
Indra Adnan is Founder of The Alternative UK, a psycho-social therapist and international consultant on Soft Power. Her most recent book The Politics of Waking Up: Power and Possibility in the Fractal Age is out on Perspectiva Press, June 2021.
Dr Nitasha Kaul is a novelist, politics & international relations academic, economist, and poet. Links to her books, articles, and public interventions on democracy, political economy, feminist and postcolonial theory, India, Kashmir, and Bhutan are at http://nitashakaul.com
Jonathon Porritt is a ‘veteran campaigner’ and eminent writer, broadcaster and commentator on sustainable development. He is a co-founder of Forum for the Future, his most recent book is called Hope in Hell—A decade to confront the climate emergency (Simon & Schuster, 2020). http://www.jonathonporritt.com/hope-i...
The evening was chaired by Peter Davies, FDSD trustee, and Wales’ first Sustainable Futures Commissioner. He played a lead role in the development of the Wellbeing of Future Generations (Wales) Act, particularly through leading the national conversation on the Wales we Want.