Networking session: “Antidotes to populism: connecting people and politics”
9 November 2017 - 14.30-18.00 / Blue Restaurant, Palais de l’Europe
No interpretation
People are attracted to authoritarian and demagogic populists when they feel powerless, when elites don’t listen and the political system doesn’t meet their needs. To address the causes of populism, people need more power over their conditions of life and a political system that meets their needs.
This networking session enables participants to share experiences, projects and ideas to create an action plan to strengthen democratic participation as an antidote to authoritarian populism. It is also a chance to work more closely and make connections with other participants.
Titus ALEXANDER
Founder of Democracy Matters
United Kingdom
Titus Alexander is founder of Democracy Matters, the alliance for learning practical politics, and author of Pedagogy of Power: Learning for Democracy (Institute of Education Press 2016), the first textbook for teaching practical political skills. He is developing an advanced apprenticeship in Leading Social Change, to start in 2018. Titus has worked on education for change with local communities across the UK, as director of learning with The Scarman Trust. He was a local government officer, schools inspector and grassroots activist for many years. Other publications include Campaigning is OK!, Learning Power (Campaign for Learning 2007), Family Learning: foundation of effective education (Demos 1997), Citizenship Schools: a practical guide to education for citizenship and personal develop, and Unravelling Global Apartheid: An overview of world politics (Polity 1996).
Cédric BISCHETTI
Makers for change
France
Valentina CORBUCCI
Ars for Progress
Italy
Project Manager at A.R.S. for Progress, she is in charge of the YouthMetre project as coordinator of the network of “Young Multipliers”. She has several experiences in projects design and management with NGOs working on the field of women empowerment, social inclusion and microfinance. She also carried out jobs in communication and research for the UN Agency for Communication and Public Information as well as with the EU Microfinance Network in Brussels. She holds two Master degree: International Relations and Diplomatic Affairs, Microfinance.
Prof. Dr Rafael DE MIGUEL
EUROGEO/University of Zaragoza
Spain
Geographer, holds two Ph.D. (urban planning, geographical education). Associate Professor, Faculty of Education, University of Zaragoza, where he is Executive Associate Dean for International Programs and Director of Confucius Institute. His researches are focused on advocacy urban planning, geography education, spatial citizenship and global understanding. Vice-President of EUROGEO, leads YouthMetre e-tool, an innovative open data portal to empower youth democracy, to create dialogue between youth and policy makers. He is representative of EUROGEO at United Nations Economic and Social Council NGO’s Committee. And also member of UN-HABITAT GAP, a initiative to support stakeholders' engagement to Habitat III and UN New Urban Agenda.
Gerhard ERMISCHER
Civilscape
Germany
Born 1963 in Salzburg (Austria) he did study history and archaeology in Innsbruck (Austria) and Southampton (UK). He worked as city archaeologist and museum curator in Aschaffenburg (Germany) since 1991 and left the civil service to fully commit himself to an association he had founded in 1998 to research and communicate the landscape of the Spessart region with civil engagement, which is now also an institute at the University of Würzburg. He has been working with the Council of Europe on the European Landscape Convention since 2001 and is a founding member of Civilscape, the umbrella organization for NGOs dealing with landscape, which he represents at the Conference of iNGOs.
Alfiia KAZARGULOVA
National Youth Council of Russia
Russian Federation
Moscow State Institute of International Relations alumna, International Law Faculty, International Public Law Department - International Programs Coordinator, National Youth Council of Russia - Russian-German Youth Forum Coordinator - Asian Youth Forum Coordinator - Volunteering
Jonas KRISCHKE
University of Münster
Luc MARTENS
Municipal Councilor of Roeselare, Director of the Institute for Political Development
Belgium
Luc Martens has a master’s degree in classical philology (1967). He worked for 10 years as a teacher and became director of the Institute for Political Development in 1979. Later he later became Deputy General Secretary of the CVP. In 1989 he was Deputy Cabinet Director at the Flemish Minister of Education. From 1991 he became a member of the Senate and member of the Flemish Parliament (until 2007). From 1995 to 1999 he was Flemish Minister of Culture, Family and Welfare and “Shadow Minister” of Education. Mid-2005 he became Mayor of Roeselare (62,000 inhabitants) and also chairman of the Association of Flemish Cities and Towns, vice-chairman of the CEMR and member of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe. Meanwhile, he is still very active as a member of the board of various societies in the sphere of energy, mobility, heritage. He is the author of various books.
Olga NILOVA
National Youth Council of Russia
Russian Federation
Head of the International Department at the National Youth Council of Russia - Junior Lecturer at MGIMO-University, delivering research-led teaching course “UN Studies” - PhD student at MGIMO-University, Political Sciences - Member of the United Nations Major Group for Children and Youth - Online-volunteer of the United Nations - Official Delegate at the European Youth Forum - Official delegate at the Great Silk Way International Youth Union - Head of the “SDG Youth Champions” and “Youth Delegates” all-Russia programs - No Hate Speech Campaign Activist
Anthony PAPADIMITRIU
Café Babel
Belgium