Diamonstein-Spielvogel Project on the Future of Democracy
Project Overview
Democratic government has been regressing across the globe for more than a decade. Even the United States, the world’s oldest continuous democracy, has seen its democratic norms and practices eroded by rising inequality, populism, political polarization, institutional decay, and misinformation. Other current democracies teeter on the verge of becoming autocracies, potentially producing tectonic shifts in global power and exacerbating economic inequality and social tensions. And the COVID19 pandemic threatens to accelerate these trends.
The Diamonstein-Spielvogel Project on the Future of Democracy at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) aims to identify threats to the health of democracies around the globe and to recommend steps that policymakers, business leaders, civil society organizations, and citizens can take to reverse the erosion of democratic norms and values.
This project is made possible by the generous support of the Diamonstein-Spielvogel Foundation.
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Gruesome “Blasphemy” Killing Brings Nigeria’s Long-Running Ethno-Religious Divide Into Sharp FocusThe brutal murder of college sophomore evokes conflicting visions of citizenship and political identity in Nigeria.
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The Nigerian State Is the Greatest Threat to Nigerian DemocracyAs the race for the Nigerian presidency takes shape, the fate of Nigeria itself hangs in the balance.
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Ferdinand Marcos Jr Appears to Have Won Convincingly: Here’s What That Means for the PhilippinesMarcos Jr's decisive victory would change the political landscape in the Philippines.
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A Stronger U.S.-Tanzania Relationship Would Be Mutually BeneficialPresident Hassan's emphasis on economic growth and political liberalization in Tanzania are especially compelling to the United States in the context of a generally troubled East Africa.
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Democracy and Voting RightsCarol Anderson, Charles Howard Candler professor of African American studies at Emory University, and Michael Li, senior counsel at New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice, discuss race, equ…
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CFR Fellows' Book Launch Series With Yascha MounkA democracy has never succeeded in being both diverse and equal. Yet, treating members of many different ethnic or religious groups fairly is central to the democratic project in countries around the world. It is, Yascha Mounk argues, the greatest experiment of our time. In The Great Experiment: Why Diverse Democracies Fall Apart and How They Can Endure, Mounk examines how diverse societies have long suffered from the ills of domination, fragmentation, or structured anarchy and shows that the past can offer crucial insights for how to do better in the future. The CFR Fellows’ Book Launch series highlights new books by CFR fellows. This meeting is part of the Diamonstein-Spielvogel Project on the Future of Democracy.
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The Future of Diverse Democracies, With Yascha MounkYascha Mounk, senior fellow at CFR and professor of the practice of international affairs at Johns Hopkins University, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the challenges that ethnically, racially, and religiously diverse democracies face. This episode is part of the Council on Foreign Relations’ Diamonstein-Spielvogel Project on the Future of Democracy.
Experts

Senior Fellow for Global Health, Economics, and Development and Director of the Global Health Program

Eni Enrico Mattei Senior Fellow for Middle East and Africa Studies and Director of the International Affairs Fellowship for Tenured International Relations Scholars

Vice President, Deputy Director of Studies, and Nelson and David Rockefeller Senior Fellow for Latin America Studies

James H. Binger Senior Fellow in Global Governance and Director of the International Institutions and Global Governance Program
All CFR Work on Democracy
To see all work on democracy from the Council on Foreign Relations, please click here.