During political transitions, activists sometimes have an opportunity to “cross over” into government so they can advance democratic reform from within as elected or appointed officials. What do they need to know? How do they prepare themselves for shifting from civil society activism to governance? By sharing experiences and knowledge, the Crossover Initiative empowers activists who are entering, or have recently entered, government in overcoming challenges they face.

Twenty years ago, over 400 democrats gathered in New Delhi, India to form the World Movement for Democracy. The Movement was designed to be flexible and adaptable to the time’s most pressing challenges to democracy. Check out what we have achieved over the last 20 years with our timeline of the Movement.

In order for democracy movements to remain growing and vibrant in future years, the voices of youth democracy activists must be reflected in the movements. We’ve invited youth members of our network from different parts of the world to share their ideas and hopes through videos they’ve directed and filmed.

Explore their diverse points of view in the Youth Voices video series.

In a new video series, we speak with the families and friends of political prisoners in Azerbaijan and Venezuela who have been imprisoned for their work as activists, journalists, and human rights defenders. Join us in calling to #SetThemFree by sharing their stories with your networks.

In an age of threats to the rights of assembly, association, and expression, the World Movement highlights recent successes that civil society has achieved in defending these rights in three countries: Ethiopia, Guatemala, and Nigeria.

Yiaga Africa and the African Movement for Democracy, with the support of the World Movement for Democracy, have released the “Music as a Messenger of Democracy” album. This pan-African effort, featuring musicians from Senegal, Mali, The Gambia, Togo, Nigeria, and Benin, uses music to inspire youth to become civically active, and speaks to themes like good governance, corruption, and peace.

During our “Battle of Narratives: Building Public Support for Democratic Renewal” event, in partnership with International Idea and the National Endowment for Democracy, civil society leaders discussed how to develop pro-democracy narratives that will appeal to people across regions, cultures, and generations.

At the “Women Deliver Forum,” convened by Future In Our Hands, the World Movement, and CIPE in Banjul, The Gambia, participants discussed ways that the business sector, government, and civil society organizations can work together to truly empower women. It’s part of a series of forums exploring how democracy can deliver concrete results for all its citizens.

The World Movement convened a group of online media experts, activists, and scholars to discuss the problem of “infodemics”—a pattern of rapidly spreading outbreaks of misinformation. Since the phenomenon has become even more urgent during the COVID-19 pandemic, with increases in its frequency and also the seriousness of its real world impacts, the panelists explored concrete tactics that can be used to contain the start of an infodemic.

The World Movement aims to strengthen inclusive democratic governance. We facilitate engagement among emerging leaders from civil society and political parties and help to build effective partnerships between civil society, government, and the private sector. To that end we launched an initiative with CIPE and the US Chamber of Commerce in Burkina Faso, to enhance private sector, civil society, and government collaboration.

The next generation of democratic leadership plays a crucial role in sustaining and advancing democracy.  We believe in the importance of inter-generational dialogue and facilitate the exchange of ideas and experiences between seasoned leaders and emerging leaders. Through our Hurford Youth Fellowship we empower young activists by helping deepen their understanding of challenges of democracy and linking them with leaders of numerous democracy movements.

Worldwide, freedoms are increasingly restricted for people who wish to voice their concerns, come together, and address those concerns by engaging stakeholders. In both physical and digital spaces, they face limitations on where they can meet, how they can interact, and what they can say or do. One of our many initiatives to reverse this trend is the Access to Resources Hub, which offers a set of tools to help activists protect their right to access resources.