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Summit for Democracy 2021

Democracy doesn’t happen by accident.
We have to defend it, fight for it, strengthen it, renew it.
President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
February 2021 

The December 2021 Summit

On December 9-10, 2021, President Biden hosted a virtual summit for leaders from government, civil society, and the private sector. The summit focused on challenges and opportunities facing democracies and provided a platform for leaders to announce both individual and collective commitments, reforms, and initiatives to defend democracy and human rights at home and abroad. 

For the United States, the summit offered an opportunity to listen, learn, and engage with a diverse range of actors whose support and commitment is critical for global democratic renewal. It also showcased one of democracy’s unique strengths: the ability to acknowledge its imperfections and confront them openly and transparently, so that we may, as the United States Constitution puts it, “form a more perfect union.” 

In advance of the first summit, we consulted with experts from government, multilateral organizations, philanthropies, civil society, and the private sector to solicit bold, practicable ideas around three key themes: 

  1. Defending against authoritarianism 
  2. Addressing and fighting corruption 
  3. Promoting respect for human rights 

Leaders were encouraged to announce specific actions and commitments to meaningful internal reforms and international initiatives that advance the Summit’s goals. These pledges include domestic and international initiatives that counter authoritarianism, combat corruption, and promote respect for human rights. Together, the United States and our partners announced more than 750 commitments at the first Summit. Civil society was represented on panels and in townhalls as a part of the official program. Their inclusion was based on a variety of factors including geographic representation, political context, and subject matter expertise. 

During this Year of Action, the United States and our partners – including governments, civil society, foundations, and the private sector – are actively engaged in implementing our commitments to ensure that democracies are delivering for the needs of our people. 

Four people including two children speaking into microphones around a table.Young people in San Vicente de Caguán, Colombia speak to a local radio program about how youth are preserving historical memory through arts and communications. (Photo by: Katherine Ko, ACDI/VOCA, licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0)

Official Events

All times Eastern Standard Time (EST).

November 16-17, 2021

Anticorruption Technology Roundtable  

Harnessing the Power of Innovative Technology and New Models of Public-Private Collaboration. On November 16, 2021, the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes (TFFC), partnered with AIR – Alliance for Innovative Regulation and Accountability Lab – to hold the Anticorruption Solutions Through Emerging Technologies (ASET) Roundtable. The roundtable was the first U.S.-hosted Summit for Democracy side event and brought together 250 leaders and experts across sectors to explore bold, yet practicable, ideas in the application of technology to combat corruption.

December 2, 2021

House Democracy Partnership: Inter-Parliamentary 

December 2 at 8:00 am
Parliamentary Leadership Session: Addressing Global Threats to Democracy through Empowered and Effective Legislative Institutions. The House Democracy Partnership (HDP) will host the Legislative Track of the Summit, specifically designed for members of the legislature to provide an opportunity for reform-oriented peers to come together across cultures and countries to connect and learn more about their shared responsibilities and democratic practices. Lawmakers will engage on the Summit’s three commitments – Countering Corruption, Curbing Authoritarianism, and Safeguarding Human Rights – from their unique perspective as national representatives of the people.

House Democracy Partnership: Inter-Parliamentary 

December 2 at 9:00 am 
Session Discussion I: Curbing Authoritarianism through Strong Legislatures and the Defense of Democratic Institutions and Principles

Models for Increasing Data Access for Researchers, Co-hosted with the Institute for Strategic Dialogue

December 2 at 11:00 am
Closed Session. The ability of researchers and the broader public to understand the online information ecosystem, and how information moves within it, remains limited.  The Institute for Strategic Dialogue will bring together experts on the issue of data provision from online platforms for research–including scholars and public and private sector experts from government, the tech industry, and civil society–to exchange best practices, discuss challenges from existing models for data access, and chart the path forward for new and emerging possibilities.

December 3, 2021

Build Back Better World Digital Connectivity Showcase 

December 3 at 7:00 am
During this session, participants will hear the governments of Colombia and Ghana about the opportunities and challenges to closing the digital divide in developing countries. The United States, the European Commission and other countries will also showcase digital connectivity programming under the G7’s B3W program and related initiatives. 

House Democracy Partnership: Inter-Parliamentary 

December 3 at 8:00 am
Session Discussion II: Advancing Integrity through Parliaments – How Parliaments Can Lead the Fight Against Corruption and Kleptocracy

Disability-Inclusive Democracy in Action: Opportunities and Challenges, Co-hosted with Norway and the United Kingdom 

December 3 at 9:00 am
Co-hosted by Norway, the United Kingdom, and U.S, this virtual event will bring together more than 100 leaders and experts across sectors to explore innovative approaches and common challenges to disability-inclusive democracy globally.  

December 6, 2021

Mayors Delivering Democracy Daily, Co-hosted with Germany, the Netherlands, the German Marshall Fund, and the Global Parliament of Mayors  

December 6 at 8:00 am
This session seeks to highlight the importance of cities and subnational governments for the renewal of democracy worldwide through a showcase for mayors’ democratic innovations, a mayors’ exchange program, and a democracy declaration. A diverse group of mayors will highlight their experiences in leading action for global policy development and change around the most pressing issues facing democracy today, including corruption, climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, authoritarianism, and social inequity.

Defending Democracies against Disinformation, Co-hosted with the United Kingdom

December 6 at 8:00 am
Closed Session. This event, co-hosted with the United Kingdom, will focus on best practices for addressing disinformation and advancing an open and transparent information system.  The event will feature panels focused on 1) media literacy 2) lessons learned from fighting the COVID infodemic and 3) the role of public-private partnerships in tackling disinformation.

Advocates for Democracy in Closed Spaces  

December 6, 2021, 10 am
Civil society organizations and other democratic actors are on the front lines in the battle for democracy around the world. In countries either sliding back or moving toward authoritarianism, human rights defenders, entrepreneurs, journalists, legal advocates, and many other reform-minded activists organize, publicize, and push back against efforts to manipulate the judicial system, corrupt elections, and shut down dissent. Yet they also look to engage the government when windows of democratic opportunity appear to emerge. In authoritarian regimes, showing extraordinary courage, these reformers carefully and often under pressure–facing trial, prison, psychological pressure, and physical and digital attacks against them and their families–persist in promoting democratic change in their countries. Many, forced from their countries, continue their efforts in exile. CSOs also continue their work despite the growth of NGO laws and norms designed explicitly to make their democracy and development work difficult or illegal or force them to self-censor through labyrinthian, opaque requirements. They often have no choice but to rely heavily on international donor assistance, which can ultimately be used against them by repressive governments. The courage of these actors and the importance of their work demands worldwide attention.

Advancing Inclusion and Democracy: The Participation of LGBTQI+ Persons, Co-hosted with Cabo Verde and Sweden

December 6 at 1:00 pm
This event, co-hosted by Sweden and Cabo Verde, will launch an ambitious new mechanism: GLIDE (Global LGBTQI+ Inclusive Democratic and Empowerment Fund), as well as a number of other initiatives to build support for the inclusion of LGBTQI+ persons in democratic institutions and political processes.

December 7, 2021

Democracy Delivers Development 

December 7 at 7:00 am
The focus of the session is democracies working in partnership to deliver development results. The session will showcase democracies where Millennium Challenge Corporation’s grant assistance and country’s own leadership and reform agenda has made a significant impact in reducing poverty through economic growth. The United States will join a panel of developing country leaders to highlight practical cases of how a commitment to accountable and democratic governance has contributed to delivering development results across countries, and how various countries partnered to strengthen (or leverage) their democratic institutions and reduce poverty through economic growth.

House Democracy Partnership: Inter-Parliamentary 

December 7 at 8:00 am
Session Discussion III: Parliament’s Role to Defend & Safeguard Human Rights – Inclusive Lawmaking, Holding Bad Actors Accountable, Establishing and Protecting Mechanisms to Redress Grievances

Worker Organizations’ Vital Role in Democracy 

December 7 at 8:00 am
This session, chaired by U.S. Secretary of Labor Martin J. Walsh and AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler, together with representatives of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Department of State, the International Trade Union Confederation, and the Solidarity Center, will highlight the role of worker voice and worker rights as fundamental components of democracy; elevate the recommendations made during four listening sessions with labor unions from Asia, Africa, the Americas, and Europe; and spur global action in support of freedom of association and collective bargaining, including through the launch of the Multilateral Partnership for Organizing, Worker Empowerment, and Rights (M-POWER) Initiative.

All Hands on Deck: Innovating Together to Combat Transnational Corruption 

December 7 at 10:00 am
Success in the fight against transnational corruption requires “all hands on deck.” Our response must be as clever, nimble, and globally networked as corruption itself. The Combating Transnational Corruption Grand Challenge will crowdsource, fund, and scale forward-thinking solutions from partners across the globe. This virtual event will introduce the Grand Challenge, highlight past successes, and showcase how innovation and collaboration can be harnessed to combat transnational corruption and organized crime. 

Racial Justice and Equity through Sports Diplomacy

December 7 at 10:00 am
The session will feature four international athletes from four different sports speaking honestly on the realities of systemic racism in sports and our societies, the intersectional challenges faced by women, LGBTQI+ persons, and persons with disabilities, and the ways athletes use their platform to speak up on racial injustice.  

Civil Society-Led Events

There are a wide range of events taking place around the Summit for Democracy that are not part of the official program. This unofficial Summit website was created by civil society for civil society interested in expanding on the topics of the Summit, and is neither an official webpage nor are its contents endorsed by the United States Government.

Schedule

All times Eastern Standard Time (EST). All events were open to public and press unless otherwise indicated, and are available to view at the links below.

Day Zero – December 8, 2021

Watch Recorded Video: All Day Zero Events (English) 
Arabic  Chinese  English + ASL  French  Portuguese  Russian  Spanish 

Media Freedom and Sustainability, Co-hosted with the Netherlands 

6:00 am – 7:00 am
This panel will highlight the importance of media safety, freedom, and sustainability in the health and vitality of democratic societies.  Panelists will discuss how the international community can do to more to protect journalists as well as how to reduce the vulnerability of independent media to closure or economic and political capture. Given the increasing number of challenges journalists face all around the world, is it time to rebuild journalism, not simply as a media sector, but as a piece of essential infrastructure for any functioning democracy? How can we strengthen efforts to ensure independent media can safely report around the world?  What would a New Deal for Journalism look like, and what national and international commitments are required to foster consistently independent, reliable, accessible, and compelling public-interest journalism all around the world?

  • Introductory remarks by Antony Blinken – U.S. Secretary of State
  • Introductory remarks by Ben Knapen – Minister of Foreign Affairs, Netherlands
  • Remarks by Maria Ressa – CEO, Rappler, 2021 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate
  • Remarks by Dmitry Muratov – Editor-in-Chief, Novaya Gazeta, 2021 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate
  • Moderated by Agnes Callamard – Secretary General, Amnesty International
  • Speakers:
    • Sheila Coronel – Director of the Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism, Columbia University
    • Jennifer Avila Reyes – Editor-in-Chief, Contra Corriente
    • Bay Fang – President, Radio Free Asia
    • Sana Safi –  Senior Presenter, BBC News
  • Closing remarks by Mélanie Joly – Minister of Foreign Affairs, Canada

Young Democratic Leaders Discussion 

7:00 am – 8:00 am
The Secretary of State is hosting an online discussion with young leaders from around the world to explore what democracy means to youth, their critical role in promoting democracy, and ways to increase the participation and representation of young people in decision-making processes.  A regionally diverse panel of three young leaders from various parts of the world will be moderated by a representative of the Community of Democracies YouthLeads network, all of whom have worked to increase democratic participation.

  • Moderated by Antony Blinken – U.S. Secretary of State
  • Speakers:
    • Daria Onyshko – Program Officer, Community of Democracies
    • Lynrose Jane Genon – Member, Executive Committee, Young Women Leaders for Peace – Philippines
    • Mwila Chriseddy Bwanga – Founder and Executive Director, BeRelevant Africa
    • Margarita Maira – Advocacy Coordinator, Ahora Nos Toca Participar

Private Sector Forum: Our Business Too: Democracy & Private Enterprise Delivering Together 

8:30 am – 10:30 am
The private sector will participate in a Summit for Democracy constructive dialogue around the symbiotic relationship between business and government, and the roles and responsibilities of each in advancing society-at-large. Executives and thought leaders from across the globe will provide perspectives on the vital relationship between private enterprise and the public sector, as represented by a broad cross-section of business leaders.  To launch a year of action and support for democracy, this forum will highlight three priorities that represent opportunities for business, government, and civil society to work together: (1) Open and Resilient Digital Space; (2) Beneficial Ownership Transparency; and, (3) Democracy that Delivers through Responsible Investment. The specific themes will include principles to architect the dialogue in addition to issuing calls for commitment in the year of action.

  • Hosted by Gina Raimondo – U.S. Secretary of Commerce
  • Speakers:
    • Andrew Wilson – Executive Director, Center for International Private Enterprise
    • Kent Walker – President, Global Affairs & Chief Legal Officer, Google & Alphabet
    • Patrick Collison – CEO, Stripe
PANEL 1: Responsible Investment
  • Moderated by John Brothers – President, T. Rowe Price Foundation
  • Speakers:
    • Lenna Koszarny – Founding Partner and CEO, Horizon Capital
    • Nanette Medved-Po – Founder, Generation Hope
    • Dr. Amy Jadesimi – CEO, LADOL Free Zone
PANEL 2: Beneficial Ownership
  • Moderated by Teresa Jennings – Vice President and Treasurer and Head of Rule of Law Development, LexisNexis Rule of Law Foundation
  • Speakers:
    • Christina Tee – CEO of CAPE EMS Manufacturing, CEO and President, Malaysian International Chamber of Commerce and Industry
    • Melina Cruz – Founder and CEO, Homely
    • Lola Adekanye – Center for International Private Enterprise Ethics First Lead
PANEL 3: Open and Resilient Digital Space
  • Moderated by Dr. Andrea Bonime-Blanc – CEO and Founder, GEC Risk Advisory
  • Speakers:
    • Simoun Ung – President and CEO, Omnipay
    • Rebecca Enonchong – Founding Partner and CEO, AppsTech
    • Michelle Zatlyn – COO and Co-Founder, Cloudflare

Empowering Prosperity: Advancing the Status of Women to Advance the State of Democracy, Co-hosted with Sweden 

11:00 am – 1:00 pm
Co-hosted by the United States and the Government of Sweden, this event will showcase women’s civic and political leadership and participation as central to democratic progress and demonstrate how champions of all gender identities can tackle barriers to gender equality and women’s empowerment.

  • Keynote remarks by Magdalena Andersson – Prime Minister of Sweden
  • Keynote remarks by Ambassador Katherine Tai – U.S. Trade Representative
  • Moderated by Melanne Verveer – Executive Director, Institute for Women, Peace and Security, Georgetown University
  • Closing remarks by Åsa Regnér – Assistant-Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director, UN Women
  • Closing remarks by Ellen Johnson Sirleaf – Former President of Liberia
PANEL 1: Championing Women’s Political and Civic Participation and Leadership as the Lifeblood of Democracy
  • Speakers:
    • Nelly Mutti – Speaker, National Assembly of Zambia
    • Patricia Zanella – Hurford Youth Fellow, National Endowment for Democracy
    • May Sabe Phyu – Activist
PANEL 2: Breaking Down Barriers: Countering Gender-Based Violence in all its Forms
  • Speakers:
    • Bafana Khumalo – Co-Founder, Sonke Gender Justice & Men Engage Global Alliance
    • Danica Roem – State Delegate, Virginia House of Delegates
    • Seo Ji-hyun – Special Prosecutor Chief, Digital Sex Crimes Response Task Force Team, Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Korea

Panel Discussion on Democracy-Affirming Technology: How Innovation Can Be Used to Support Democratic Values 

1:00 pm – 2:15 pm
Since the optimism of the early Internet age, where many thought that new technologies would be liberalizing by their very nature, authoritarians have been hard at work making technology work for autocracy. And today, democracies face pressing questions about the role of technology in democratic life. It’s an untested proposition whether technologies built with democratic values at their core — “democracy-affirming technology” — can be as powerful, profitable, or even as entertaining as those which threaten to undermine rules-based governance today. Innovation around democracy affirming technologies seeks to test that proposition. This virtual side event will focus on technologies that asymmetrically advantage democratic values. It will explore the inner workings of such technologies, how they can be used to defend against digital authoritarianism, and how they can be productively harnessed and governed through global democratic cooperation.

  • Introductory remarks by Jeppe Kofod – Minister of Foreign Affairs, Denmark
  • Opening remarks by Dr. Eric Lander – Director, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy
  • Moderated by Jeanne Meserve – Journalist
  • Speakers: 
    • Rt. Hon. Nadine Dorries – MP, Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Government of the United Kingdom
    • Dr. Roya Ensafi – Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Michigan
    • Rami Nakhla – Senior Manager of Public Affairs and Impact, Truepic
    • ‘Gbenga Sesan – Executive Director, Paradigm Initiative

Panel Discussion: A Conversation on the Future of the Internet 

2:15 pm – 3:00 pm
This event will be a moderated panel discussion about the future of the Internet, including the challenges of today, what organizations are doing about it, and how governments, civil society and other stakeholders can work together to reaffirm a commitment to an open, interoperable, reliable, and secure Internet.

  • Moderated by Rebecca MacKinnon – Vice President, Global Advocacy, Wikimedia Foundation
  • Speakers:
    • Anriette Esterhuysen – Chair, Multistakeholder Advisory Group, UN Internet Governance Forum
    • Nina Vaskunlahti – Under-Secretary of State for External Economic Relations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Finland
    • Tim Wu – Special Assistant to the President for Technology and Competition Policy

Voices of Political Prisoners, Co-hosted with Lithuania 

3:00 pm – 4:00 pm
This official side event complements the Summit for Democracy by highlighting the plight of political prisoners and underlining the need for increased international collaboration to press for their release. The virtual, hour-long event, opened by Secretary Blinken, will feature remarks from family members and advocates of those imprisoned for the peaceful exercise of their human rights and those imprisoned solely for their ethnicity or identity. A formal political prisoner will also speak. In addition, an expert on successful interventions will share insights into what interested governments can do on behalf of political prisoners.

  • Introductory Remarks by Antony Blinken – U.S. Secretary of State
  • Introductory Remarks by Gabrielius Landsbergis – Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lithuania
  • Moderated by Uzra Zeya – U.S. Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights
  • Speakers: 
    • Tatsiana Khomich – Viktar Babaryka Team, Coordination Council
    • Rayhan Asat – Human Rights Lawyer and Yale World Fellow
    • Victoria Cardenas – Spouse of political prisoner in Nicaragua
    • Dr. Peter Biar Ajak – Revive South Sudan
    • Jeremy Weinstein – Professor, Stanford University

Day One – December 9, 2021

View the Official Interventions, in which participating delegations shared their vision for strengthening democracy. See the schedule of Official Interventions that were broadcast on Day One.

Opening Remarks 

8:00 am – 8:15 am

  • Remarks by President Joe Biden

Leaders’ Plenary Session

8:15 am – 9:15 am  (closed door)

  • Hosted by President Joe Biden

Leaders’ Plenary Session

9:15 am – 10:15 am  (closed door)

  • Hosted by Ursula von der Leyen – President of the European Commission

Remarks – Bolstering Democratic Resilience

10:30 am – 10:45 am

  • Remarks by Jacinda Ardern – Prime Minister of New Zealand
  • Remarks by Mary Kay Henry – International President, Service Employees International Union

Panel Discussion – Bolstering Democratic Resilience: Building Back Better Together from COVID-19 

10:45 am – 11:45 am

  • Hosted by Antony Blinken – U.S. Secretary of State
  • Moderated by Enrique Acevedo – Correspondent, CBS
  • Speakers: 
    • Nana Akufo-Addo – President of Ghana
    • Silvia Hernández Sánchez – President of the Legislative Assembly, Costa Rica
    • Yvonne Aki-Sawyer – Mayor of Freetown, Sierra Leone
    • Violeta Bermudez – Former Prime Minister, Peru
    • Douglas Rutzen – President, International Center for Not-for-Profit Law

Inter-Session Remarks 

11:45 am – 12:00 pm

  • Remarks by Juan Guaido – Interim President of Venezuela

Remarks – Preventing and Countering Corruption 

12:00 pm – 12:15 pm

  • Remarks by Maia Sandu – President of Moldova
  • Remarks by Mo Ibrahim – Chairman, Mo Ibrahim Foundation

Panel Discussion – Preventing and Countering Corruption 

12:15 pm – 1:15 pm

  • Hosted by Janet Yellen – U.S. Secretary of the Treasury
  • Moderated by Andrea Mitchell – Chief Washington Correspondent and Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent, NBC
  • Speakers: 
    • Mokgweetsi Masisi – President of Botswana
    • Zuzana Čaputová – President of Slovakia
    • Paul Radu – Investigative Journalist, Co-founder, Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project
    • Reuben Lifuka – Vice Chair, Transparency International, Zambia
    • Diana Salazar – Attorney General, Ecuador
    • Daria Kaleniuk – Executive Director, Anti-Corruption Action Centre, Ukraine

Remarks by Republican and Democratic Governors 

1:15 pm – 1:25 pm

  • Remarks by Phil Scott – Governor of Vermont
  • Remarks by Janet Mills – Governor of Maine

Closing Remarks 

1:25 pm – 1:35 pm

  • Remarks by Vice President Kamala Harris

Day Two – December 10, 2021

View the Official Interventions, in which participating delegations shared their vision for strengthening democracy. See the schedule of Official Interventions that were broadcast on Day Two.

Opening Remarks 

6:00 am – 6:05 am

  • Remarks by António Guterres – Secretary-General of the United Nations

Remarks – Protecting Human Rights 

6:05 am – 6:20 am

  • Remarks by Magdalena Andersson – Prime Minister of Sweden
  • Remarks by Dr. Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein – President and CEO, International Peace Institute

Panel Discussion – Expanding Civic Space: Empowering Human Rights Defenders and Independent Media Within and Across Borders 

6:20 am – 7:30 am

  • Hosted by Samantha Power – Administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development
  • Moderated by Damon Wilson – President and CEO, National Endowment for Democracy
  • Speakers: 
    • Luis Rodolfo Abinader Corona – President of the Dominican Republic
    • Lazarus Chakwera – President of Malawi
    • Sherrilyn Ifill – President, NAACP Legal Defense Fund
    • Irene Khan – UN Special Rapporteur on Promotion and Protection of Freedom of Opinion and Expression
    • Swe Win – Editor-in-Chief, Myanmar Now
    • Mohamed Zaree – Egypt Director, Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies

Inter-Session Remarks 

7:30 am – 7:45 am

  • Remarks by Nathan Law of Hong Kong

Remarks – Strengthening Democracy and Defending Against Authoritarianism 

7:45 am – 8:00 am

  • Remarks by Gitanas Nausėda – President of Lithuania
  • Remarks by Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya of Belarus

Panel Discussion – Protecting Democratic Institutions: Elections, the Rule of Law, and a Resilient Information Space 

8:00 am – 9:00 am

  • Hosted by Linda Thomas-Greenfield – U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations
  • Moderated by Dr. Anne-Marie Slaughter – CEO, New America
  • Speakers:
    • Hakainde Hichilema – President of Zambia
    • Kaja Kallas – Prime Minister of Estonia
    • Attahiru Muhammadu Jega – former Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission, Nigeria
    • Hina Jilani – Member of the Elders
    • Jessikka Aro – Investigative Journalist, Finnish Broadcasting Service
    • Nicholas Opiyo – Executive Director and Lead Attorney, Chapter Four Uganda

Remarks – Technology for Democracy 

9:15 am – 9:30 am

  • Remarks by Mette Frederiksen – Prime Minister of Denmark
  • Remarks by Brad Smith – President and Vice Chair, Microsoft Corporation

Panel Discussion – Countering Digital Authoritarianism and Affirming Democratic Values 

9:30 am – 10:30 am

  • Hosted by Samantha Power – Administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development
  • Moderated by Thomas Carothers – Harvey F. Fineberg Chair for Democracy Studies and Senior Vice President, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
  • Speakers:
    • Egils Levits – President of Latvia
    • Audrey Tang – Digital Minister, Taiwan (watch Minister Tang’s full intervention)
    • Eileen Donahoe – Global Digital Policy Incubator, Stanford University Cyber Policy Center
    • Samir Saran – President, Observer Research Foundation
    • Nanjira Sambuli – Ford Global Fellow & Technology and International Affairs Fellow, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
    • Manuel Muniz – Provost, IE University

Youth Town Hall 

Meet the Youth Town Hall participants.

12:15 pm – 1:15 pm

  • Hosted by Linda Thomas-Greenfield – U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations

Closing Remarks 

1:30 pm – 1:45 pm

  • Remarks by President Joe Biden

Official Interventions

Participating delegations shared their vision for strengthening democracy through Summit for Democracy Official Interventions, linked below:

View the list of invited participants to the Summit for Democracy

Tags

Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Summit for Democracy

U.S. Department of State

The Lessons of 1989: Freedom and Our Future