Confronting the Challenges to Democracy in the 21st Century

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Building the Network of Democracy Research Institutes

• Many institutions face difficulties in securing adequate financial support for conducting and disseminating their research.
• Many institutions need to improve the interactions among research and academic institutions, civil society activists, and policy makers. At present, important research often does not reach the relevant consumers, while research activities and programs do not benefit from feedback based on the experiences of activists and policy makers.
• Independent research institutions need to improve their relationships with research centers affiliated with political parties, labor unions, and other organizations, while also maintaining the distinctive identities of each type of institution.
• Many institutions produce research focusing on short-term issues or immediate crises and, as a result, their policy prescriptions suffer from a lack of long-term focus.

• The Network should try to find ways to bridge two related gaps: between research institutions and activists, on the one hand, and between research institutions and policy makers, on the other. The participants recommended improving the interactions and dialogue among these actors through the creation of new channels for sharing their respective experiences on a regular basis.
• The Network should also create incentives to increase focus on the following:
  • comparative studies
  • longer-term prospects for democracy
  • cross-country analysis
• Recognizing the need to improve the sharing of research findings and interaction among research institutions, the participants recommended that the Network of Democracy Research Institutes create or expand the following:
  • an electronic newsletter highlighting publications, conferences, and member activities;
  • an exchange visitors program among the member institutions;
  • regular exchanges not only of publications but of research methods, project ideas, and opportunities for cross-regional cooperation;
  • the use of electronic means to disseminate publications, project information, research opportunities, and project links;
  • the translation of selected publications and publication abstracts into the local languages of member institutions.
• The Network of Democracy Research Institutes will be successful only if member institutions participate actively and share their ideas and research with each other on a regular basis.