The Cross-Regional Democracy Collective
A scholars’ network reimagining democracy across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East
Democracy Is Being Reimagined
Around the world, democracy is under strain. Inequality, exclusion, collusion between political and economic elites, and attacks on democratic institutions are driving widespread disillusionment, especially among younger generations. For many, democracy appears unable to deliver on its promises or respond to the political, social, and economic realities of everyday life.
The Cross-Regional Democracy Collective is a global platform bringing together scholars from Africa, Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East to reimagine democracy from the perspectives of the Global South. We amplify ideas, research, and lived experiences that challenge narrow paradigms and open new pathways toward more inclusive, just, and meaningful democratic futures.
What We Do
Elevate Global South ideas
We showcase democratic thinking rooted in local histories, political traditions, and lived experience — moving beyond Western-centric frameworks to broaden the global democratic imagination.
Build cross-regional thought leadership
We connect scholars across regions to generate new research, comparative insights, and shared frameworks that speak to global democratic renewal.
Translate ideas for wider audiences
We turn research into accessible essays, podcasts, videos, and visual explainers designed to engage young people, civil society, media, and decision-makers.
Create spaces for dialogue and exchange
Through webinars, workshops, and public conversations, we bring scholars into dialogue with youth leaders, practitioners, policymakers, artists, and funders.
Why Global South Leadership Matters
Democratic renewal cannot be imported. Across Africa, Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East, communities have long histories of collective decision-making, accountability, and political innovation—often ignored or marginalized in global debates.
At a moment of democratic erosion and geopolitical fragmentation, these traditions, critiques, and experiments are not peripheral, but essential. Reimagining democracy requires plural visions, grounded alternatives, and leadership from the regions where democracy is actively being contested and reshaped.
Our Focus
Our work explores questions such as:
Can democratic values—dignity, voice, equality, and accountability—be separated from formal democratic systems, and how are Global South societies putting these values into practice?
How can ancestral, indigenous, and non-Western democratic traditions inform contemporary governance?
What alternatives to extractive political and economic models are compatible with inclusive and sustainable democracy?
How can universities and knowledge institutions in the Global South function as sites of democratic resistance, imagination, and contestation under authoritarian pressure?
How are young people in Africa, Latin America, and Asia redefining democracy and political participation?
Scholars collaboratively prioritize these themes based on shared interests.
Join the Conversation
The Cross-Regional Democracy Collective is an open, collaborative platform.
We invite scholars, students, practitioners, journalists, artists, and engaged citizens—especially young people—to explore, question, and help shape new ways of thinking about democracy. Get involved by engaging with our research and conversations, sharing feedback on publications and events, joining public dialogues, contributing writing or multimedia content, or partnering with us on research, outreach, and dissemination.
About the Platform
The Cross-Regional Democracy Collective is convened by the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University and is designed to become an independent, South-led platform advancing global democratic renewal.