GID 2022
Members of U.S. Congress and Members of Parliament from around the world meet in the Capitol building for Global Innovations in Democracy Parliamentary Exchange, Nov. 16, 2022.
GID 2022 participants outside the U.S. Capitol
In November 2022, IDEA and its partner, the National Conference on Citizenship, convened the first Global Innovations in Democracy: Parliamentary Exchange (GID) in Washington, D.C. Parliamentary delegations from Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Ireland, and the United Kingdom joined members of the U.S. House of Representatives for two days of discussions. The exchange focused on innovations in deliberative democracy and how they could help lawmakers rebuild trust in democratic institutions.
Workshop at American University
On November 15, 2022, the members of Parliament, their staff, and sponsoring civil society organizations attended a workshop hosted by American University's Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies. Participants shared lessons from initiatives including the Conference on the Future of Europe, online participatory budgeting in Brazil, IDEA's Deliberative Town Halls, and other innovations.
Parliamentary exchange at the U.S. Capitol
On November 16, 2022, the delegations met with members of Congress at the U.S. Capitol. Rep. David Price, then chair of the House Democracy Partnership, spoke about U.S. efforts to aid democracies around the world.
Rep. David Price welcomed the chance to hear about efforts to strengthen democracy “not just during elections but between elections.”
Other members of Congress described their efforts to engage authentically with constituents and advocate for them, despite extreme polarization and incentives to disparage democratic institutions for short-term gain. Representatives from the other delegations described the challenges in their own countries and the democratic innovations designed to preserve and rebuild trust in democracy.
Recognition in Congress
After the events, Rep. Ed Perlmutter of Colorado recognized GID during a meeting of the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress as a great opportunity to learn about international best practices for strengthening Congress as an institution.
Reports and further reading
GID 2022 Background Briefing and Agenda | Download PDF
Global Innovations in Democracy: Parliamentary Exchange, IDEA’s main GID page.
GID 2024, IDEA’s page on the second exchange.
Global Innovations in Democracy, the official GID website.