The old aspiration? Independence.
The new reality: Interdependence.
Every challenge we face today from climate and crime to technology and markets, and communications and public health is global in character. Yet the institutions of democracy we rely on to address these challenges are still locked up inside sovereign states pursuing the old logic of independence. But in an interdependent world of diseases without borders, we also need citizens without borders – democracy without borders. Which means if we are to survive interdependence and flourish in liberty, we must either globalize democracy or democratize globalization. Read more in a short essay titled Why Interdependence by Dr. Benjamin Barber.
Our 2010 Berlin Interdependence Day Forum and Celebration was an engaging and thought-provoking gathering, and with Youth Summit participants from the The Gathering for Justice, the Brotherhood/SisterSol, the W. Haywood Burns Institute, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy and many other individuals, we are moving toward a transnational network that can help achieve a real change in civic consciousness, increasing the possibility global democracy and justice as we help to secure conditions in which we can confront problems without borders by forging citizens without borders.
We thank Haus der Kulturen der Welt, RADIALSYSTEM V, the Hertie School of Governance, the Embassy of the United States of America, the Amadeu Antonio Stiftung, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, the Berlin International Film Festival, Brothers Keepers, Fundación Sebastian and our patrons for their support and partnership!
Congratulations to Imam Dr. Abduljalil Sajid, the 2010 recipient of the Interdependence Prize! Imam Sajid has worked for over 35 years towards the cause of peace and justice across the world as a Muslim scholar, speaker and mentor, and his ideas are some of the most advanced in the search for meaningful interpretation of Islam in the 21st Century. Imam Sajid is an advisor to a number of statutory and voluntary agencies on race, multi-cultural and religious issues and is currently Chairman of the Muslim Council for Religious and Racial Harmony and European representative of World Council of Muslims Inter-faith Relations.
The feedback has been very positive and the outputs keep rolling in. On September 14th Interdependence Day delegate Jakob Köllhofer, Director of the German-American Institute, presided over the opening of the First Interdependent Kindergarten in Heidelberg, Germany. For more materials, press, and media surrounding Interdependence Day VIII in Berlin, please visit this page.
Now, following the Berlin gathering, the Interdependence Movement has its own website to allow Citizens without Borders to connect and plan for future interdependendence activites; log on at www.InterdependenceMovement.org.
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Learn more about the International Steering Committee behind the Interdependence Movement.