Credit: Futurium
Press Release 14 March 2023
Our Democracy – Ten Encounters Themed booklet “Democracy in progress” published
Between crisis mode and a spirit of awakening: where is democracy headed? The challenges for Germany’s political system to find the right answers in the future have perhaps never been greater. In its new thematic focus, Futurium is dedicating itself to the futures of democracy. The themed booklet on this new focus is published in cooperation with tipBerlin. Seven authors travelled through Germany gathering their impressions of the state of democracy.
Credit: Futurium
A Journey Through the Republic – From Person to Person
What experiences do people in Germany have with our democracy? How do they themselves advocate for co-determination and participation? What are their wishes and desires? On their tour of Germany, the authors use the ten encounters to explore these questions. The resulting portraits present ten diverse realities of life. They show perspectives on democracy that are in themselves individual, yet together make a great whole.
We meet, among other people, a city-school spokesperson in Frankfurt/Main, a blind musician in Berlin, a former GDR civil rights activist in Leipzig, a local politician of Cameroonian origin who lives in a village near Munich, and a young Muslim woman in Mönchengladbach who is committed to diversity. “To me, democracy means a form of government that represents all the people in this country,” the latter explains in the interview.
“Don’t ask me about integration if I don’t have the right to vote.” – Muhammad al-Kashef has been living in Berlin for six years and is not allowed to vote. How does he see our democracy? And 103-year-old Gertrud Zalka continues to pass on to others her life’s message: “The main reason I’ve always supported democracy was for freedom.”
“We need courage” – with this quote from Dr Stefan Brandt, Director of Futurium, the themed booklet begins. Erik Heier, deputy editor-in-chief of tipBerlin magazine, talks to him and social researcher Professor Dr Naika Foroutan about the “quality grade” of democracy, the challenges of climate change and the optimism required for this very reason.
Our Democracy - Ten Encounters. A Journey Through the Republic. From Person to Person.
Available in the Futurium Shop and in bookshops
German edition:
ISBN 978-3-94-663154-5
English edition:
ISBN 978-3-946631-55-2
Prize
EUR 9.90
Press copies can be obtained from the Futurium press office.
Picture material for download:
http://bit.ly/futurium_newsroom