COUNSELOR CLINTON WHITE: I’m pleased to be leading this session about strategic approaches to building trust and bridging divides in fragmented societies.
People’s trust in each other and their institutions is fundamental to an effective democracy. Yet in recent decades, political polarization has intensified globally and has been a disruptive force in societies across the world, even in the U.S. These divisions are often caused by economic exclusion, the rise of identity politics, and the powerful influence of social media – and they can leave countries paralyzed by inaction and worse yet, vulnerable to violence.
This panel aims to shed light on a complex and emerging area of practice: social cohesion. Social cohesion is about building trust among groups. Building trust between people and institutions, bringing communities together across divides, and fostering a sense of recognition and belonging where people are willing and able to contribute to the common good. Building social cohesion is not easy but vital to sustaining democracies.
We recognize that many approaches can contribute to building unity and cohesion in a society. For twenty years, USAID has been doing social cohesion work in various forms. You’ll be hearing throughout this session about how we have approached this through our peacebuilding work, our human rights work, and our inclusive development work.
For example, since 2004 USAID’s programs from the Reconciliation Fund, managed out of our Center for Conflict and Violence Prevention, have brought together individuals of different ethnic, religious, or political backgrounds in areas affected by civil conflict and war. They interact in a safe space to address divisions rooted in group differences. To date, USAID has provided over $230 million in grants to programs in more than 40 countries.
The Center for Conflict and Violence Prevention is conducting a retrospective study of past reconciliation programs to assess the long-term effects and sustainability of this people-to-people approach. We hope to generate learning about how using this approach can rebuild positive relationships essential for effective democratic societies and create long-lasting peace between groups in conflict.
We know that many people feel like they do not have a voice or power in shaping the decisions affecting their lives. We are grateful to the Deliberative Democracy cohort, who is championing citizens’ assemblies as an innovative approach to helping ordinary people come together to hold governments accountable and work through polarizing policy issues like climate change and reproductive health. We look forward to seeing this approach explored, and expanded, where appropriate, in other countries on a variety of issues. Throughout the course of today you will have the opportunity to see two fascinating videos about Citizen Assemblies in Malawi and Ireland.
Specifically at USAID, we have also increased work to bring marginalized groups into more programs. USAID’s Inclusive Development Hub now has dedicated resources to advance the inclusion of Indigenous Peoples, LGBTQI+ communities, and persons with Disabilities.
Because we know that women and sexual minorities are often the first groups to come under attack when authoritarians begin to close political space. The converse is also true: that greater gender equality and social inclusion in public life and politics is positively correlated with more effective policy outcomes, higher rates of economic growth, and greater social stability.
Today, we’re pleased to announce the Rainbow Fund, which seeks to go beyond the existing human rights approaches and HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment work with LGBTQI+ communities towards a multi-sectoral, inclusive development approach that recognizes that civil and political rights are indivisible from economic, social, and cultural rights.
This $4.7 million fund gives USAID Missions around the world the opportunity to meaningfully integrate LGBTQI+ people in USAID programs across a wide range of sectors, from economic empowerment to mental health to youth leadership.
And I’m especially pleased to be unveiling a new Racial and Ethnic Equity Initiative. This is the first time USAID has ever had a dedicated, global line of effort to address the longstanding racial and ethnic exclusions that have left so many communities around the world on the margins of development efforts. Starting with work with Missions in the Latin America region with an initial investment of $2.6 million, we will build tools and resources that help ensure more of our programming reaches these communities.
Social cohesion is critical to the themes of this week’s Summit for Democracy. Our colleagues in the DRG Center have long worked to develop programming that seeks to bridge political divides. Yet the past several years have also seen a troubling increase in autocrats leveraging polarization for political gain.
Grassroots organizers and activists can play a role in responding to these challenges and shoring up inclusive, democratic governance models by strengthening trust-based relationships with their partners and communities. How effectively social movements actors can build allies and create bridges across diverse communities will help determine their success.
An additional theme critical to the Summit is protecting civic space. As several of you know, Democracy Cohorts have been a major part of the Year of Action. We thank Norway, the Czech Republic and the International Center for Not-for Profit Law for their leadership on the Civic Space cohort and for developing several calls to action for endorsement by other countries focused on issues supporting the participation of civil society in decision-making processes and advancing international support for nonviolent collective action.
Related to the Civic Space cohort’s efforts, USAID’s Powered by the People, a key deliverable under President Biden’s Presidential Initiative for Democratic Renewal, has been designed to provide direct and accessible support that addresses the needs, opportunities, and challenges identified by activists engaged in nonviolent collective action.
With a strong orientation to community ownership and inclusion, Powered by the People will support efforts by civic actors to build local agency and trust among each other and the communities they serve. The initiative will help democratic reformers build broad based diverse coalitions that can bridge divides across movements and causes, strengthening local and global solidarity.
Finally, Powered by the People will help these civic actors strengthen their networks so that they can learn from one another’s successes and innovations, and strengthen the resiliency and efficacy of activists and movements that can advance human rights, social justice, democracy, and inclusive development globally.
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