At the December 2021 Summit for Democracy Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the establishment of a Canadian centre to promote “democracy and good governance around the world.”
Calling the defence of democracy “the challenge of our time,” President Biden hosted the two-day virtual summit “to renew democracy at home and confront autocracies abroad.” Organized around the themes of defending against authoritarianism, combating corruption and advancing human rights, the summit brought together governments, multilateral institutions, human rights defenders and journalists, mayors, parliamentarians, business and labour leaders. With an invitation list mired in politics, the summit saw trade-offs between values and interests. But it also usefully convened like-minded countries, took stock of the global democratic recession and prompted action. A follow up summit is slated for later this year.
