Washington, D.C. -- This month, the National Democratic Institute (NDI) launched a new initiative to address the growing disconnect between political parties around the world and citizens. While political parties remain important democratic institutions, they must evolve to meet new challenges that reflect the ways people interact and organize in the twenty-first century. This initiative will unfold in three phases:

1. A blog (21cparties.org) where political party representatives and political party development experts will address various challenges that parties face. The blog will be open for comments and discussion.

2. A conference in Europe in autumn 2016 that will bring together experts in the field to further the conversation about how parties need to change to keep up with changing citizen demands.

3. A roadmap for political parties and party assistance organizations, which outlines recommendations based on conversations at the conference and online and stresses the ongoing importance of political parties in democratic systems of government.

Ivan Doherty, Director of Political Party Programming at NDI, who is spearheading the program, believes this initiative will help overcome the growing disconnect between parties and citizens. “Parties are critical in any democratic government, so closing this gap is essential,” he said. “Moving forward, the roadmap we produce should help not only political parties, but also party assistance organizations, including the National Democratic Institute.”

“As with any type of organization, political parties must change with the times and grow to better serve the people they aim to represent,” said NDI board member and former Vermont Governor Howard Dean. “With this initiative, NDI will open the conversation up to those who feel disconnected from their parties, to find common ground that moves them forward together.”

To help bring those from outside of the political party and party assistance communities into the conversation, NDI encourages all readers to use the comments section of the blog, so that various points of views find their way into the conversation. Mr. Doherty and his team hope that party members and activists from around the globe will chime in with their experiences, challenges and lessons learned.

To visit the blog and to join the conversation, please go to www.21cparties.org. For more information, please contact Philippa Wood at [email protected].

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