The Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) is dedicated to strengthening democracy around the globe through private enterprise and market-oriented reform. As part of that mission, CIPE launched the Future of Democracy initiative alongside the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and International Republican Institute (IRI). This initiative is guided by the belief that the tired narratives about technology’s future impact on democracy—from the inexorable advance of digital authoritarianism to the unchecked rise of surveillance economies—are as fatalistic as they are false. The initiative is therefore dedicated to identifying how private- sector actors can work alongside democratic reformers to conceive a new and positive vision of technology-enabled democracy—and then make that future a reality.
Presenting an action-focused roadmap
This presentation outlines the core elements of a high-level, global roadmap for the consideration of private sector actors and democratic reformers around the world. These principally include CIPE’s private- sector partners (e.g., chambers of commerce and business associations) along with companies of all shapes and sizes including small-and-medium sized enterprises (SMEs). The goal is to provide ideas that these and other actors can use, discuss, disseminate, and adapt in their own contexts—from sharing with member companies to launching new initiatives designed to advance a technology-enabled democratic future.