Sustainability needs flourishing democracy
Putting it into practice
Getting involved in the Democracy and Sustainability Platform isn’t just about signing up.
All members of the Platform agree to take at least one step each year to implement the Commitments in the Manifesto for Democracy and Sustainability, and to share what they’ve done via the Platform.
You can call it spreading ripples, or creating a cascade of action to show that democracy and sustainability are inseparable, that people care, and that together we’re building practical action to create the changes that are needed.
Through video clips, stories and pictures collected from members once a year, the Platform will provide a forum to show what’s happening around the world.
Watch this space for the first round of examples of what members have been doing to get democracy to work for sustainability. And if you’re a member, start thinking about what you’d like to share when the request goes out, in early 2014!
Of course we’d love to hear from you before then too. Feel free to drop the coordinators of the Platform a line at manifesto at fdsd dot org.
Democratising Agricultural research
The Democratising Food and Agricultural Research initiative seeks to contribute to the following outcomes: Development and implementation of new models of citizen involvement and gender justice in decisions on food and agricultural research, as well as risk assessments. Complement the activities recommended by the International Assessment of Agriculture Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD), –… Read more »
The Access Initiative – International and local level work on procedural rights
International and local level work on procedural rights – access to information, public participation and access to justice – is being spearheaded by two recently-merged teams within World Resource Institute’s (WRI) Governance Center. The Access Initiative (TAI) and the Governance of Forests Initiative (GFI) have come together to deepen and expand their work, which focuses… Read more »

Pursue the goal of a ‘reinvented democracy’
A false notion of democracy is so deeply embedded in the modern world that the task of explaining the truth is as difficult as the task of the modern astronomers to explain the truth of the spherical earth, against the then belief of a flat earth ! The elections, the free-media, the parliamentary debates etc… Read more »

Energy-saving – it’s a social thing
Reducing energy consumption is one of the biggest challenges we face in the UK today. In order to tackle CO2 emissions and ensure both the security and affordability of supply, the Government has made energy demand reduction a policy priority. For consumers, rising energy prices and accessing affordable energy are growing concerns. Although energy consumption… Read more »
Giving sustainability greater priority in our funding programmes
As a result of a recent strategic review, the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust will be launching a new grant programme called Sustainable Future as well as continuing our commitment to deepening and strengthening democracy and accountability. This development was not a result of signing the Manifesto, but is very much in tune with its aims…. Read more »