OEI and Casa de América launch the “Roadmap for Democratic Coexistence” in Ibero-America

The Diplomat The Organization of Ibero-American States for Education, Science and Culture (OEI) has launched a “Roadmap for Democratic Coexistence and Human Rights Education” in Ibero-America that will guide concrete actions to strengthen human rights systems and promote a democratic culture based on education, peace, and critical citizenship. The initiative, presented on April 29 at Casa de América in Madrid, is the result of a collective and multidisciplinary work process by what is now known as the “Ávila Group,” a select group of 25 international experts in human rights, democracy, and the multilateral system from diverse fields such as academia, international organizations, civil society, and public administrations. The proposal was finalized during a closed-door working session held in Ávila on April 28, the day before its presentation. The presentation took place within the framework of an international dialogue promoted by the OEI, through its Ibero-American Program for Education in Human Rights, Democracy and Equality, and in collaboration with the Spanish Ministry of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory, coinciding with the commemoration of “50 years of Spain's freedom”. The Secretary General of the OEI, Mariano Jabonero, defended the role of education in the current context of polarization and fatigue during the event. “Without schools, democracy is at risk,” he warned. For his part, Abelardo de la Rosa, Spanish Secretary of State for Education, stated that education, human rights, and democracy are “three inseparable concepts in current politics,” and Fernando Martínez López, Spanish Secretary of State for Democratic Memory, warned that “memory is a natural antidote” in these “worrying and serious times, of questioning the international order”. The “Roadmap for Democratic Coexistence and Human Rights Education in Ibero-America” proposes the need to forge alliances between international organizations, governments, the private sector, civil society, and academia, in order to promote public policies and coordinated actions that strengthen democratic coexistence in the region. The document warns of a global trend of democratic backsliding linked to geopolitical fragmentation, the weakening of multilateralism, and the rise of discourses that question universal values. It identifies structural factors that underlie this crisis, such as increased inequality, generational insecurity, the erosion of public space in digital environments, and the growing perception of the ineffectiveness of democratic institutions. Faced with this scenario, the roadmap proposes advancing concrete actions such as promoting education in human rights and democratic citizenship, critically examining the digital ecosystem and AI in democracy, strengthening strategic litigation, fostering cross-sectoral alliances, including strengthening civil society, and promoting research and innovation as a tool to reinforce democratic resilience. The working group for this roadmap included experts and authorities from 10 countries and renowned organizations such as the United Nations, UNESCO, the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights, and the Auschwitz Institute for the Prevention of Genocide, as well as public and private entities and universities. Notable figures include Susie Alegre, Scott Parke Campbell, Almudena Cruz, Anna Dolidze, Carlos Ramón Fernández Liesa, Natalia Gherardi, José Antonio Guevara Bermúdez, José Luis Herrero Ansola, Cristina Mansilla Decesari, and David Mathieson. Víctor Manuel Rodríguez Rescia, Fabián Omar Salvioli, Cecilia Barbieri, Mathias Bianchi, Camilla Croso, Luis Carlos Díaz; Elektra Lagos, Ondřej Liška, Andrés Malamud, Nikola Miloševski, Clara Ramírez Barat, Giaccomo Ugarell and Fernando Vallespín, in addition to Irune Aguirrezabal and Lina Cabezas, director and specialist of the Ibero-American Program of Education in Human Rights, Democracy and Equality of the OEI, respectively.

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