Thursday, July 18
12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. EDT
(Lunch served 12:00-12:15)
National Endowment for Democracy
1025 F Street NW, Suite 800
Washington, DC 20004
Speakers:
Adriana León, Instituto Prensa y Sociedad (IPYS), Peru
Matt Potter, Pan American Development Foundation
Dagmar Thiel, Fundamedios, Ecuador
Moderator:
Don Podesta National Endowment for Democracy
Event Description:
The past year has witnessed stark changes in the state of media freedom across Latin America, from a precipitous decline in Nicaragua to glimmers of improvement in Ecuador. But can monitoring and review offer lessons for improvement and reform? A new report from one regional initiative highlights possibilities for civil society in leveraging such processes, from country-level partners to the United Nations High Level Review of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Over the past two years, Voces del Sur, a network of freedom of expression organizations in Latin America, has developed regional standards for the monitoring and dissemination of alerts regarding freedom of expression. The findings of this collaborative work are included in a new report, launched in partnership with the Pan American Development Foundation, that examines pressing issues for regional collaboration, such as journalist safety and incorporating freedom of expression concerns into the implementation of the SDGs. Join us as some of the leaders of this initiative discuss opportunities for civil society to leverage these processes toward improving the overall environment for freedom of expression in their region.