TAI Weekly

TAI Weekly | What Lessons Are Helping Democracy Fight Back in a Changing World?

By TAI (Role at TAI)
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TAI Weekly

Dear readers,

This week the focus topic we chose is on democracy and authoritarianism. Those embracing democratic values feel the urgency of the moment and to build powerful collective actions, we also need brave spaces of reflection and collective visioning.

In the Podcast on 'How to save democracy' Jon Alexander, Jo Barratt and Omzzine Khelifa get into tough conversations and the work that needs to be done by people in positions of power and influence and by all of us as citizens. We do not simply need to defend "democracy" as it is, but reimagine/rebuild it, because what we have right now doesn't match up to the ideal. 

We remind you of TAI’s own podcast on the topic of narratives on democracy, in which Yery Menendez and Ignacio Saiz talk with five narrative practitioners from Latin America, Africa, and Europe about how storytelling is shaping civic participation — and what it takes to build inclusive, long-term narrative strategies.

We hope you find ideas and inspiration in this Weekly!

TAI team

WHAT'S NEW?

The Open Government Partnership’s new report, Public Purpose: Civil Service Insights on Beneficial Ownership Data, explores how officials in seven countries are using beneficial ownership data to improve tax collection, manage natural resources, strengthen procurement, and enhance electoral finance. Supported by the European Union, the research highlights practical ways beneficial ownership data can be used beyond compliance to address illicit financial flows and advance open government.

CIVICUS shares key takeaways from its Shifting Resourcing Landscapes Solidarity Calls, where civil society actors have come together to exchange strategies, tools, and solidarity in response to shifting funding dynamics. The next call takes place on July 23, 2025 — register here. For more info, contact [email protected].

Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) outlines five ways to help countries deliver on the Seville Commitment from the Financing for Development (FfD4) conference, focusing on how better use of extractive sector data and governance can boost domestic revenues. From contract transparency to tackling illicit financial flows, EITI offers practical tools to support fair taxation, accountability, and sustainable development.

The final agreement from the FfD4 conference includes a strong endorsement of beneficial ownership transparency. In this blog post, the Open Ownership team reflects on how to build on this momentum and outlines next steps to advance beneficial ownership reforms in the post-FfD4 context. 

Accountable Now has announced the launch of the Spanish version of its Manual on the 12 Accountability Commitments. Co-created with partners from the Global Standard for CSO Accountability, this practical resource provides clear principles, actionable steps, and real-life examples to help civil society organizations implement the 12 Commitments and strengthen accountability worldwide.

Namati and Grassroots Justice Network have produced a comprehensive three-part handbook for community organizers worldwide, drawing from case studies across 17 countries and 95 interviews. The research includes Power Up: Lessons from Twelve Years of Organizing with Community Paralegals, The Playbook of Justice, and Grassroots Justice: Pathways to Systems Change - essential resources for understanding how legal empowerment builds community power and responds to rising authoritarianism.

The Civil Liberties Union for Europe highlights a critical gap in the EU's 2025 Rule of Law Report: while analysis has become clearer, the disconnect between repeated warnings and meaningful consequences continues to widen. This matters because restoring democratic standards becomes exponentially more difficult once rule of law institutions have been systematically undermined.

New research from Plataforma CIPÓ examines how BRICS countries' approaches to green industrialization carry significant governance risks that require careful monitoring and accountability mechanisms.

Did you miss the webinar “Empowering Women in Taxation: The Role of Women-Led Networks” hosted by the Network of Tax Organisations and the Addis Tax Initiative? Catch up by reading the summary article, and download the presentation materials here.

AI development that could fundamentally alter industries or societies needs a transparency framework. Anthropic's multidisciplinary policy team argues for interim transparency measures while comprehensive AI safety standards are still being developed, proposing targeted disclosure requirements for the largest AI systems and developers to ensure public safety and accountability.

The UN Human Rights Council's latest resolution on corruption's negative impact on human rights includes commissioning a comprehensive study to develop concrete guidelines for implementing States' human rights obligations in preventing and combating corruption, with broad stakeholder consultation including civil society.

Spain and Brazil's call to tax the super-rich signals potential for shifting global norms through coalitions of willing countries. Meanwhile, the OECD's Tax Co-operation for Development Progress Report on 2024 demonstrates the wide-ranging effectiveness of capacity building efforts to strengthen developing countries' governance of international tax matters.

Save the Children CEO Janti Soeripto and UN development expert T. Alexander Puutio argue it's time to retire the concept of "foreign assistance" entirely, proposing five reform ideas for revamping aid architecture when global needs have never been greater. Their call reflects broader questioning about development effectiveness, partnership versus patronage, and moving beyond "good enough" charity toward genuine collaboration.

The OECD has launched a new Toolkit: Co-ordinating Action for Civic Space, designed to help development cooperation and humanitarian actors work more effectively together to protect civil society’s fundamental freedoms — of association, assembly, and expression. The toolkit supports implementation of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) Recommendation on Enabling Civil Society.

ESSENTIAL LISTENING

Grassroots justice stories from Malawi feature in Namati's latest podcast episode, exploring how community groups transformed police-community relationships from fear-based interactions to dignity-centered partnerships. Available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.

FROM OUR MEMBERS

OPEN SOCIETY FOUNDATIONS: Features Sa'eed Husaini's analysis of neoliberalism on the African continent and potential alternatives in comparative perspective, providing essential context for understanding its continued influence across diverse political and economic contexts.

PACKARD FOUNDATION: The FrameWorks Institute has released a resource to guide the philanthropic field in advancing effective narrative change, with support from the Packard Foundation. It offers clear concepts, insights from past research and practice, and evidence-based strategies to support more consistent and informed narrative work. Watch out for TAI’s own scoping on narratives around civil society—coming soon!

ESSENTIAL WATCHING

At the Financing for Development (FfD4) conference, Publish What You Fund CEO Gary Forster spoke with Devex’s Jesse Chase-Lubitz about the role of development banks in addressing the SDG financing gap. The conversation explored issues of impact, transparency, and accountability. Watch the interview here.

TOOLS AND TRENDS FOR FUNDERS

Augustin Landa argues that truly radical change requires community foundations as essential partners, supported by recent studies emphasizing philanthropy's need to become more inclusive, equitable, and adaptable from the territory level.

Geneva Global explores three different hosting models for donor collaborations, which helps funders navigate the crucial question of how money will move without defaulting to establishing new organizational structures.

The Guerrilla Foundation shared insights from their ongoing journey implementing participatory grantmaking, including structural shifts to decentralize governance, team culture changes, and collective upskilling for shared decision-making authority.

Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN)'s latest report reveals a 586 billion dollars financing gap for Sustainable Development Goal 5 across 17 Asian countries, accompanied by sector-specific Investor Toolkits to guide funders, impact investors, and policymakers toward collaborative financing solutions.

FOCUSED TOPIC OF THE WEEK:

Can Democracy Outpace Authoritarianism?

Around the world, the struggle for democracy is entering a new and uncertain phase. While authoritarianism evolves with increasingly sophisticated tactics, the global community committed to democratic values must also adapt—rethinking strategies, supporting grassroots resilience, and investing in collective action.

A new paper from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, co-authored by Thomas Carothers, Rachel Kleinfeld, and Richard Youngs, sets the stage for this reimagining. It identifies six key issues critical to reinventing the democracy support field in light of today’s unprecedented challenges—from rising autocratic influence to declining trust in institutions. The call is clear: business as usual is no longer enough.

The Brenthurst Foundation echoes this urgency in its strategic guide for African democrats, which notes that democratic actors—representing just 20% of the global population—must develop updated tactics to confront autocrats who no longer rely solely on force but now exploit legal loopholes, digital manipulation, and institutional control. As these tactics evolve, so too must pro-democracy strategies.

Yet, amid these challenges, there are signs of hope. Frances Z. Brown and Margot Treadwell, also of the Carnegie Endowment, point out a promising trend in Africa: more incumbent leaders are conceding elections peacefully, setting the stage for democratic continuity and stronger political norms. These acts of political maturity offer valuable lessons for others navigating transitions.

Equally important is how movements are built and sustained. Drawing inspiration from nature, peacebuilding expert John Paul Lederach encourages democracy advocates to “fly like bees and thread like spiders”—cultivating agile, interconnected, and resilient movements that are not only reactive, but regenerative. His reflections underscore the need for approaches that value both structure and adaptability.

Finally, as Abigail Moy and Sonia Park from Namati argue in Alliance magazine, justice networks and community-led legal empowerment are essential pieces of this puzzle. Philanthropy has a crucial role to play in supporting these efforts—not through short-term grants alone, but by strategically investing in global, collaborative movements that can resist backsliding and advance democratic justice over time.

ESSENTIAL WATCHING

In this episode of FO° Talks by Fair Observer, CEO Atul Singh and Jason Ward, Founder of the Centre for International Corporate Tax Accountability and Research, discuss how multinational corporations like Google, Microsoft, and Big Pharma use tax havens such as Ireland and Switzerland to avoid billions in taxes. They explore the impact on source countries like Brazil, Colombia, and Indonesia, which often miss out on the benefits of their own resources. Watch the full episode to learn more about the global scale of corporate tax avoidance.

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