Dear listeners, welcome to the fourth episode of the Politics and Public Finance Podcast! For this interview, I was joined by Tomas Bridle, Senior Global Lead for Democracy and Governance Practice at Chemonics International and Adjunct Professor at the Elliot School of International Affairs at George Washington University.
A graduate of Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, Tomas has over two decades of experience in the design and implementation of democracy and governance projects around the world. Before joining Chemonics International, Tomas served as the Senior Advisor for the USAID Center of Excellence for Democracy, Human Rights and Governance. He has also served as the acting and deputy chief of party for legislative strengthening projects in Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan for DAI.
Drawing on Tomas’ wide range of experience in democratic governance, our conversation covers the hopes and challenges related to democracy since the 1990s. Current events, including Putin’s invasion of Ukraine make it even more important to understand the dangers of authoritarianism, and I found Tomas’ insights into his work at the Department to Combat Authoritarianism particularly interesting.
Looking forward, we also discuss the benefits of living in a democracy, the importance of democratic resilience, and prospects for a global democratic resurgence in light of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Listen to the latest episode of the Politics and Public Finance podcast HERE and stay tuned for future blog posts. Make sure to subscribe so that you can stay up to date on all our episodes!
Geoff