by CGS | Aug 3, 2025 | Past Event
About the Book
The Humble Cosmopolitan explores how an “institutional global citizenship” approach to cosmopolitanism could promote political humility globally. It draws on the work of Indian constitutional architect and social activist B.R. Ambedkar to challenge the notion that sovereign states are empowered to dismiss rights-based challenges from outsiders or their own populations—even as they serve as the designated guarantors of human rights.
About the Author
Luis Cabrera is Associate Professor in the School of Government and International Relations and Griffith Asia Institute at Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia. He has published widely on issues of global justice and ethics, including global citizenship, migration and individual rights, and on the development of more democratically accountable regional and global political institutions. He has conducted related field research in India, Mexico, Southeast Asia, several European Union countries, Turkey, and the United States.
by CGS | Mar 29, 2025 | Past Event
Watch the first of two sessions in CGS’s World Citizen Book Club to discuss World Parliament: Governance and Democracy in the 21st Century (2nd edition) by Andreas Bummel and Jo Leinen.
For the first time, humanity is united in a global civilization facing shared challenges like war, poverty, climate change, and inequality—problems that surpass the capacity of current national and international systems. Despite setbacks from autocracy and nationalism, the global push for freedom continues. A third democratic transformation—toward global democracy—is needed. Central to this vision is the creation of a democratic world parliament. This book examines the idea’s history, relevance, and path to realization. The second edition includes major updates, reflecting recent global events and expanding the original content by about 20 percent.
About the Authors
Andreas Bummel is co-founder and director of Democracy Without Borders and of the Campaign for a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly. He has dedicated his career to the promotion of global democracy and world federalism. From 1998 to 2018 he was a Council member of the World Federalist Movement, an international NGO that promotes the rule of law, world peace, and federalism. He was trained in business administration, studied law and worked at a management consultancy firm. He was born in Cape Town, South Africa, in 1976.
Jo Leinen served as a member of the European Parliament from 1999 to 2019. He chaired the environmental committee and the committee on constitutional affairs. From 2011 to 2017 he was president of the European Movement, an organization advocating for a democratic and enlarged European Union. From 1997 to 2005 he was presiding the Union of European Federalists that is dedicated to the promotion of European political unity. From 1985 to 1994 he was minister of the environment in the German state of Saarland. He graduated in law and was born in Bisten, Germany, in 1948.
by CGS | Mar 14, 2025 | Past Event
This virtual intergenerational panel was sponsored by Citizens for Global Solutions, Trinity Washington University, and the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. The panel explored violence against women and girls and barriers to justice in DR Congo and Nigeria and contemplated how the Beijing Declaration can be better implemented to achieve transformative solutions.
The panel brought together youth and seasoned women’s rights advocates from the US, DR Congo, and Nigeria to take an intergenerational approach to directly confronting gender specific violence against women and promoting justice and peace.
Speakers:
- Sr. Isabelle Izika, Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur NGO representative at the UN
- Chantal Faida, Director at the Centre de Formation Elikya ya Mboka DR Congo
- Amaka Ilodigwe, Director of the Women and Child Justice Initiative Nigeria
- Lauren Woodhouse, Global Affairs student at Trinity Washington University and CGS Fellow
- Cinthya Calderon-Hernandez, student at Trinity Washington University and CGS Fellow
- Sr. Ann Howard, Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, Director of Campus Ministry at Trinity Washington University
Moderator: Dr. Allen Pietrobon, Professor of Global Affairs at Trinity Washington University
This was an official Parallel Event at the NGO CSW69 Forum, which took place in parallel with the 69th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69) in New York from March 10 through 21. The Commission on the Status of Women is a UN body that monitors the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, considered the most progressive blueprint for advancing women’s rights worldwide.
In 2025, CSW69’s main focus was reviewing the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, including an assessment of current challenges that affect the implementation of the Platform for Action and the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of women.
by CGS | Mar 1, 2025 | Past Event
Mondial, published semi-annually, invites thought leaders to provide insights into our most pressing global challenges. The Journal primarily focuses on world federation, disarmament and peace, human rights, United Nations Reform, strengthening international institutions and world law, and the environment. Drawing its name from the French word meaning “of or involving the whole world,” Mondial serves as a Journal with a shared common vision advocating for a democratic world federation.
This special CGS World Citizen Book Club session was held on March 1, 2025, with authors featured in the Winter 2025 edition of Mondial:
- Emlyn Koster: Toward An Earth-Human Ecosystem (Pages 19-21)
- David Gallup: World Citizenship: A Recent Phenomenon With Ancient Roots (Pages 17-18)
- Hannah Fields: A Tale of Two Summits: Civil Society’s Role in the UN’s Summit of the Future (Pages 9-11)
- Rebecca Shoot: ICC Sanctions (Pages 5-9)
Read the articles and more here: https://globalsolutions.org/updates/mondial-journal/
by CGS | Jan 28, 2025 | Past Event
On January 28, advocates from several countries with cases before the International Criminal Court (ICC) came together to highlight the critical role the court plays in their countries’ futures. This took place as the U.S. Senate considered a bill that would impose sanctions on the ICC. Many of the countries represented have direct U.S. interests, and in some cases, the U.S. played a role in initiating the cases before the court.
Speakers included:
Oleksandra Matviichuk, human rights lawyer and head of the Center for Civil Liberties (Kyiv, Ukraine), and Nobel Peace Prize recipient (2022)
- Niemat Ahmadi, survivor of the Darfur Genocide, leading Sudanese human rights defender, and Founder/President of Darfur Women Action Group
- Dino S. de Leon, Philippine human rights lawyer, spokesperson for former Senator Leila de Lima, and Director at Human Rights and People Empowerment Center
- Kyaw Win, Executive Director, Burma Human Rights Network
- Adam Keith, Director of Accountability, Human Rights First
Moderator: Rebecca A. Shoot, Executive Director of Citizens for Global Solutions
The event was organized by Amnesty International USA, Citizens for Global Solutions, Human Rights First, Human Rights Watch, and StoptheDrugWar.org.