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Populism's silver lining

Danny Sriskandarajah on the power of collective action

Populism's silver lining

Danny Sriskandarajah is the author of Power to the People: Use your voice, change the world

Sriskandarajah discusses the shift from a positive phase of civic engagement to a reversal over the past decade, emphasising the importance of community networks beyond state and market fixations. He highlights the role of civil society in nurturing democracy and the need for international solidarity. Sriskandarajah shares personal experiences from his childhood in Sri Lanka and the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, underscoring the power of collective action and the interconnectedness of global issues.

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Presented by Aman Sethi

Edited and produced by Nandini Archer, James Battershill & Ayodeji Rotinwa

Theme song ‘Odyssey’ performed by Edward Abela


Danny Sriskandarajah

Danny Sriskandarajah

Dr. Dhananjayan Sriskandarajah is the chief executive of the New Economics Foundation. His previous roles include CEO of Oxfam GB, Secretary General of CIVICUS,  and Director of the Royal Commonwealth Society. He is the author of “Power to the People” (Headline Press, 2024).

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openDemocracy Author

Aman Sethi

Aman Sethi is editor-in-chief of openDemocracy. Before joining us he was deputy executive editor at HuffPost. Before that he was the executive editor for strategy at BuzzFeed, editorial director with Coda Media, editor-in-chief of HuffPost India, associate editor with the Hindustan Times, and foreign correspondent (Africa) and Chhattisgarh correspondent with The Hindu. His award-winning reportage both in India and around the world has touched on some of the most pressing issues of our time, such as migration, land grabs, labour rights, public health, nationalism, democracy and insurgency. He is the author of the critically acclaimed non-fiction book ‘A Free Man’.

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