Voting: Democracy in Action - What is Democracy?

Co-presented with the Prince George's County Office of Human Rights

Join the Prince George’s County Office of Human Rights and the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System in a critical discussion for our time, Voting: Democracy in Action – What is Democracy?

Featuring esteemed thinkers Dr. Stacy Kosko from the University of Maryland, Theo Dolan from the International Research and Exchanges Board (IREX),  and Dr. David Crocker from the Maryland School of Public Policy, this virtual event will examine the meaning of democracy both at home and overseas and will reflect both on its fragility and the power we have to preserve it.

Dr. Stacy J. Kosko is an Associate Research Professor in the Department of Government and Politics and Director of the College Park Scholars International Studies program at the University of Maryland.  Her research and consulting work focuses on development ethics, human rights, and marginalized populations, while her teaching and pedagogy emphasize experiential and project-based learning.  She spent the 2017-2018 academic year as a Fulbright Scholar in Moldova.  In addition to numerous articles in print, she is co-editor of Agency and Democracy in Development Ethics (Cambridge 2019).  At UMD, she co-founded the Experiential Learning Working Group.  She is a fellow of the Human Development and Capability Association, Vice President of the International Development Ethics Association, as well as Vice Chair of the Board at the Center for Values in International Development.  She holds a Ph.D. in Public Policy and international development from the University of Maryland and an MS in Foreign Service and international conflict management from Georgetown University, with a Certificate in Refugee and Humanitarian Emergencies. 

Theo Dolan leads the strategy and development of IREX’s Learn to Discern programs. These programs build citizens’ resilience to manipulative information in more than 20 countries, including Ukraine. Theo has worked at the intersection of media, technology, and peacebuilding for nearly 20 years, mainly by designing and managing complex peacebuilding projects and analytical studies in conflict-affected countries. He is currently the Global Lead for Innovation in Countering Disinformation at IREX, where he leads the strategic growth of IREX’s Learn to Discern digital resilience approaches.

 Previously, at FHI 360, he provided technical leadership on programs and activities aimed at preventing violent conflict, preventing and/or countering violent extremism, combating digital threats like hate speech and disinformation, and engaging and empowering vulnerable youth.

From 2015-2018, Theo directed the PeaceTech Lab in Nairobi, Kenya, where he developed an innovative research methodology for identifying and analyzing online hate speech in countries such as South Sudan, Nigeria, and Myanmar. He also collaborated with local partners to design, produce and broadcast behavior change communications programs to promote peacebuilding in Iraq, South Sudan, and Somalia.

David A. Crocker came to UMD in 1993, specializing in international development ethics, sociopolitical philosophy, transitional justice, democracy, and democratization. He has directed seven study-abroad trips to Morocco and one each to Peru and Ethiopia. After three degrees from Yale University (MDiv, MA, and Ph.D.), Crocker taught philosophy for 25 years at Colorado State University, where he established one of the world's first courses in ethics and international development. He was a visiting professor at the University of Munich, was twice a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Costa Rica, held the UNESCO Chair in Development at the University of Valencia (Spain), and taught at the National Autonomous University of Honduras, the University of Chile, and the University of the Andes (Colombia). He has been a consultant with the Inter-American Development Bank, USAID, the World Bank, and the International Center for Transitional Justice.

Crocker has given 300 invited lectures or conference papers in English or Spanish in over 25 countries. His most recent publications are Ethics of Global Development: Agency, Capability and Deliberative Democracy, “Development and Global Ethics: Five Foci for the Future,” and “Obstáculos para la reconciliación en el Perú: un análisis ético.” Cambridge University Press published a Festschrift in his honor, entitled Agency and Democracy in Development Ethics (edited by Stacy Kosko and Lori Keleher).

In 2010, Crocker received the Landmark Award "given for exceptional long-term achievements in support of international life at the University of Maryland." In 2018, he received the School of Public Policy’s award for “Social Impact.” Since 2015, Crocker has directed KEMS-Kids Excelling in Math and Science, an after-school enrichment program at Hyattsville (MD) Middle School.