How to Save Democracy Castos https://howtosavedemocracy.co Democracy is in trouble. Around the world, trust is breaking down, systems are creaking, and people are walking away. But we still believe in it. Not as something we have, but as something we do. How To Save Democracy is a podcast about repairing our relationship with democracy, hosted by Omezzine Khelifa and Jon Alexander, with producer Jo Barratt. We hold space for the hard conversations — the ones we all know we need to have. These first few episodes are just the beginning. But if you want more, we need your help. Sign up, spread the word, and if you can, support us. Let’s rebuild democracy together. Mon, 13 Apr 2026 05:00:00 +0000 en © 2025 https://episodes.castos.com/606341822879e2-35871598/images/How-to-Save-Democracy.jpg How to Save Democracy https://howtosavedemocracy.co Democracy is in trouble. Around the world, trust is breaking down, systems are creaking, and people are walking away. But we still believe in it. Not as something we have, but as something we do. How To Save Democracy is a podcast about repairing our relationship with democracy, hosted by Omezzine Khelifa and Jon Alexander, with producer Jo Barratt. We hold space for the hard conversations — the ones we all know we need to have. These first few episodes are just the beginning. But if you want more, we need your help. Sign up, spread the word, and if you can, support us. Let’s rebuild democracy together. How to Save Democracy episodic Democracy is in trouble. Around the world, trust is breaking down, systems are creaking, and people are walking away. But we still believe in it. Not as something we have, but as something we do. How To Save Democracy is a podcast about repairing our relationship with democracy, hosted by Omezzine Khelifa and Jon Alexander, with producer Jo Barratt. We hold space for the hard conversations — the ones we all know we need to have. These first few episodes are just the beginning. But if you want more, we need your help. Sign up, spread the word, and if you can, support us. Let’s rebuild democracy together. Jo Barratt jo.barratt@gmail.com false https://feeds.castos.com/w81zp yes "Donate here to help make season 1" <![CDATA[What Art Can Do for Democracy]]> Mon, 13 Apr 2026 05:00:00 +0000 How to Save Democracy https://permalink.castos.com/podcast/65669/episode/2386346 We host legendary artist Brian Eno and his co-author Bette Adriaanse to explore the ideas in their book, What Art Does. Feelings are not luxuries, they're powerful forces that can nurture democracy or, in the wrong hands, unmake it entirely. Even at its most intimate and personal level, art invites us to imagine alternatives, experiment, and find grounding, a sense of stability, and forward momentum in a world of increasing uncertainty.

Chapters

  • (00:00:01) - How to Save Democracy
  • (00:00:37) - What Does Art Mean?
  • (00:05:59) - What is the character of now
  • (00:08:29) - The Conversation about Art and Democracy
  • (00:13:57) - Feelings in the Art World
  • (00:17:59) - On Feelings and the Right
  • (00:20:05) - The Politics of Emotions
  • (00:26:31) - Art and Children's Play
  • (00:30:44) - The Power of Art in Politics
  • (00:35:22) - From Hard Art to Community
  • (00:40:19) - East Marshall United: Community Organization
  • (00:46:18) - Soundbites 4, Control and Surrender
  • (00:56:33) - The Future of Art
  • (01:00:20) - How to Save Democracy Global
  • (01:07:21) - How to Save Democracy
]]> false We host legendary artist Brian Eno and his co-author Bette Adriaanse to explore the ideas in their book, What Art Does. Feelings are not luxuries, they're powerful forces that can nurture democracy or, in the wrong hands, unmake it entirely. Even at its most intimate and personal level, art invites us to imagine alternatives, experiment, and find grounding, a sense of stability, and forward momentum in a world of increasing uncertainty.

]]> 01:08:15 <![CDATA[Neighbourhood Power]]> Mon, 23 Mar 2026 06:00:00 +0000 How to Save Democracy https://permalink.castos.com/podcast/65669/episode/2386155 Radical architect Indy Johar and renowned community leader Immy Kaur share their understanding of the vital importance of neighbourhood-scale work in the face of the realities of our time. Sometimes brutal in their realism, they force us to stare hard at the challenges and not shy away from painful truths. But they're also insistent about what becomes possible when we work at a human scale: the scale of our lives and the places we live, where we all have a role to play in building the future we need.

Chapters

  • (00:00:01) - The freedom of the streets
  • (00:00:47) - How to Save British Democracy
  • (00:13:19) - The Home Retrofit: reimagine it
  • (00:17:23) - In the Elevator With Imi
  • (00:21:37) - The Retrofit of the House
  • (00:30:46) - The 6 fundamentals of sustainable housing
  • (00:37:07) - Indie and Immi on the Need for Community
  • (00:42:38) - Predictions of degenerative volatility
  • (00:45:15) - Community and the future of freedom
  • (00:50:38) - The Alternative to Dictation
  • (00:52:22) - The Need for More Money in Climate Science
  • (00:55:32) - Community ownership in the UK
  • (00:58:37) - John Oliver on the Future of Democracy
  • (01:02:06) - On the future of science democracy
  • (01:04:36) - How to Save Democracy
]]> false Radical architect Indy Johar and renowned community leader Immy Kaur share their understanding of the vital importance of neighbourhood-scale work in the face of the realities of our time. Sometimes brutal in their realism, they force us to stare hard at the challenges and not shy away from painful truths. But they're also insistent about what becomes possible when we work at a human scale: the scale of our lives and the places we live, where we all have a role to play in building the future we need.

]]> 01:05:30 <![CDATA[Nation of Strangers]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2026 06:00:00 +0000 How to Save Democracy https://permalink.castos.com/podcast/65669/episode/2386150 For our first live recording, we host Turkish writer and political commentator Ece Temelkuran to discuss her brave and beautiful new book, Nation Of Strangers. In a world unmaking our sense of safety and belonging, Ece offers something we desperately need: a vision of the future we can create together and requiring all of us. Her most powerful insight? The unhomed among us aren't simply victims of our times. They're pioneers, already carrying the know-how we need to build our new home together.

Chapters

  • (00:00:03) - How to Save Democracy
  • (00:07:19) - How To Lose A Country
  • (00:11:49) - Where Are We Now?
  • (00:14:31) - NATION OF STRANGLERS
  • (00:21:37) - Turkish intellectuals' struggle for freedom of speech
  • (00:22:52) - The Beauty of Exiles
  • (00:25:17) - How did we get to this?
  • (00:30:20) - The Light and the Darkness
  • (00:33:49) - The Right to Be Beautiful
  • (00:35:30) - I Am Being Unholed
  • (00:42:43) - Watching the Reality
  • (00:45:32) - Ajay's Favorite Words
  • (00:46:29) - The End of The Odyssey
  • (00:52:29) - A message for the stranger
  • (00:55:58) - How to Save Democracy
]]> false For our first live recording, we host Turkish writer and political commentator Ece Temelkuran to discuss her brave and beautiful new book, Nation Of Strangers. In a world unmaking our sense of safety and belonging, Ece offers something we desperately need: a vision of the future we can create together and requiring all of us. Her most powerful insight? The unhomed among us aren't simply victims of our times. They're pioneers, already carrying the know-how we need to build our new home together.

]]> 00:56:41 <![CDATA[Taiwan’s Transformation]]> Fri, 14 Nov 2025 05:00:00 +0000 How to Save Democracy https://permalink.castos.com/podcast/65669/episode/2204836 Trust in government has been collapsing all over the world over the last decade - but one country has bucked the trend. Fewer than 10% of the population trusted government in 2014, but by 2024, that figure had climbed above 70%. Spurred on by a collective of civic hackers calling themselves “Gov Zero”, Taiwan has trusted its people, opened its institutions, and even crowdsourced what was arguably the world’s most successful Covid response. In this episode, we draw out the lessons every nation can learn from this story with the help of one of its key actors, Audrey Tang.

Audrey is Taiwan’s “Cyber Ambassador” and former Minister of Digital Affairs. A prominent member of the Gov Zero collective, she became a reverse mentor to Minister Jaclyn Tsai in the aftermath of the peaceful Sunflower Revolution in 2014, before joining government herself in 2016 - and becoming the world’s first transgender minister in the process.

Chapters

  • (00:00:01) - A prayer for the Internet
  • (00:00:43) - How to Save Democracy in 2030
  • (00:04:27) - Protesters and the Tunisian Revolution
  • (00:08:33) - The 'GoV0' movement in Taiwan
  • (00:11:25) - The Sunflower Revolution and the Occupy Movement
  • (00:22:07) - Taiwan's vaccination response: Fast, Fair and Fun
  • (00:26:38) - Taiwan's growing trust level
  • (00:34:22) - Audrey's Singularity: The Future of Collaboration
  • (00:40:51) - Citizen Story: Building a Bridge
  • (00:50:45) - The Time for a Demonstration
  • (00:52:51) - How to Save Democracy
]]> false Trust in government has been collapsing all over the world over the last decade - but one country has bucked the trend. Fewer than 10% of the population trusted government in 2014, but by 2024, that figure had climbed above 70%. Spurred on by a collective of civic hackers calling themselves “Gov Zero”, Taiwan has trusted its people, opened its institutions, and even crowdsourced what was arguably the world’s most successful Covid response. In this episode, we draw out the lessons every nation can learn from this story with the help of one of its key actors, Audrey Tang.

Audrey is Taiwan’s “Cyber Ambassador” and former Minister of Digital Affairs. A prominent member of the Gov Zero collective, she became a reverse mentor to Minister Jaclyn Tsai in the aftermath of the peaceful Sunflower Revolution in 2014, before joining government herself in 2016 - and becoming the world’s first transgender minister in the process.

]]> 00:54:05 <![CDATA[The Irish Citizens’ Assembly]]> Tue, 04 Nov 2025 08:00:00 +0000 How to Save Democracy https://permalink.castos.com/podcast/65669/episode/2179490 In September 2025, Jon hosted a live event in Dublin exploring the past, present and future of one of the most exciting democratic experiments of recent times. Over the last 15 years, Ireland's Citizens' Assembly has brought nearly 600 randomly selected citizens together to deliberate on issues from abortion to marriage equality to biodiversity, before making recommendations to elected officials. Join us as we delve into what happened, how, and why - and ask whether this approach could help save democracy all over the world.

David Farrell is Chair of Politics at UCD and was part of the original We The Citizens project that preceded the Irish Constitutional Convention and the Citizens’ Assembly.

Art O'Leary is chief executive at An Coimisiún Toghcháin, the Electoral Commission of Ireland, the management and oversight organisation for electoral and wider democracy matters, and Secretary to the Citizens’ Assembly.

Louise Caldwell is one of the randomly selected citizens to have taken part in the Assembly, and has since joined the board of People Powered, the global advocacy organisation for participatory democracy.

Chapters

  • (00:00:03) - Becoming a Citizens Assembly member
  • (00:01:19) - Irish Citizens Assembly
  • (00:05:20) - Citizens Assembly
  • (00:13:28) - The Irish Citizens Assembly
  • (00:16:39) - Citizens' Assembly
  • (00:17:55) - Citizens Assembly and the Ireland referendum
  • (00:25:48) - Ireland's first Citizens Assembly
  • (00:33:31) - What is the Citizen Assembly
  • (00:39:18) - Citizens Assembly: The best cure for polarization
  • (00:43:42) - Citizens Assembly and the future
  • (00:51:23) - The German Community Parliament's Citizens Assembly
  • (00:58:33) - Citizens Assembly: The Safe Space for Democracy
  • (01:03:48) - How to Save Democracy
]]> false In September 2025, Jon hosted a live event in Dublin exploring the past, present and future of one of the most exciting democratic experiments of recent times. Over the last 15 years, Ireland's Citizens' Assembly has brought nearly 600 randomly selected citizens together to deliberate on issues from abortion to marriage equality to biodiversity, before making recommendations to elected officials. Join us as we delve into what happened, how, and why - and ask whether this approach could help save democracy all over the world.

David Farrell is Chair of Politics at UCD and was part of the original We The Citizens project that preceded the Irish Constitutional Convention and the Citizens’ Assembly.

Art O'Leary is chief executive at An Coimisiún Toghcháin, the Electoral Commission of Ireland, the management and oversight organisation for electoral and wider democracy matters, and Secretary to the Citizens’ Assembly.

Louise Caldwell is one of the randomly selected citizens to have taken part in the Assembly, and has since joined the board of People Powered, the global advocacy organisation for participatory democracy.

]]> 01:04:37 <![CDATA[Meet Jon]]> Tue, 01 Jul 2025 13:54:22 +0000 How to Save Democracy https://permalink.castos.com/podcast/65669/episode/2078814 In this episode, co-host Omezzine Khelifa turns the mic on her fellow presenter, Jon Alexander. Before founding the New Citizenship Project and writing Citizens, Jon spent a decade in the world of advertising — helping big brands sell more stuff. So how did he make the leap from marketing to reimagining democracy?

Omezzine asks the thoughtful (and tough) questions as we trace Jon’s journey from consumer culture to citizen action — as they explore what it really means to tell a hopeful new story about democracy’s future.

]]> false In this episode, co-host Omezzine Khelifa turns the mic on her fellow presenter, Jon Alexander. Before founding the New Citizenship Project and writing Citizens, Jon spent a decade in the world of advertising — helping big brands sell more stuff. So how did he make the leap from marketing to reimagining democracy?

Omezzine asks the thoughtful (and tough) questions as we trace Jon’s journey from consumer culture to citizen action — as they explore what it really means to tell a hopeful new story about democracy’s future.

]]> 00:23:50 <![CDATA[Meet Omezzine]]> Tue, 01 Jul 2025 13:52:26 +0000 How to Save Democracy https://permalink.castos.com/podcast/65669/episode/2078813 We’re figuring out how to fix democracy. Not by talking about it from a distance, but by meeting the people doing the work. In this episode, you have the chance to get to know co-host, Omezzine Khelifa — someone who’s lived every facet of this fight: reformer, revolutionary, politician, and practitioner. Omezzine proudly calls herself French-Tunisian, and her story begins in the heart of the 2010 Tunisian Revolution — what would become known to the world as the Arab Spring. From the frontlines of protest to the halls of parliament, from activism to tech, and even acting, Omezzine brings a rare mix of insight, experience, and conviction.

Chapters

  • (00:00:03) - How to Save Democracy
  • (00:01:11) - How I became involved in the revolution in Tunisia
  • (00:11:51) - Tunisia's first year under democratic rule
  • (00:15:26) - Tunisia's opposition to authoritarian rule
  • (00:19:54) - The 2019 Tunisian election
  • (00:28:30) - How to Save Democracy
]]> false We’re figuring out how to fix democracy. Not by talking about it from a distance, but by meeting the people doing the work. In this episode, you have the chance to get to know co-host, Omezzine Khelifa — someone who’s lived every facet of this fight: reformer, revolutionary, politician, and practitioner. Omezzine proudly calls herself French-Tunisian, and her story begins in the heart of the 2010 Tunisian Revolution — what would become known to the world as the Arab Spring. From the frontlines of protest to the halls of parliament, from activism to tech, and even acting, Omezzine brings a rare mix of insight, experience, and conviction.

]]> 00:30:44 <![CDATA[Citizen is a Verb]]> Tue, 01 Jul 2025 13:51:33 +0000 How to Save Democracy https://permalink.castos.com/podcast/65669/episode/2078810 Back in September 2024, as the US election took an unexpected turn, we gathered at the Conduit Club in London with Baratunde Thurston and Elizabeth Stewart — the powerhouse duo behind How To Citizen. Since launching their project in 2020, they’ve been telling the stories of the “next democracy,” spotlighting people who are already reimagining civic life. In this episode, we explore their radical, hopeful idea: that being a citizen is something we do, not something we are. It’s a call to action and a reminder that democracy is not a product, but a practice.

Chapters

  • (00:00:02) - A New Democracy: How to Save Democracy
  • (00:07:26) - Democracy and the Story of It
  • (00:14:42) - The Politics of Intuition
  • (00:21:43) - Invest in Relationships With Yourself
  • (00:26:22) - The inner struggle of Tunisian protesters
  • (00:29:42) - We Need to Understand Power
  • (00:33:29) - 3 pillars of the Commit to the Collective
  • (00:37:31) - The Story of Broadband in America
  • (00:42:18) - 4 Pillar of the Engagement Plan
  • (00:44:22) - The Case for a Democracy
  • (00:54:41) - What I Found So Empowering About The Night
  • (00:57:13) - How to Save Democracy
]]> false Back in September 2024, as the US election took an unexpected turn, we gathered at the Conduit Club in London with Baratunde Thurston and Elizabeth Stewart — the powerhouse duo behind How To Citizen. Since launching their project in 2020, they’ve been telling the stories of the “next democracy,” spotlighting people who are already reimagining civic life. In this episode, we explore their radical, hopeful idea: that being a citizen is something we do, not something we are. It’s a call to action and a reminder that democracy is not a product, but a practice.

]]> 00:58:00 <![CDATA[Facing the Menace]]> Tue, 01 Jul 2025 13:50:45 +0000 How to Save Democracy https://permalink.castos.com/podcast/65669/episode/2078808 In this episode, we’re not looking away. We’re acknowledging the cracks in our democracies and asking what can still be done. Recorded live at the Conduit Club in early 2024, this powerful conversation brings together two sharp, prescient voices: political strategist and pollster Paul Hilder, and author and journalist Ece Temelkuran. Paul has worked on elections across Europe, uncovering the deeper trends shaping our politics. Ece, whose book How to Lose a Country warned of creeping authoritarianism back in 2019, draws urgent lessons from Turkey and beyond. Their insights feel even more vital now than they did then.

Chapters

  • (00:00:02) - How to Save Democracy
  • (00:01:31) - Poland's election result
  • (00:03:49) - Paul Krugman on the UK election
  • (00:12:01) - The challenges of right-wing populism
  • (00:14:59) - Germany's huge demonstrations against immigration plan
  • (00:18:25) - This is What Politics Might Look Like in 2030
  • (00:19:59) - How the Polish election affected the election
  • (00:30:43) - Dissolving the Democracy
  • (00:37:19) - The European establishment's choice between socialism and fascism
  • (00:44:51) - Democracy in the age of Trump
  • (00:51:06) - The role of faith
  • (00:55:12) - AJ on Hope and Its Impact
  • (00:59:48) - How to Save Democracy
]]> false In this episode, we’re not looking away. We’re acknowledging the cracks in our democracies and asking what can still be done. Recorded live at the Conduit Club in early 2024, this powerful conversation brings together two sharp, prescient voices: political strategist and pollster Paul Hilder, and author and journalist Ece Temelkuran. Paul has worked on elections across Europe, uncovering the deeper trends shaping our politics. Ece, whose book How to Lose a Country warned of creeping authoritarianism back in 2019, draws urgent lessons from Turkey and beyond. Their insights feel even more vital now than they did then.

]]> 01:00:42