CCD held two meetings in 2003 and 2005 at the Pocantico Conference Center of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund on the topic of Democracy Education.

The Global Strategic Plan for Democracy Education
June 8-10, 2003
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The task of developing a global strategic plan for democracy education was the subject of the first Pocantico Conference, bringing together 34 educators, representatives of civil society and governments from thirteen countries (India, Indonesia, Tunisia, Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, South Africa, Chile, Mexico, Poland, Russia, Latvia, and the United States), as well as representatives of the World Bank, UNESCO, UNDP, and the Organization of American States. The conference was jointly organized by CCD and the American Forum for Global Education.

The Global Strategic Plan for Democracy Education outlines a series of specific recommendations to improve the availability and effectiveness of approaches to teaching democracy around the world. In November 2007 at the Bamako Ministerial Conference of the Community of Democracies, CD governments endorsed the Global Strategic Plan for Democracy Education in the Bamako Consensus:

“We resolve to… Increase support to civil society especially to facilitate citizens’ engagement in policy making processes and in the provision of civic and democracy education. In particular, we take note of the recommendations outlined in the Global Strategic Plan for Democracy Education (2003) which sets out principles and practical measures for democracy education.”

With this backing of governments, CCD is now working to put the Global Strategic Plan into action. Together with the International Steering Committee of the Community of Democracies and leading experts on democracy education and education policy, CCD will soon be taking steps to seek the support of governments in the implementation of the Plan.

The Pocantico Conference on Democracy Education in the Middle East and Muslim Africa
March 18-20, 2005
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Following a recommendation of the Global Strategic Plan on Democracy Education that called for special attention given to the Middle East and Africa, CCD, The Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy, and the American Forum for Global Education organized a second conference at Pocantico, The Pocantico Conference on Democracy Education in the Middle East and Muslim Africa. The objective of mapping the opportunities and barriers for the promotion of democracy education in the Middle East and North Africa brought together 30 specialists from the MENA region as well as from Senegal, Nigeria, Europe, and the United States.

Participants prepared a series of 19 recommendations to be presented to Ministers of the governments of those countries attending the Community of Democracies April 2005 Conference in Santiago, Chile.