What we do…
The International Association for Democracy (IAD) is an NGO that works to defend and advance democracy around the globe. We link people with their governments and lobby governments to promote, strengthen and safeguard democratic institutions, processes, norms and values at home and abroad. We work to raise public awareness about the current state of democracy around the world and highlight what should be done to better defend and promote democracy. Our actions are guided by promoting and advancing democracy with respect for the culture, history and development of the state itself.
Why we do it…
With the number of authoritarian countries on the rise, we actively campaign for a world where democracy and freedom flourish, where people’s voices are heard. We believe that everyone should be able to cast their vote in free and fair democratic elections, and influence the direction and future of their respective state. Free, open and peaceful expression of opinions is an essential component of any democracy. The rule of law must be respected: all citizens should be equal before the law and equally accountable to the law. Human rights are inalienable and must be universally protected.
IAD was founded by a group of individuals from across Europe, who were alarmed by an increasing threat to democracies around the globe and the weak response of the EU and other Western democratic nations in defending democracy internationally. Some of the recent events that drove us to take action were: the passage of the Hong Kong national security law; the fall of the democratically elected government in Afghanistan; the erosion of the rule of law and democratic values in Hungary and Poland; and most recently Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. In each case, we felt that the EU, its member states and other Western democratic nations did too little to support and defend democracy.
Meet The Team
Valeria Bortă
Founder & Co-Director
Biography
Valeria is passionate about international relations and security. She gained professional experience of over two years on small arms and light weapons control at the South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons, within the United Nations Development Programme. Additionally, in the lead up to the Russian illegal invasion of Ukraine, she worked at the European Union Delegation to the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe. Having been born in the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine’s neighbour, the war in Ukraine is of particular concern to her.
Oliver St. John
Founder & Co-Director
Biography
After completing his master’s degree in International and European Relations, Oliver has gained extensive experience working in the fields of diplomacy and international relations, having worked in different roles (including as a Policy Officer) for two embassies. Oliver has long felt that more needs to be done to defend democratic values and strengthen democracies around the globe and as a result proposed founding IAD to help achieve this goal.
Hermione Kent
Secretary
Biography
Hermione is from the UK and is currently pursuing an undergraduate degree in History and Politics, with plans to proceed to Masters level. During this time, Hermione has established a particular interest in international security and policymaking. Specifically, much of Hermione’s work focuses on Russia and Russian political history, examining the effect this has had on Russia’s current foreign affairs. Hermione strongly believes that both raising civic awareness of what a true democracy looks like and increasing civic engagement are crucial to legitimate modern democracies.
Strade Cadillay
Treasurer
Biography
Strade works at HSBC leading new technology initiatives, and has an economics and software development background. He is also a volunteer Police Officer in the Metropolitan Police, and was a First Aid Responder with St John Ambulance. Strade believes that IAD can make a terrific impact in promoting democracy at every level, from the grassroots and up through to policy-making.
Anna Herca
Executive Teams Manager
Biography
Anna has extensive professional experience in human resources and executive support. Her academic background is in social anthropology and psychological science, with a particular focus on novel therapeutic options for psychological trauma resulting from war and displacement. Originally from Latvia, Anna grew up witnessing the development and challenges of the country’s transition to democracy. This experience instilled in her a deep passion for defending democratic values.
Core Team
Vincent Busch
Design Lead
Biography
Vincent studies Communication, Multimedia and Game Design in the Netherlands.
With a lifelong interest in geopolitical developments and a strong belief in a democratic world order and liberal values, he perceives a need to counteract contemporarily rising authoritarian threats to freedom and human rights. Because of that he joined a pan-European federalist party in 2019, and is now helping the IAD find its way to the spotlight.
Roman de Prez
Social Media Lead
Biography
Roman is based in Edinburgh and has a background in Social Anthropology and Politics. During this time he focused his studies on the psycho-social realm of politics, writing his undergraduate dissertation on the effects of social media and shortening attention spans on democratic health. Leading IAD’s social media team, Roman feels honoured to have an international platform to inform and promote democracy in a healthy and accessible manner.