Is Liberal Democracy at Risk?‬�

Democracyis now universally valued, and no powerful alternative exists today to societies governedby the will of the people, expressed in free and fair elections. The ongoingcollapse of Arab authoritarianism is a striking manifestation of democracy'sappeal. However, at the same time, democracy seems to be in crisis in Europe:trust in democratic institutions and voters' turnout is declining dramatically, whereas populism as well as xenophobia are on the rise and the common publicsphere is fragmenting. "Is Liberal Democracy at Risk?" – this question was at the center of apublic debate at the Vienna Akademietheater on June 26. Emma Bonino , Vice President of the Italian Senate, Ronald Dworkin , Professor of Philosophy at New York andOxford Universities, George Soros , the founder of the Open SocietyFoundations, as well as former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt and Canadian philosopher and IWMPermenant Fellow Charles Taylor were on stage to discuss what can be done to save democracy in times ofpolitical turmoil. Emma Bonino Vice-president of the Italian Senate; Minister for International Tradein the cabinet of Romano Prodi from 2006 to 2008 Ronald Dworkin Professor of Philosophy and Professor of Law, New York University andOxford University George Soros Founder and Chairman of the Open Society Foundations. Guy Verhofstadt Chairperson of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe in theEuropean Parliament; Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. Moderation: Charles Taylor Professor em. of Philosophy, McGill University, Montréal; IWM PermanentFellow