Nathan Gardels

“This is a situation fraught with risk. In the regions where it is more deeply rooted—the Americas and Europe—representative democracy is in crisis. At the core of this crisis is the widening gap between people’s aspirations and the capacity of political institutions to respond to the demands of society. It is one of the ironies of our age that this deficit of trust in political institutions coexists with the rise of citizens capable of making the choices that shape their lives and influence the future of their societies. To put it in a nutshell, our challenge is to bridge the gap between demos and res publica, between people and the institutions of public interest, reweaving the threads that may reconnect the political system with the demands of society.1”
― Nathan Gardels, Renovating Democracy: Governing in the Age of Globalization and Digital Capitalism (

“To take hold, any vision with a chance of enduring realization must give people and nations alike confidence that they are once again in charge of their destiny, that they have as fair a shot as anyone else in making something of their lives. The Nobel scientist Ilya Prigogine understood that the present doesn’t determine the future so much as our image of the future determines what we do in the present. Following this insight, to succeed at renovating our societies today, we must paint a convincing image of a future in which everyone has a place.1”
― Nathan Gardels, Renovating Democracy: Governing in the Age of Globalization and Digital Capitalism (