The World Without Institutions: Democratic Disillusionment | Buffett Conversation with Lilith Verstrynge

Join us for a conversation with Lilith Verstrynge, former member of Spain’s Congress of Deputies and Spain’s former Secretary of State for the 2030 Agenda. By the age of 30, she had risen from student political organizer to parliamentarian, working to connect domestic policymaking with left-wing social movements and the United Nations’ sustainable development goals. At the age of 31, she announced her retirement from politics and departure from Podemos, the political party she had dedicated her career to building. 

In wide-ranging conversation with Iza Ding, Associate Professor of Political Science at Northwestern University's Weinberg College of Arts & Sciences, Verstrynge will reflect on democratic disillusionment and populist insurgencies, examining how political movements respond when traditional institutions lose the confidence of citizens. Ding and Verstrynge will also explore why left populist movements do — or don’t — create viable political parties and consider the role of multilateral organizations such as the European Union amid a waning rules-based international order. Audience Q&A will follow. 

Doors will open at 12:00 p.m., and lunch will begin at 12:15 p.m. 

Please note that 720 University Place is not an ADA-accessible space. Increasing physical access to buildings and facilities is a goal of the University, but not all buildings and venues have been updated.