Sister Cities in Action at the Glocal Summer Day:
Excerpt from the report on Glokal Summer Day, hosted by the Berliner Entwicklungspolitischer Ratschlag (Glokaler Sommertag des BER). You can find the full report (in German) here.
How can Berlin’s international connections serve as a platform to incorporate the perspectives and voices of diaspora communities from the Global South?
3rd July 2025, Discussion Workshop at Berlin Global Village
In times of global, democratic, and environmental challenges, we need a political approach in which people and civil society organizations are at the core of finding solutions. How can we center their ideas in our cities, towns, and neighborhoods? The New Municipalism approach advocates for inclusive, grassroots-democratic, and public-interest-oriented policies that drive social and ecological transformation. It is gaining traction worldwide and demonstrates at the local level how social participation is being reimagined—with people at the center of municipal structures.
New Municipalism and Other Forms of Grassroots Democracy
New Municipalism aims to ensure democratic participation for everyone in society—that is, a democracy that is shaped and lived by the grassroots (“from below”). The concept has points of connection with other ideas: For example, New Municipalism and cooperativism1 are both forms of organization that open up new avenues for democratic decision-making structures and collective action—the latter specifically in the context of trade relations. At the heart of cooperativism is the principle that every cooperative—regardless of its size, has one vote and participates in decision-making on an equal footing. This could also provide impetus for international cooperation between the North and the South.
(City) Partnerships – A Platform for Democratic Participation
Civil society (city) partnerships, among other things, serve as a tool or platform for democratic participation, as they are generally closer to local (governmental) structures than other civil society actors. As a result, they offer more accessible points of contact than traditional participatory formats at the local level.
At the same time, city partnerships serve as a bridge between two places (cities or municipalities), opening up new avenues for action at the international level—particularly regarding foreign policy issues—that would not be possible through international cooperation at the national level. One example is the city partnership between Kreuzberg and Dêrik (Northern Syria), which implements projects to support local self-organization that would not be possible at the national level (between Germany and Syria). Ultimately, city partnerships and other forms of civil society partnerships create issue-focused spaces for interaction between people, initiatives, and organizations in different locations that are working on similar global challenges. Personal encounter fosters exchange—and exchange enables mutual learning and new approaches to solutions.
Diaspora Communities and Voices from the Global South
A clear consensus within the group was that the participation of civil society—as well as diaspora communities—in democratic decision-making processes lends them legitimacy and a long-term perspective.
The participation of diaspora communities can make perspectives from the Global South more visible. Through their participation, people—with their stories, interests, needs, ideas, and skills—are brought to the forefront.
When diasporas participate in (civil society) city partnerships, new perspectives on partnerships—but above all on the people in the partner cities—become possible, perspectives that are less deficit-oriented. This is because governmental perspectives—shaped by national interests—tend to offer a one-sided view of partner cities. Diasporic communities help to highlight imbalances and make partnerships more equitable and based on solidarity. They often serve as a bridge to understanding between both cities—on linguistic, cultural, and political levels.
To enable diaspora communities to participate in local democratic decision-making processes (e.g., through civil society-based city partnerships), there is a need for safe and linguistically accessible spaces where everyone feels welcome. This gives rise to new perspectives and strategies on development policy, migration, economy/trade, education, and culture. It also fosters alternative forms of cooperation (e.g., cooperativism).
Conclusion
City partnerships that are rooted in civil society and involve diaspora communities provide a platform for the democratic participation of diverse social groups and can create spaces for global solidarity, where mutual learning becomes possible.
- Cooperativism is a model in which people voluntarily come together to form cooperatives (Cooperativas) in order to collectively meet their economic, social, and cultural needs. It is based on values such as mutual aid, solidarity, and worker participation. The goal is an economy that serves people—not profit. ↩︎