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Global Town Hall: Facilitating dialogue in a divided, dangerous world
Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia (FPCI) founder Dino Patti Djalal said grassroots-oriented forums like its Global Town Hall were increasingly needed as many governments were locked in "fighting mode".
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses the Indonesian public during a virtual discussion hosted by the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia (FPCI) in May 2022. The FPCI will soon host the Global Town Hall 2022, a grassroots-oriented forum to encourage global cooperation to counter increased diplomatic tensions worldwide. (Courtesy of FPCI/-)
In response to increasing polarization and heightened global risks, the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia (FPCI) think tank has created a platform it says will help grassroots groups and civil society organizations engage in dialogue internationally.
FPCI founder Dino Patti Djalal said forums like its Global Town Hall were needed as the world became more divided and dangerous, with governments in “fighting mode” as high inflation, food and energy crises exacerbated by the war in Ukraine and lingering issues from the COVID-19 pandemic battered nations from all sides.
“This is the philosophy of Global Town Hall: While governments are in a contentious mode of their own, grassroots groups across nations should connect and have meaningful conversations. We hope this will contribute to some degree of stability,” Dino said last weekend.
The aim of this year’s event, which is to be held virtually on Nov. 5, is to offer connections and drive conversations all over the world.
“Providing a forum in which north-south and east-west voices can be heard is quite politically significant,” Dino told The Jakarta Post.
This year’s Global Town Hall will be jointly hosted by New York-based advocacy group Global Citizen, which its chief policy, impact and government affairs officer Michael Sheldrick said would be an opportunity to engage with citizens from around the world and familiarize them with the processes of the Group of 20 Summit.
“The G20 can often seem opaque and focus on lofty world leaders and summits. But the reality is they make decisions that impact us all,” Sheldrick told the Post on Saturday.
