Building common grounds, sowing collective action

CONFERENCE
Democracy and the new progressive wave in Latin America – From the Bolivian experience to the Brazilian elections
Madrid, Spain | September 12th, 2022
María Zambrano Hall, Círculo de Bellas Artes
1st SESSION – 17:00 hs
Brazil at the crossroads: democratic crisis and electoral scenarios
Panelists: Jean Wyllys (Brazil) – Izadora Brito (Brazil) – Denise Dora (Brazil)
Moderator: Paulo Abrão (Brazil)
They came back, and they are millions, The process of change in Bolivia and its regional
[A discussion based on the book Volvieron y son millones, El proceso de cambio en Bolivia (2005-2020), Akal]
Panelists: Álvaro García Linera (Bolivia) – María Lois (Spain) – Guillaume Long (Ecuador)
Moderator: Rafael Heiber (Brazil)
Institutional welcome: Jesús Espino – Editor of Akal

metapolis is an initiative by Common Action Forum. A collective effort of CAF’s team, members, collaborators and participants. Our goal is to develop and support a progressive agenda as alternative to the current model that has led us to a world of increasing inequalities, environmental devastation and unaccomplished freedom for most of the global citizenry.
metapolis Vol.3_ Nº 1

The New Social Contract is a Maysoun Douas project in collaboration with the Common Action Forum, which seeks to talk about the conflicts of the constantly changing present and aims to reflect on the social dynamics that determine current lifestyles and the challenges facing humanity.
2022_ 2nd. EDITION
In this second edition, we have had the pleasure of having policy makers, researchers and jurists of the stature of Hanna Jalloul, Eduardo Barcesat, María Lois, Gonzalo Fanjul and Juan Luis Manfredi.
2021_ 1st. EDITION
In this first series, we have focused on democratic processes, bringing together important actors from our political and social scene: Manuela Carmena, Fernando Mayor Zaragoza, Ana Sáenz De Miera, José María Lassalle and Andrés Ordóñez.
Each year, CAF holds a major public forum, gathering experts and relevant actors to engage in a series of debates that can give fruit to further progressive initiatives that move its mission forward. Problems such as poverty, which affects half of humanity, or global warming, which affects us all, are just part of a dystopian reality that no longer allows us to give ourselves the luxury of thinking about local utopias.
OCTAGON is an event designed to serve as CAF’s yearly official gathering. Each November, all formal members have the opportunity to meet in Madrid, debate specific topics in round-table sessions and participate in the planning of institutional activities. Apart from the public opening, the rest of the program remains closed session for invited guests.
read more +
Thursday, 18.11.2021
Welcome: Enrique Ojeda – Wadah Khanfar
Keynote: Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
“The importance of progressive values for post-COVID-19 recovery and to face the challenges of the 21st Century”
Comentator: José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
Participants: Rebeca Grynspan – Pedro Marques – Cecilia Nicolini
Moderator: Rafael Heiber
OPENING & 1st SESSION
Trade as peace and migration as conflict
read more +
Mobilities and mobilisations: a transatlantic prologue to a communitarian, cosmopolitan and connected future
Welcome: Ximena Caraza-Campos – Rafael Heiber – Alfonso Zegbe
With distinguished participation from: Marcelo Ebrard
1st Session – Trade as peace and migration as conflict: new limits to mobility in the face of increasing environmental and post-identitarian crisis
The climate crisis is upon us, and the COVID-19 pandemic has not only served as a challenge for multilateral cooperation, but as a clear symptom of the ecological imbalance plaguing our planet. The proliferation of extreme meteorological events and increasing inequalities continue to push towards an imminent migration crisis. Meanwhile, ultra-nationalist and authoritarian patterns in many countries continue to lead toward advances in securitization agendas and xenophobic and discriminatory policies. Is it possible to stop the flows of people in a world in which goods and capitals operate without borders? Addressing this asymmetry and rethinking freedom of movement and migratory dilemmas reveals we must take initiative towards a new, more sustainable global narrative, especially now at the gates of space exploration.
Participants: Pedro Brieger – Zenia Hellgren – Rodolfo Pastor
Host: Felipe Llamas
2nd SESSION
Here lies the leviathan: democratic challenges in a digital age
read more +
The information flows inherent in all our interactions are mediated by a common factor: technology. The enormous speed at which technology intertwines into our lives makes it difficult to regulate it or understand its consequences, both for our quotidian life as well as for our communities. Transnational technology conglomerates have crept into our living rooms and pockets, taking on leading biopolitical roles. The financial market has rolled out the red carpet for the average citizen to participate in its global casino, justifying disappointments related to the material economy with promises. Knowledge has begun to resemble noise and misinformation. New forms of participation flourish at the same time in the shape of post-truth, trivialization of politics and digital divides. Data connects us, floods us, guides us, and confuses us; at the same time, it also shapes us. How do we confront these risks? Is it possible to safeguard autonomy and ethics in the age of Big Data? The global situation requires a mobilization capable of responding to the great questions of our time, but also a new way of enacting change, from the point of view of a diverse rather than segregated reality. The first great step towards this contemporary challenge is addressing new social and community dynamics in a time marked by precarity, and understanding how they move and shape us.
Participants: José María Lassalle – Solana Larsen – Juan Carlos Monedero
Host: Renata Ávila
FILM FORUM
Viewing and colloquium: migrant humanity?
[«Bridging Borders» – «The Wait»]
read more +
This micro-cycle of audiovisual art reflects on the direct, human experiences of contemporary migration, but also views it as a phenomenon inherent to every ecosystem, underlining the need to change the conceptual framework of this emancipatory debate. This contrasts two short, conceptual audiovisual pieces presented by their authors, by first viewing the films and then dialoguing together. How do we bring the human element back to the center of migration issues? How do we integrate the natural world into the debate?
Participants: Minerva Cuevas – Sonia Guggisberg
Moderator: Anabella Salem
A new initiative by the Common Action Forum to analyze the most pressing global issues. Every month, a new episode of CAF Podcast will be available.
Maysoun-Douas – CAF Podcast ep.4/2023
Gloria Elizo – CAF Podcast ep.3/2023
Daniel Rojas – CAF Podcast ep.2/2023
Jean Wyllys – CAF Podcast ep.1/2023
Ramzy Baroud – CAF Podcast ep.2/2022
Thembisa Fakude – CAF Podcast ep.1/2022
Arlene Clemesha – CAF Podcast ep.3/2021
Ayo Obe – CAF Podcast ep.2/2021
Wadah Khanfar – CAF Podcast ep.1/2021
Our goal is to establish and encourage global platforms of cooperation, research and advisory in order do implement alternative solutions for social progress and cosmopolitan citizenship. Don’t miss a thing and SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER or follow us on our social media profiles to stay updated about Common Action Forum’s latest news, activities and events.
Building common grounds, sowing collective action
The neoliberal extraction, domination, and exploitation model leads us to collapses, such as far-right-wing movements and climate change. CAF facilitates spaces for transformative solutions the world needs… through common grounds and collective action.

1st SESSION – 17:00 hs
Brazil at the crossroads: democratic crisis and electoral scenarios
Panelists: Jean Wyllys (Brazil) – Izadora Brito (Brazil) – Denise Dora (Brazil)
Moderator: Paulo Abrão (Brazil)
They came back, and they are millions, The process of change in Bolivia and its regional
[A discussion based on the book Volvieron y son millones, El proceso de cambio en Bolivia (2005-2020), Akal]
Panelists: Álvaro García Linera (Bolivia) – María Lois (Spain) – Guillaume Long (Ecuador)
Moderator: Rafael Heiber (Brazil)
Institutional welcome: Jesús Espino – Editor of Akal

read more +
Thursday, 18.11.2021
Welcome: Enrique Ojeda – Wadah Khanfar
Keynote: Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
“The importance of progressive values for post-COVID-19 recovery and to face the challenges of the 21st Century”
Comentator: José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
Participants: Rebeca Grynspan – Pedro Marques – Cecilia Nicolini
Moderator: Rafael Heiber
OPENING & 1st SESSION
Trade as peace and migration as conflict
read more +
Mobilities and mobilisations: a transatlantic prologue to a communitarian, cosmopolitan and connected future
Welcome: Ximena Caraza-Campos – Rafael Heiber – Alfonso Zegbe
With distinguished participation from: Marcelo Ebrard
1st Session – Trade as peace and migration as conflict: new limits to mobility in the face of increasing environmental and post-identitarian crisis
The climate crisis is upon us, and the COVID-19 pandemic has not only served as a challenge for multilateral cooperation, but as a clear symptom of the ecological imbalance plaguing our planet. The proliferation of extreme meteorological events and increasing inequalities continue to push towards an imminent migration crisis. Meanwhile, ultra-nationalist and authoritarian patterns in many countries continue to lead toward advances in securitization agendas and xenophobic and discriminatory policies. Is it possible to stop the flows of people in a world in which goods and capitals operate without borders? Addressing this asymmetry and rethinking freedom of movement and migratory dilemmas reveals we must take initiative towards a new, more sustainable global narrative, especially now at the gates of space exploration.
Participants: Pedro Brieger – Zenia Hellgren – Rodolfo Pastor
Host: Felipe Llamas
2nd SESSION
Here lies the leviathan: democratic challenges in a digital age
read more +
The information flows inherent in all our interactions are mediated by a common factor: technology. The enormous speed at which technology intertwines into our lives makes it difficult to regulate it or understand its consequences, both for our quotidian life as well as for our communities. Transnational technology conglomerates have crept into our living rooms and pockets, taking on leading biopolitical roles. The financial market has rolled out the red carpet for the average citizen to participate in its global casino, justifying disappointments related to the material economy with promises. Knowledge has begun to resemble noise and misinformation. New forms of participation flourish at the same time in the shape of post-truth, trivialization of politics and digital divides. Data connects us, floods us, guides us, and confuses us; at the same time, it also shapes us. How do we confront these risks? Is it possible to safeguard autonomy and ethics in the age of Big Data? The global situation requires a mobilization capable of responding to the great questions of our time, but also a new way of enacting change, from the point of view of a diverse rather than segregated reality. The first great step towards this contemporary challenge is addressing new social and community dynamics in a time marked by precarity, and understanding how they move and shape us.
Participants: José María Lassalle – Solana Larsen – Juan Carlos Monedero
Host: Renata Ávila
FILM FORUM
Viewing and colloquium: migrant humanity?
[«Bridging Borders» – «The Wait»]
read more +
This micro-cycle of audiovisual art reflects on the direct, human experiences of contemporary migration, but also views it as a phenomenon inherent to every ecosystem, underlining the need to change the conceptual framework of this emancipatory debate. This contrasts two short, conceptual audiovisual pieces presented by their authors, by first viewing the films and then dialoguing together. How do we bring the human element back to the center of migration issues? How do we integrate the natural world into the debate?
Participants: Minerva Cuevas – Sonia Guggisberg
Moderator: Anabella Salem
A new initiative by the Common Action Forum to analyze the most pressing global issues. Every month, a new episode of CAF Podcast will be available.
Maysoun-Douas – CAF Podcast ep.4/2023
Gloria Elizo – CAF Podcast ep.3/2023
Daniel Rojas – CAF Podcast ep.2/2023
Jean Wyllys – CAF Podcast ep.1/2023
Ramzy Baroud – CAF Podcast ep.2/2022
Thembisa Fakude – CAF Podcast ep.1/2022
Arlene Clemesha – CAF Podcast ep.3/2021
Ayo Obe – CAF Podcast ep.2/2021
Wadah Khanfar – CAF Podcast ep.1/2021

2022_ 2nd. EDITION
In this second edition, we have had the pleasure of having policy makers, researchers and jurists of the stature of Hanna Jalloul, Eduardo Barcesat, María Lois, Gonzalo Fanjul and Juan Luis Manfredi.
2021_ 1st. EDITION
In this first series, we have focused on democratic processes, bringing together important actors from our political and social scene: Manuela Carmena, Fernando Mayor Zaragoza, Ana Sáenz De Miera, José María Lassalle and Andrés Ordóñez.
metapolis is an initiative by Common Action Forum. A collective effort of CAF’s team, members, collaborators and participants. Our goal is to develop and support a progressive agenda as alternative to the current model that has led us to a world of increasing inequalities, environmental devastation and unaccomplished freedom for most of the global citizenry.
metapolis Vol.3_ Nº 1
Each year, CAF holds a major public forum, gathering experts and relevant actors to engage in a series of debates that can give fruit to further progressive initiatives that move its mission forward. Problems such as poverty, which affects half of humanity, or global warming, which affects us all, are just part of a dystopian reality that no longer allows us to give ourselves the luxury of thinking about local utopias.
OCTAGON is an event designed to serve as CAF’s yearly official gathering. Each November, all formal members have the opportunity to meet in Madrid, debate specific topics in round-table sessions and participate in the planning of institutional activities. Apart from the public opening, the rest of the program remains closed session for invited guests.
Our goal is to establish and encourage global platforms of cooperation, research and advisory in order do implement alternative solutions for social progress and cosmopolitan citizenship. Don’t miss a thing and SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER or follow us on our social media profiles to stay updated about Common Action Forum’s latest news, activities and events.