This participatory panel proposes rethinking democracy beyond the ballot box and institutions, recognizing the ways it is built from the territories.

With a historical perspective and an eye toward the Central American context, three voices with experience in Guatemala will discuss the shrinking of civic space, the advance of authoritarianism, and the responses emerging from communities.

Beyond formal institutions, other forms of organization, participation, advocacy, and alliance-building will be showcased through the experiences of Indigenous peoples, women, youth, and social movements. Rather than focusing on the crisis, the panel will share stories of resilience and hope that allow us to recognize how democracy is exercised, transformed, and sustained daily from the territories, generating lessons and new narratives for Central America.