At the Athens Democracy Forum, Roger Cohen moderates a debate with Amos Gitai, Balázs Orbán, and RepresentWomen’s Cynthia Richie Terrell on lessons from past truces, new dialogue experiments, and whether bridging divides can truly influence geopolitics.
Event: Bringing Opposite Sides Together at the Athens Democracy Forum
Moderator: Roger Cohen, Paris Bureau Chief, The New York Times & ADF Host
Panelists: Amos Gitai (Filmmaker); Balázs Orbán (MP & Political Director to the Prime Minister of Hungary); Cynthia Richie Terrell (Founder & Executive Director, RepresentWomen)
Polarization is reshaping politics and peace processes worldwide. This Athens Democracy Forum conversation asks whether deeply divided societies can still find common ground—and whether new experiments in dialogue can actually move geopolitics.
The panel explores:
-
Lessons from history: How fragile truces formed—and what made them hold.
-
Systems & incentives: Electoral rules and representation that encourage cooperation over zero-sum politics.
-
Culture & narrative: Film, media, and public storytelling as tools to humanize “the other.”
-
Real-world tests: What’s working (and failing) in efforts to reduce polarization at national and international levels.
Key takeaway: Durable peace requires both structural incentives for cooperation and humanizing narratives that make compromise politically and personally possible.
Watch the full video here.