Seeking international councillors
This May I finished my politics degree at university. I was often awake until dawn, writing essays about politicians and civil society. Now, ‘I’m a Councillor’ has me chasing the same politicians and contacting grassroots bloggers, looking for volunteer politicians abroad to talk to young people in the UK, and all those high-falutin’ theories are making good. It’s exciting to play my part.
The international section of ‘I’m a Councillor’, with five representatives from countries around the world, ran for the first time in 2007. It was such a success that we’re recruiting five more volunteers to answer questions this year. It’s great to get young Brits connected with real people from other countries.
The good news: David Bly, from the Minnesota house of Representatives, is on board again. David was very helpful last year, and we look forward to having him back. We think we’ve found someone in India, thanks to Kris Dev; and I’m waiting for confirmation from one councillor in Tartu, Estonia and one in Malmö, Sweden.
The bad news: Outside of Western Europe, it’s difficult to find anyone at the local or regional levels of government. I dig up the civic roots and the
media-conscious canopy, but it’s very hard to find people with links to local politics. I’ll show you what I mean…