To foster civic education to advance freedom and democracy around the world, the Costa Rican-based nonprofit Demo Lab and the Cornell Center on Democracy’s held the first international Train the Trainers event in July at the Cornell Tech campus in New York City. 

The two-day intensive training brought together about 34 democracy leaders, human rights advocates, civic leaders, educators and activists from 14 countries, along with a cohort of students from Cornell and Ithaca High School.

The shared objective: increasing access to civic education, bolstering civic participation and increasing knowledge of freedom and democracy through the Freedom Academy project.

“Our first International Train the Trainers at Cornell Tech marked a significant milestone for Freedom Academy,” said Nia Demming, CEO of Demo Lab Foundation. Bringing together leaders committed to advancing freedom reaffirmed our belief in the power of civic education to inspire action, empower communities, and create a lasting global impact.”

The Freedom Academy project is a set of training courses designed and implemented by Demo Lab, with academic support and certification from the Cornell Center on Democracy. Its main purpose is to fight apathy through a Theory of Change framework based on three pillars: Knowledge, Reflection, and Practice. The Center on Democracy provides academic support on learning objectives, pedagogy, thematic content and assessing the impact of the Freedom Academy.

The Freedom Course, a 15-hour online Cornell certificate, is the first building block in the Freedom Academy journey open to any person from any place in the world. The program integrates foundational theories of democracy and freedom, telling stories through documentaries about real people who have risked their lives defending democracy and fighting autocracies in their home countries. These documentaries, created by Demo Lab and its partner Cultivator Content Labs, aim to shift viewers’ mindsets from civic apathy to civic engagement and action. 

The summer event at Cornell Tech focused on training trainers for the Freedom Course, gathering feedback to better shape the curriculum around specific country needs, and building a stronger global community. Developing civic multipliers for the expansion of this online civic education program is a priority for the Center on Democracy as one of Demo Lab’s leading academic partners. 

The Train the Trainers weekend program featured sessions from Demming; Damon Wilson, president and CEO of the National Endowment for Democracy; Felix Maradiaga, president of the World Liberty Research Congress; Freddy Guevara, director of the World Liberty Congress Academy; María Paula Romo, director of executive education and innovation of The Adam Smith Center for Economic Freedom; Rachel Riedl, professor and Director of the Center on Democracy; Marian Vidaurri, Cornell research associate; Max Reynolds, director of projects of The Reynolds Foundation; and Scott Foreman, founder of Cultivator Content Labs.

Students affiliated with the Cornell Center on Democracy, including undergraduate Democracy Fellows and the student lead of the Ithaca High School Civic Pathways Project, participated in the program. 

“Demo Lab’s Train the Trainers was an enlightening experience,” said Oscar Zhuo ’27. “Standing elbow to elbow with, learning from and listening to some of the premier freedom fighters and democracy advocates around the world was truly a magical experience. Demo Lab has undeniably created a brilliant tool for inspiring democratic interest and educating newer students about democracy's values. Democracy is a practice, so figuring out how students can go from classrooms to Congress floors is key.”