On May 10, 2023, representatives of CoD Governing Council Member States, Invited Observer States, Civil Society Pillar and CoD YouthLeads convened in Warsaw for the 36^th CoD Governing Council (GC) meeting, chaired by CoD Presidency Canada.

‘We, as leaders on the international stage have a shared responsibility to strengthen cooperation amongst democratic partners’- said Foreign Minister Melanie Joly of Canada in her video message to 36th Governing Council.

At a time when democracy continues to face significant challenge, the meeting discussed key issues including resisting authoritarianism, building the resilience of democracies, and enhancing youth civic and political engagement.

As part of the meeting, representative of CoD YouthLeads Tinatin Oboladze shared reflections on the global Youth Democracy Network initiative, announced by CoD and the United States at the Summit for Democracy in Costa Rica.