Taxes, which we too often dismiss as technical and dull, were central to the “improvisation of a nation.” To tax is to define the ambit of the state—its roles, its responsibilities, and the reach and limits of its authority vis-à-vis the citizenry.
Three new members have joined the IBP Board of Directors, bringing needed expertise and networks related to strategic communications, ministries of finance and the dynamics of global movements. They are Jane Ellison, a media professional formerly with the UK’s BBC and Radio 4 and now a trustee for Libraries Connected; Malado Kaba, the first female minister of finance for Guinea and an advisory board member for the African Women’s Leadership Fund; and Sofía Sprechmann, program director at CARE International, a leading poverty-fighting and humanitarian-response nonprofit.
On International Human Rights Day, it is important to realize: a different world is possible, in which public finance and government budgets are instead inspired by and aimed at the realization of human rights for all.
When government agencies provide public reasons, they are legitimating public debate about those choices and signaling a willingness to accept criticism and revisions. This is the essence of democracy.
As civic space shrinks around the world, how can those working with communities navigate complex systems of power and exclusion?
