Taking the Streets Back to Peace

Nothing illustrates the fragility of democracy more starkly than the United States’ descent from global democratic reference point to a system flirting openly with authoritarian abuse. What is unfolding there is not merely an American crisis; it is a warning. It brutally reminds us that a strong, organised civil society is our most reliable safeguard against the takeover of power by self-righteous strongmen.

by Simon Prahm

Interactor at thedotgood.

February 12, 2026

Game - Lebanon, Streets of Beirut

For high-income democracies, this is both a shock and a hard lesson. Until recently, the assumption was that democratic erosion happened elsewhere. We tended to look away. Yet today, votes are challenged, elections are delegitimised in advance, and democracy itself is declared obsolete. We are told that there is no alternative; at least until U.S. voters are given a genuine opportunity to form a new majority under fair conditions.

Each year, the listings spotlight and support organizations that demonstrate not only innovation but also resilience and long-term sustainability.

Democracy Under Pressure

The uncomfortable question follows: which democracies are next? Will MAGA-style movements be allowed to hollow out institutions and dismantle hard-won rights? Are we drifting toward the lived reality of millions of citizens in parts of the Global South, where political voice is constrained, rights are fragile, and power operates with impunity, from Venezuela to China?

Having lived across four continents, I have seen how unevenly concepts like international law, civil liberties, and democratic accountability are perceived. Scepticism is widespread where institutions have long failed to protect people. Until now, many of us living in high-income democracies have been shielded by privilege and distance, treating global injustice as someone else’s problem rather than a shared responsibility. That shield is cracking and our laziness in securing these rights in the Global South is now pointing at ourselves.

What makes the current U.S. disruption particularly alarming is that it is happening in plain sight. There is no secrecy, no subtlety. Since 2020, Donald Trump and the MAGA movement have repeatedly advanced the idea that voting is either unnecessary or meaningless, because outcomes will always be bent to favour their side. This is not political rhetoric. It is a direct assault on the very premise of democracy.

Street-Level Solutions in a Fractured World

I co-founded GAME in a high-income democracy, grounded in what is often labelled street culture. Some will say we do sports. We say we create a framework that enables youth to empower themselves through street sports and culture. We never saw this street culture as a problem to be managed, but as a powerful tool to create connection rather than division, togetherness rather than hatred. Starting with the individual, our goal was to create self-awareness, social cohesion, develop leadership, and provide a mental and physical space with room for dreaming big.

Our work began in Denmark, widely considered one of the best countries in the world to live in. The decision to act through a social good organisation was not idealistic fantasy. It was a response to real and growing problems that public authorities struggled to address through policies as well as services. Social cohesion can erode quickly when societies become inward-looking, focused on individual comfort while ignoring collective fractures. One way to assess the strength of a democracy is therefore to look at how it treats minoritised groups. At the time we founded GAME, children and youth of parents who had migrated from war-torn countries participated in sports and cultural activities at a much lower rate than the ethnic Danes. So, we sat out to change this through project activities, which have inspired more inclusive policies and services in Denmark today.

In some contexts, the social fabric is not merely fragile; it survives under pressure, resistance, and outright abuse of power. Today, GAME operates in 10 countries. Across all of them, one constant remains: daily, grounded social interaction brings people together. It de-escalates conflict. It rebuilds trust. It does the opposite of what authoritarian movements thrive on.

And that is exactly what this moment demands.

Youth-Led Peacebuilding Across Continents

Let me offer three examples drawn directly from our street-level experience – moments of truth that reveal how civic engagement, when rooted in everyday life, becomes a force for peace and democratic resilience.

In many high-income democracies increasing wealth and accelerated freedom do not necessarily translate into greater life satisfaction and well-being among children and youth. When we speak with young people in Greenland, they often express a strong desire to create safer communities where you can be yourself and speak openly about the things that are difficult in your life. U.S. threats to take over the country hasn’t helped, causing anxiety amongst many. But through all this GAME Greenland’s volunteer Playmakers have been hosting weekly sports activities, creating inspiring communities across the country where children and youth can meet and get support in their development and tools for creating positive progress in their lives.

In Lebanon the population has faced not one, but multiple crisis over the past decade. Again, volunteer youth have been there to help – sometimes as first responders. After the 2020 explosion in Beirut, volunteers helped clean up some of the most affected neighbourhoods. Out of the rubble their dream of a much-needed safe space for play materialised a few years later in a city with only 0.5% public space. Instead of getting into boats to leave the country, they started envisioning a future in their homeland. And when Israel invaded Southern Lebanon in 2024, the civil society was there again to support. This time groups of citizens in Switzerland and Denmark hosted fundraisers and sent money to GAME Lebanon. In partnership with local municipalities this enabled the youth to distribute food baskets to the ones affected by the war.

In Kenya, the past two years have brought protests and violent clashes between youth and police. Part of this is rooted in a lack of trust between the youths and the duty bearers. GAME’s sports initiatives have redefined relationships with police and local chiefs. Previously perceived as sources of unrest, some of the youths are now acknowledged as peace ambassadors – an outcome of peace forums and structured sports-based dialogues with a focus on conflict resolution and peaceful coexistence.

Social good organisations are not peripheral actors. They are the glue that binds societies together when institutions falter and polarisation deepens. They help innovate services, strengthen resilience, and cultivate peaceful values. That allows elections to be decided through debate and participation, not intimidation and manufactured chaos.

There is no gamble in investing in civil society – and especially not youth. There is only the choice between withdrawal and engagement, between fragmentation and solidarity. Down the path of civic action lie hope, resilience, innovation, and ultimately, democratic survival.