Christopher Walker Named Executive Director of NED's International Forum for Democratic Studies

WASHINGTON, July 12, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) is pleased to announce the appointment of Christopher Walker as executive director of its research division, the International Forum for Democratic Studies, a leading center for the analysis and discussion of the theory and practice of democratic development. Walker comes to NED from Freedom House, where he served in its New York office as vice president for strategy and analysis.

"We are delighted that the International Forum will be directed by Chris Walker, an accomplished leader in research on democracy with a broad knowledge of global trends," said Marc Plattner, Vice President of Research and Studies at NED.

At Freedom House, Walker oversaw a team of analysts and senior scholars in devising overall strategy for Freedom House's analytic projects, including "Nations in Transit: Democratization in East Central Europe and Eurasia;" "Freedom of the Press: a Global Survey of Media Independence;" and "Freedom on the Net: A Global Assessment of Internet and Digital Media." Walker's articles on media freedom and democracy have appeared in a wide range of publications, including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Foreign Policy, among others, and he has served as an Adjunct Professor of Global Affairs at New York University. Prior to joining Freedom House, he was a senior associate at the EastWest Institute.

Through its research and conferences program and through its flagship publication, the Journal of Democracy, the International Forum analyzes the conditions and challenges of democratic transition, reform, and consolidation and serves as a clearinghouse for information on groups and institutions working to achieve and maintain democracy around the world.

In addition to the management of the research and conferences program, Walker will work to invigorate the Forum's Research Council, which advises the Forum and consists of scholars and specialists on democracy from around the world. The Council will be chaired by Journal of Democracy founding coeditors Dr. Marc F. Plattner, NED Vice President of Research and Studies, and Dr. Larry Diamond, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University, where he also directs the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law.

SOURCE National Endowment for Democracy