The International Democratic Education Conference

August 11 to August 18 at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

Conference Calendar and Open Space

The IDEC 2008 Conference Calendar and Open Space is now online.  Registered attendees are welcome to suggest panel sessions or workshops, by clicking the "Open Space" link and adding it to the list of items on that page.  (You'll need to create an account and log in first.)

Exciting Program for Young People

IDEC 2008 will include an exciting program geared to to interests of younger participants.  Windsor House Live will offer a continuous stream of activities, both structured and unstructured, along with lots of room for new ideas and democratic process.

Flight Deals with Travel Cuts

We have made an arrangements with Travel Cuts, a Student and Youth discount agency to be the official IDEC 2008 Travel agent.  If you haven't book your flight to Vancouver (YVR), check out the discounts on our Flight Deals page. You can also Visit Travel Cuts.

Donations

The inclusion of people from all economic backgrounds is important to us.  We do not believe that Democratic Education is only a middle class concept, but rather a universal idea which can be of value to all people.  We are raising funds to support the participation of people from around the world who come from communities that do not have the financial resources to send delegates.  Please consider making a Donation to support our efforts.

Matching Grant!

We have a received a grant from the Bay and Paul Foundations subject to the following condition.  They will match donations given for the financial assistance of low income delegates outside North America: $1.00 for every $2.00 raised, up to $50,000.

Registration

If you have already paid a deposit and wish to pay the remainder owing, you can do so here.  Looking for more info? Visit the Registration FAQ.

More meal options will become available soon.  Please wait for further options if you don't wish to use the full Meal Plan (7 breakfast, 8 lunches, 7 dinners)

Under The Volcano Arriving early in Vancouver and looking for something fun to do?  Check out Under the Volcano, a festival of art and social change that includes music, art, speakers and workshops.  Don't forget to contact registration to make arrangements for a longer stay.

Quick Info

IDEC 2008 will take place  Aug. 11th to 18th 2008 in Vancouver at the University of British Columbia.  Previous conferences have been held in Japan, England, Israel, India, Germany and Australia with as many as 500 delegates from 25 countries.  Attendees of IDEC 2008 will include teachers, students, administrators and parents from democratic schools around the world, as well as local education scholars and officials.  We look forward to your participation online and hope to see you in Beautiful Vancouver this summer.

To learn more about Tourism in Vancouver, click here.

Learn more about IDEC 2008, or learn more about IDEC in General.  Not sure what this is all about, read "what is a Democratic School?"  Visit our Cost List for pricing information.

Click here for a list of confirmed Speakers.

If you cannot attend during the day, but would like to hear a Keynote speaker, you may pay $15 adult, $10 student at the door.

For updates on Registration, Schedule, Presenters and more please add your email to the announcements list on the right.

Links and Related Items

IDEC 2008 is being hosted by the Society for the Advancement of Non-coercive Education (SANE), based in Vancouver.  You can find out more about SANE by visiting SANE.at.org.

AERO is pleased to announce that www.DemocraticEducation.com is now live!  This website serves as the virtual home for The Directory of Democratic Education as well as a location providing unique articles, essay, links, and resources on democratic education.

BlueCraneMedia, based in Berlin, has started 'IDEC OnLine'. This project aims to provide coordination, structure, infrastructure and support for Distance Conferencing applied to future IDEC's, starting with IDEC 2008, allowing people who cannot attend in person to join in "virtually". The web site will also provide an audio/visual archive of previous IDEC's. For more details. Click here to find out more.