The Kellogg Institute at the University of Notre Dame, in partnership with the Panamanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), recently convened an international symposium titled “Institutional Innovations in the Bicentennial Republics: Latin American democracy two centuries after the Panama Congress.” Held March 10 and 11, the event brought together about 20 specialists to examine the region’s unique contributions to global political life.
The symposium is part of a series of events sponsored by the Panamanian government to commemorate the bicentennial of the 1826 Amphictyonic Congress of Panama. That historic meeting, held in the same Salón Bolívar where the symposium’s installation session took place, represented an early root of the Latin American democratic ideal and the first attempt to create a hemispheric regional organization.
Organizer Aníbal Pérez-Liñán, director of the Kellogg Institute, noted that while the event began as a small workshop, it evolved into a significant diplomatic and academic gathering. During the opening, he and Flavia Freidenberg (UNAM) highlighted the 1826 Congress as a pioneering example of institutional creativity and an early precursor to modern multilateralism.
“The 1826 Congress of Panama was the first seed of a hemispheric vision that continues to evolve today. This symposium moves past the ‘defeatist narrative’ to highlight Latin American’s remarkable capacity for institutional innovation,” said Pérez-Liñán. “In many ways, these bicentennial republics are not just following democratic trends – they are outpacing them and offering vital lessons for the rest of the world.”
The two-day program gathered academics and diplomats for panel discussions focused on distinct regional innovations:
- Coalition Presidentialism: Exploring innovative contributions to the functioning of presidential systems over the last 40 years.
- Parity Democracy: Analyzing institutional contributions to women's political participation and representation.
- Intra-party Competition: Examining the regulation of candidate selection processes and internal democratization.
- Transformative Constitutionalism: Discussing the judiciary’s role in developing the rule of law and responding to demands for justice.
Participants hailed from Panama, the United States, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Uruguay. They included Kellogg Doctoral Student Affiliates Mayra Ortiz Ocaña and Géssica de Freitas, who are pursuing PhDs in political science.
The symposium launched with a reception hosted by the Notre Dame Club of Panama on March 9. Vice-Minister of Multilateral Affairs and Cooperation Carlos Guevara Mann, a University of Notre Dame PhD and a former Kellogg visiting fellow, Ramon Fabrega (MBA ‘89), president of Notre Dame Alumni Club Panamá, and Mercedes Boyd '03, member of the Notre Dame Alumni Association Board of Directors, welcomed the international visitors.
The insights shared during this public conversation will be preserved for further academic study, with plans to publish the work in an edited volume and a series of academic publications.
The Kellogg Institute, part of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame, is a leading center for interdisciplinary research dedicated to understanding, strengthening, and renewing democracy worldwide. By bringing together scholars and practitioners to reflect on Latin America’s history of institutional innovation, the symposium highlighted the Institute’s ongoing commitment to advancing research and dialogue on the challenges and evolution of democracy.