In 2026 and 2027, the Democratic Education Network marks ten years. What began as a single seminar at the University of Westminster has grown into an international community of students, alumni, academics and support workers reaching from London to Tashkent, Bangkok, Hanoi, Lima and Istanbul, working on what it means for students to be partners in producing knowledge rather than consumers of it. This is the home of our anniversary year. Here you will find a rolling series of interviews and reflections in Inside Westminster magazine, a podcast and short film telling the story of how DEN grew, the launch of a permanent DEN Alumni Network, and the findings of an anniversary research project tracing the themes that have shaped our first decade. Everything is made by the people who have been part of DEN. We hope you will read, listen, and add your voice.
A recent Politics and International Relations graduate now working at Westminster on the coursework peer-review that sharpened her writing, the DEN Summer School, and the transferable skills that landed her an IOM internship Charlene Okai, recent graduate in Politics and International Relations, University of Westminster; now working at the University of Westminster, based in London,...
The Deputy Vice-Chancellor on being in the room when DEN was named, the difference between inviting students into a conversation and letting them set its terms, and the three structural conditions that made ten years possible Professor Dibyesh Anand, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Global Engagement and Employability); Professor of International Relations, University of Westminster, United Kingdom Part...
A recent Social Sciences graduate, on being brought in by Maliha, the DEN Christmas party that opened up campus life, and the field trips to Vietnam and Uzbekistan that turned into friendships she still keeps Michelle Mohaimen, recent graduate, School of Social Sciences, University of Westminster. UK-based, born in Italy, of Bangladeshi heritage. Part of...
A third-year LLB Law student on choosing DEN as a second-year elective, chairing meetings before she felt ready, and the Thailand and Uzbekistan Model UN experiences that made her friendships lifelong Laiyba Rashid, third-year LLB Law, University of Westminster, United Kingdom Part of the Inside Westminster anniversary series marking ten years of the Democratic Education...
A Psychology student on the DEN New York trip, the 2025 conference where she discovered how much of it was student-led, and finding a space where a quieter student’s voice still travels Grace Villagomez-Akre, BSc Psychology, University of Westminster, United Kingdom Part of the Inside Westminster anniversary series marking ten years of the Democratic Education...
A third-year International Relations student on discovering DEN through a friend, helping organise the Hong Kong students event, and the confidence that comes from being asked to speak Hajar Zaher, third-year BA International Relations, University of Westminster, United Kingdom Part of the Inside Westminster anniversary series marking ten years of the Democratic Education Network. *...
A BA International Relations student on discovering DEN in induction week, weekly meetings that feel like family, and the editorial credit that has since opened doors Huray, BA International Relations, University of Westminster, London, United Kingdom Part of the Inside Westminster anniversary series marking ten years of the Democratic Education Network. * * * How...
A postgraduate in International Law who first heard of DEN as an undergraduate in 2018, on returning to Westminster, the Tashkent Model UN, and the co-authored chapter that grew out of a friendship Ariadna Rita Lemos De Oliveira, LLM International Law, University of Westminster, United Kingdom Part of the Inside Westminster anniversary series marking ten...
A third-year Politics and International Relations student on writing about knife crime and mixed heritage, and on finding a room where her voice belonged Arika Heaven, third-year BA Politics and International Relations, University of Westminster (Regent Street), London, United Kingdom Part of the Inside Westminster anniversary series marking ten years of the Democratic Education Network....
A Californian in London on the first DEN meeting that changed everything, the friends who became loved ones, and the leadership lessons that shape her legal work today Madeline Briscoe, BA International Relations, University of Westminster (2021–2024); from California, United States; now MA Law student and Citizens Advice Bureau volunteer, based in the United Kingdom...
A final-year Medical Sciences student on impostor syndrome, the presentation that surprised her, and the DEN project that has grown from it Rida Butt, BSc Medical Sciences, final year, University of Westminster, United Kingdom Part of the Inside Westminster anniversary series marking ten years of the Democratic Education Network. * * * How did you...
A third-year IR and Development student on the Thailand Model UN, the Chinese University of Hong Kong summer school, and hearing a Tashkent academic ask if DEN could come home with him Fatimata Sidi Mamadu, third-year BA International Relations and Development, University of Westminster, London, United Kingdom Part of the Inside Westminster anniversary series marking...