Bridging the Gap Between Action and Reflection: Interview with Christian Kuitert on the Role of KPSRL and TED

Interview with Christian Kuitert, Head of Secreteriat Knowledge Platform Security&Rule of Law (KPSRL)
conducted my Madina Davletkildeeva

Worldwide, we unfortunately see a negative trend on the themes your platform works on (democracy, security, rule of law). What is the added value of a knowledge network like yours in times that seem to demand urgent action?

The indices for rule of law and conflict have indeed been deteriorating over the past decade. The current geopolitical shock instigated by the Trump administration is an accelerator of some of these trends (e.g. anti-Western sentiments, shrinking civic space). Our sector is overstretched: too many fires to put out, while budget is shrinking. It is easy to get lost in day-to-day management, keeping our heads above the water.   

This is exactly where knowledge networks like KPSRL and TED come in: they create a ‘safe space’ for partners to reflect on the new reality, find new ways forward, innovate within the sector and establish new partnerships. 

The current situation in the US should also stress the importance of ‘mutual learning’. Learning networks should transcend traditional roles between donors and other parts of the world: democratic challenges are everywhere and so are approaches to counter these.

What role does the TED network play in KPSRL’s mission?

We wanted to engage policy makers from donor countries beyond The Netherlands and the TED network is an excellent hub to do so. It also inspired cross-fertilization with topics we didn’t work with regularly but are crucial for democratic renewal, such as anti-corruption or the role of media.

More concretely, TED and KPSRL had a fruitful collaboration around a learning trajectory on (the role of the EU in supporting) democratic reforms in Georgia and Moldova. It resulted in several online discussions and a policy paper, emphasizing the need for the EU to go beyond technocratic support towards facilitating broader societal dialogue – also actively including critics. 

Are there any recent insights from the KPSRL network that are particularly relevant for democracy support initiatives?

KPSRL’s funding is unfortunately ending in the summer of 2025. Therefore, an important focus this year is the uptake of findings over the past years by policy and practice. 

One way we do this, is by writing ‘distilling papers’ that summarize the findings and red threads on recurring research and events in the past years. We already published one distilling paper on Locally Led Development, which favors ‘approach based partnerships’ that focus on how instead of what, with a strong emphasis on capacities. Democracy processes are long, so investing in strong partners instead of successful projects is more sustainable. The paper on People Centred Approaches emphasizes the importance of culturally appropriate, multi-sectoral dialogue frameworks that facilitate continuous partnership, instead of partnering around a single project only.

Can the TED network leverage the impact of those findings?

We encourage the TED network to share these reports with partners that might be interested. Of course, we’re happy to present them for more context.

Lastly, the TED network is most invited to think along with us on the future of the KPSRL network after the end of the contract on June 30, 2025. If you have thoughts on how particular roles or instruments might be handed over or preserved, or have ideas for alternative funding, please leave your details here and we’ll reach out.