In Exile but Not in Silence: Belarus’s Democratic Fight with Karim Pedersen

In the final episode of Season 2 of the Thank You Democracy Podcast, we sit down with Danish activist and educator Karim Pedersen, a rare and powerful voice of cross-border solidarity in support of Belarus’s pro-democracy movement.

Karim is the only foreigner working in the Office of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, where he serves as Head of International Communications. Though he has no Belarusian roots, he’s spent the past four years working alongside Belarusians in exile in Vilnius, supporting democratic resistance through civic education, communications, and grassroots organizing.

This episode comes at a particularly timely moment: just days ago, Siarhei Tsikhanouski, Sviatlana’s husband and a prominent political prisoner, was released after four years of detention by the Lukashenka regime. A well-known opposition figure, Siarhei helped galvanize Belarus’s democratic movement in 2020 before his arrest and imprisonment, which prompted Sviatlana to run in his place and become the face of Belarus’s democratic resistance.

A former IT journalist and long-time democracy educator in Denmark, Karim has worked with the Danish-Belarusian association Talaka, developed civic education programs for Belarusians, and remains committed to the vision of opening a folk school in a free and democratic Belarus. In 2023, he was named an Obama Leader for his work.

In this deeply personal and wide-ranging conversation, Karim shares what drew him into this struggle, the turning points that led him from teaching to direct action, and what it means to act in solidarity beyond borders. We explore the lessons Denmark’s democratic past offers to today’s movements, the sacrifices involved in standing up for democracy, and the role education must play in rebuilding civic life after authoritarianism.

To hear Karim’s inspiring story and reflections on where hope lies in dark times, tune in to Episode 8 of the Thank You Democracy Podcast.