Klaudia Koxha
Gender equality is a fundamental EU value and a condition for the accession of new members. Yet political parties in Western Balkan candidate countries rarely prioritise it. Klaudia Koxha explains why: parties respond when Brussels and voters agree, but go quiet when their positions clash, especially on LGBTQ+ rights Read more
Yida Zhai
The Science of Democracy 2.0 challenges current uses of the term 'democracy'. Yida Zhai argues that these uses are not universal but culturally specific. This, he says, makes them inadequate for describing the political realities of the human species as a whole Read more
Amit Singh
The EU’s expanding engagement with India, notably the proposed 'mother of all deals' free trade agreement, signals a strategic partnership. Yet without clear human-rights benchmarks, this cooperation risks legitimising India’s democratic backsliding and weakening the EU’s own normative credibility, argues Amit Singh Read more
Vera Tika
Vera Tika argues that contemporary illiberalism rarely arrives through dramatic democratic rupture. Instead, it advances quietly through routine governance and administrative practices that normalise exclusion. Examining Greece’s regulation of civil society, she shows how democratic erosion can occur incrementally — through law, procedure, and bureaucratic control Read more
Felicia Linsér
In 2023, amid accelerated militarisation, the Swedish government abruptly withdrew its financial support for domestic peace organisations. Felicia Linsér examines the impact on the peace movement of democratic backsliding, marginalisation in public debate, and a diminished relationship with political leadership Read more
Valesca Lima
Valesca Lima argues that Irish local authorities tend to treat public participation as a formal administrative requirement. However, by moving beyond performative box-ticking and toward genuine co-design, we can bridge the trust gap. True engagement doesn't just legitimise decisions; it sparks the local innovation our cities desperately need Read more
Alíz Nagy
Hungary is gearing up for national elections in April 2026. The authoritarian Fidesz party – in power for over fifteen years – is campaigning hard in the online realm. Alíz Nagy puts these developments in the broader context of digital authoritarianism Read more
Émilie Frenkiel
A pioneering new deliberative democracy project invites university students, faculty and administrative staff to develop transformative measures to future-proof their institution against social and environmental challenges. Reintroducing deliberation into education and beyond, argues Émilie Frenkiel, could bridge the representative disconnect between citizens and institutions Read more
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