Andreas Schedler
Since its invention, representative democracy has been haunted by fears of 'majoritarian tyranny.' Critics have often dismissed these fears as the anti-democratic ideology of self-protective elites. Yet, Andreas Schedler argues, rather than antidemocratic, they are antipopulist, as they recognise the plurality and fallibility of the people Read more
Leonardo Fiorespino
Leonardo Fiorespino finds Jean-Paul Gagnon’s proposed lexicon of democracy wanting in its base assumptions around knowledge and arbitrariness. Moreover, he wonders, can we really trust 'democracy's words'? Read more
Alistair Cole
Incumbent French President Macron has been re-elected for a second five-year term. This is not a simple success story, Alistair Cole argues. The election revealed disturbing trends in French democracy. Read more
Ben Seyd
Can policymakers expect people to comply with official health restrictions out of fear rather than because they trust the government? Ben Seyd suggests the answer is no. Governments still need trust to motivate citizens to comply with important collective rules. Read more
Pablo Ouziel
Today, democratic imaginaries are diluted while parochial understandings of democracy are presented as universal. Such a state of affairs, argues Pablo Ouziel, calls for a deeply diverse speaking-with multilogue amongst democratic traditions Read more
Richard Sakwa
Richard Sakwa argues that the Russian invasion of Ukraine is the culmination of a long period of increasing tensions between Russia and the West. The portents were not only ignored by the West, but misunderstood, and security concerns became part of a broader cultural alienation Read more
Oliver P. Richmond
Global ideological struggle and counter-peace processes have had grave consequences for the international peace architecture. Oliver P. Richmond and Sandra Pogodda highlight the need for a knowledge-based, emancipatory renewal Read more
Viktor Orri Valgarðsson
Viktor Valgarðsson argues that words are not enough to understand the concept of democracy. 'Democracy' denotes an important ideal that we must not sacrifice on a mountain of words. Read more
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok