While the Lisbon treaty was meant to clarify the European Union’s role and political identity, it remains a challenge for politicians and decision-makers to define. This volume looks at both the concept of the EU as a political system, and analyses the meaning and status of democracy in Europe today.
The book draws upon leading scholars and practitioners from the RECON project to frame and analyse a range of institutional realms and policy fields, including constitutionalisation, representative developments, gender politics, civil society and public sphere, identity, and security and globalisation. Drawing together these strands, the book questions whether EU politics require a new theory of democracy. Moreover, it evaluates the relationship between union and state, and the possible future of post-national democracy.
With contributions by Ben Crum, Erik Oddvar Eriksen, John Erik Fossum, Yvonne Galligan, Magdalena Góra, Ulrike Liebert, Christopher Lord, Zdzislaw Mach, Agustín J. Menéndez, Helene Sjursen, and Hans-Jörg Trenz.
The book is based on extensively revised and elaborated contributions to RECON Report 8 ‘RECON – Theory in Practice’ and contains chapters by most of RECON’s work package leaders.
Full info:
Rethinking Democracy and the European Union
Routledge Studies on Democratising Europe
Erik Oddvar Eriksen and John Erik Fossum (eds), Routledge, 2012