Project Leader :
Partners and Collaborators: The University of Edinburgh and University of Toronto, Forest Action, NCCR
Duration :
Brief description of the project : The overall research question—how is democratic governance understood and performed in local communities— encompasses the domains of market and exchange, as well as the institutions more conventionally understood to constitute civil society. Three key sub-questions examine how federalism and concepts of democracy are forming at the country’s grassroots base.
The research examines both the discourses of democracy—how do people conceptualise and talk about ‘democracy’ and inclusive governance? What makes a ‘good political subject’? And through practice—how do people ‘do’ democracy? What does ‘democracy’ look like at the grassroots level as people engage in civic, market and the political spheres? We expect to find that the realms of discourse and practice may be quite different. Central to our research is the premise that how people understand and perform ‘democracy’ has significant consequences for the long-term viability of the present governance regime and indeed for the possibility of overcoming structural inequalities at the root of radical-left political mobilizations.
Contact: Dr Hemant R Ojha
