Projects
The geopolitics of illiberalism: an analysis of the geopolitical conditions undergirding democratic decay KU Leuven
The world around us has changed unrecognizably over the last decades. The relative geopolitical calm and stable we've experienced after the cataclysmic and unexpected collapse of the Soviet Union has been brutally referred to the realms of history. Stability gave way to the current times of turbulence we live in as the geopolitical card game was thoroughly reshuffled. The EU doesn't escape the consequences of a rising China, revisionist ...
SRP (Zwaartepunt): Democratic Governance in Europe Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Transforming and Defending Multilateralism: European Union Support for more Robust, Effective and Democratic Global Governance KU Leuven
The European Union (EU) and its members have long been key supporters of global governance. Yet the rules-based international order and multilateralism are widely believed to be in crisis. The emerging powers and populist forces have contested and put demands on global governance often resulting in a gridlock of international cooperation. The Russian war in Ukraine will likely further undermine the ability to address global problems. ENSURED, ...
Meeting Great Expectations Through Democratic Innovations. KU Leuven
All across Europe democratic political systems are confronted with a citizenry that questions the democratic legitimacy of their political system. Widespread distrust in political actors and institutions, declining electoral turnout and the popularity of populist and anti-establishment candidates and parties are just a few indications of this societal challenge. Interestingly, this discontent is by no means paralleled by eroding support for ...
Caught in the Crossfire. A Study of the Quality of Political Debate on Democratic Legitimacy KU Leuven
Co-creating inclusive intersectional democratic spaces across Europe (CCINDLE). University of Antwerp
Power to the people? Studying citizen involvement in political decision-making and its effects om democratic legitimacy from a bottom-up perspective. KU Leuven
Many citizens in western democracies are dissatisfied with the way politics works in their country. Among academics, journalists and politicians there is a deep concern about a deficit in perceived democratic legitimacy, indicated by a lack of trust in political institutions and representatives, lack of compliance and cooperation, support for protest parties and a general sense that politics is an elite affair where the ordinary citizen is ...
Strengthening democratic governance for climate transitions Ghent University
The overall goal of the RETOOL project is to advance our understanding of how to address the twin challenges of responding to the climate imperative while strengthening and reinvigorating democratic governance. The project has four overarching objectives: (i) To deepen our understanding of the relationship between democratic governance and the climate imperative by developing a novel analytical framework and creating new empirical ...