During this conference, distinguished scholars from Canada, Europe, India, and the United States will discuss how and why democracies tend to weaken and degenerate over time, even in highly developed and affluent liberal societies. These scholars will also identify and evaluate opportunities for regenerating and rebuilding democracies, especially in developing countries facing challenges of economic duress, poor governance, and communal conflicts.
Clemena Antonova (Religious Philosophy, IWM Vienna)
Madhulika Banerjee (Political Science, Delhi University)
Mukulika Banerjee (Anthropology, LSE)
Craig Calhoun (Social Sciences, Arizona State University)
Dilip Gaonkar (Rhetoric and Public Culture, Northwestern University)
Ludger Hagedorn (Philosophy, Permanent Fellow, IWM Vienna)
Jayson Harsin (Communication, Media, and Culture, American University of Paris)
Gesche Keding (Sociology & Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena)
Gerasimos Makris (Social Anthropology, Panteion University, Athens, Greece)
Shalini Randeria (Social Anthropology, Rector, CEU Vienna)
Stephen Sawyer (History, American University of Paris)
Kim Lane Scheppele (Sociology and Law, Princeton University)
Olga Shparaga (Philosophy, Ukraine in European Dialogue Fellow, IWM Vienna)
Rebecca Tapscott (Political & Political Science, The Graduate Institute, Geneva, Switzerland)
Charles Taylor (Philosophy, Emeritus, McGill University)
Yogendra Yadav (Scholar/Activist, Delhi, India)
Thursday 22 June 2023 (10.00am-5.00pm)
Opening Remarks (10.00am-10.30am)
Ludger Hagedorn (Permanent Fellow, IWM)
Dilip Gaokar (Rhetoric and Public Culture, Northwestern University)
Session 1: (10.30am- 11.30am)
Toward a History and Theory of the Modern Demos
Stephen Sawyer (History, American University of Paris)
Moderator: Dilip Gaonkar (Rhetoric and Public Culture, Northwestern University)
Coffee: (11.30pm-11.45pm)
Session 2: (11.45am-12.45pm)
European Union’s New Democracy Deficit
Kim Lane Scheppele (Sociology and Law, Princeton University)
Moderator: Craig Calhoun (Social Sciences, Arizona State University)
Lunch at IWM: 12.45pm-1.45pm
Session 3: (1.45pm-2.45pm)
Citizen Efficacy: Decline, Repair, and Renewal
Charles Taylor (Philosophy, McGill University)
Moderator: Clemena Antonova (Religious Philosophy, IWM)
Coffee: (2.45-3.00pm)
Sessions 4: (3.00pm- 4.00pm)
Cultivation and Civic Growth
Mukulika Banerjee (Anthropology, LSE)
Moderator: Rebecca Tapscott (Social and Political Science, University of Edinburgh)
Session 5: (4.00pm-5.00pm)
On Democracy Capture
Yogendra Yadav (Politics, Scholar/Activist, Delhi, India)
Moderator: Shalini Randeria (Social Anthropology/Rector, CEU)
Dinner: 7pm
Friday 23 June 2023 (10.00am-5.00pm)
Session 6 (10.00am-11.00am)
Gendered Citizenship and the Circulation of Sovereign Power
Rebecca Tapscott (Social and Political Science, University of Edinburgh)
Moderator: Olga Shparaga (Philosophy, Ukraine in European Dialogue Fellow, IWM)
Session 7: (11.00am to 12.00noon)
Liberal Democratic Failures Reduced to Information Disorders
Jayson Harsin (Communication, Media, and Culture, American University in Paris)
Moderator: Madhulika Banerjee (Political Science, Delhi University)
Lunch at IWM: 12.00pm-1.00pm
Session 8 (1.00pm- 2.00pm)
Scale and Democracy
Craig Calhoun (Social Sciences, Arizona State University)
Moderator: Ludger Hagedorn (Permanent Fellow, IWM)
Session 9: (2.00pm-3.00pm)
Time and Democracy
Dilip Gaonkar (Rhetoric and Public Culture, Northwestern University)
Moderator: Stephen Sawyer (History, American University of Paris)
Coffee (3.00pm-3.15pm)
Session 10: (3.15pm-5.00pm)
Roundtable of Respondents: Other Perspectives
Participatory Democracy: Claiming India With Knowledge from Below
Madhulika Banerjee (Political Science, Delhi University)
Moderator: Jayson Harsin (Communication, Media, and Culture, American University of Paris)
Democracy and Nature: a missing perspective
Gesche Keding (Sociology & Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena)
Moderator: Charles Taylor (Philosophy, Emeritus, McGill University)
Dinner: 7.00pm
