Citizen Participation in Democratic Europe: What Next for the EU?
About this ebook
This book brings together academics as well as practitioners to give a forward-looking, holistic view of the realities of EU citizen participation across the spectrum of participatory opportunities. They all converge in arguing that, after many years of proven experimentation, the EU must institutionalize supranational, participative and deliberative, democratic channels to complement representative democracy and each other, and ultimately improve the effectiveness of EU citizen participation. While this institutional approach will not magically treat the EU democratic malaise, it should make the system more intelligible, accessible, and ultimately responsive to citizen demand without necessarily undertaking Treaty reform.
The attempt to harness citizen participation to help address the current EU crisis needs the type of multi-faceted approach presented in this book. One that recognises the potential of existing and new democratic mechanisms, and also, importantly, the links between different instruments of citizen participation to improve the overall quality of EU's democratic system.
About the author
Alberto Alemanno is Jean Monnet Professor of European Union Law and Regulation and HEC Paris. Alberto is also the scientific director of the EU Public Interest Law Clinic established by HEC Paris and New York University School of Law. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the European Journal of Risk Regulation, a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Consumer Policy, of the Revue du Droit de l'Union Européenne and is the founder of the Summer Academy in Global Food Law & Policy. His research and teaching activities focus on EU Law, International Economic Law, WTO law, Risk Regulation as well as Regulatory Reform. He has published Trade in Food - Regulatory and Judicial Approaches in the EC and the WTO (Cameron May, 2007), Regulating Lifestyle Risks (Cambridge University Press, 2015), Nudge and the Law (Hart, 2015) and several other books and articles in leading international journals such as the Harvard International Law Journal, International Journal of Constitutional Law, Common Market Law Review, European Law Journal, Law & Contemporary Problems and Journal of International Economic Law. Alberto Alemanno has also taught at Georgetown University, Amsterdam University, St. Gallen University, Bocconi University, Tokyo University, Moscow State University, Fribourg University, Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna of Pisa, Macau Law School, Liège Law School, and the European University Institute.
James Organ is lecturer of law at the University of Liverpool, UK. James' research for his PhD focussed on the legal framework for citizen participation through instruments of direct democracy, particularly the European Citizens Initiative and UK referenda. James continues to work in the area of EU participatory democracy. James works extensively with civil society organisations in the area of participatory democracy, such as the ECI Association and Democracy International. He is currently leading an EACEA funded project to hold citizens assemblies on the future of EU democratic participation in four EU member states, and online deliberation through partnership with WeMove. The project concludes with a conference in Liverpool in December 2018. James is working as special adviser to the European Economic and Social Committee during the revision of the legislation relating to the European Citizens Initiative.
