Sustainable Democracy

Research group

In the current era of democratic erosion and rising authoritarianism, this Hot Spot positions itself as a bulwark of cutting-edge research on democracy. By fostering the dissemination of research findings and dialogue across disciplines, and by connecting citizens, policymakers and researchers, the Hot Spot contributes to democratic innovation and democratic resilience and helps to develop sustainable democratic practices and institutions. The Hot Spot’s mission is to facilitate collaboration between academics and practitioners working on democracy by zooming in on three central questions:

1) What is democracy, and what should it be?

2) What are the empirical challenges to democracy, and what is their impact?

3) How can we renew and re-invent democratic practices and institutions?

To tackle these questions, the Hot Spot develops and supports interdisciplinary research and promotes engagement by connecting Radboud scholars with societal and political stakeholders. The Hot Spot brings together numerous interdisciplinary research projects on democracy, such as Vive la Commune (GHS), REDRESS (NWA) and Genoeg is genoeg (Thorbecke). The Hot Spot also organizes regular training for practitioners and conducts research for societal stakeholders on the threat of democratic backsliding and the promises and practices of democratic innovation (Ministry for the Interior and Kingdom Relations), develops teaching tools for democracy education for youth organisations (DemoGames) and provides micro-grants to enable (junior) scholars from different disciplines to cooperate and kick-start new research. Lastly, we organize the Radboud Annual Democracy lecture, where we invite leading international scholars to reflect on the (non-)democratic challenges our societies are facing.

Our research revolves around three central questions:

What is democracy and what should it be? We explore the normative challenges to democracy, examining different visions of democracy, both historical and contemporary, as well as emerging grassroots democratic practices around the world.

What are the empirical challenges to democracy and what is their impact? We address how issues such as inequality, climate change, technological advancements, and political crises affect the quality and functioning of democracy. How do these challenges impact democratic values, behavior and institutions, and what are the consequences for strengthening or undermining democracy?

How can we renew and re-invent democratic practices and institutions? We focus on new democratic practices and innovations in communities, schools, businesses, and other sectors. We seek to identify ways to scale these innovations to make democracy more resilient and sustainable.

Research Output and Societal Impact

Several research grants from NWO, KNAW, the Gerda Henkel Stiftung, as well as various other national and European science foundations.
Publications in high-ranking international journals, influential monographs and handbooks, combined with accessible publications for broader audiences on social media, national newspapers, and blogs
Frequent appearances by hotspot members at international, national and local public speaking events and other outreach activities (e.g. Radboud Reflects, Grondfest, Pakhuis de Zwijger)
Engagement with societal partners through activities such as the training of public officials and civil servants, policy advice and research for public and private stakeholders.