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16 results on '"James Organ"'

1. Global Participatory Democracy through a UN World Citizens’ Initiative? Mapping the Theoretical and Institutional Terrain

Author

Ben L. Murphy and James Organ

Subjects
Global participatory democracy, World Citizens’ Initiative, European Citizens’ Initiative, United Nations, Law of Europe, KJ-KKZ, Law in general. Comparative and uniform law. Jurisprudence, K1-7720
Abstract

The burgeoning literature on the democratic deficit of international organizations, and the United Nations in particular, has, for the most part, inherited a pervasive state-centrism commonly associated with conventional approaches to international law more generally. While this approach is understandable, it appears incompatible with a holistic account of democracy, especially accounts that seek to situate the locus of power within the individual. Drawing on attempts to empower individual citizens to influence global governance decision-making in other contexts—especially the experience of the European Citizens’ Initiative—this Article considers a bold idea: The establishment of a “World Citizens’ Initiative,” through which individuals could directly influence the agenda of the primary organs of the United Nations. This Article critically analyzes the legal feasibility of such an initiative and the challenges of implementation. In doing so, it offers both a theoretical and institutional contribution to the debate about the normative case for the democratization of global governance through effective citizen participation.

Published
2023
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2. Legal Regulation of Campaign Deliberation: Lessons from Brexit

Author

James Organ

Subjects
Brexit, deliberation, democracy, electoral law, false statements, plebiscite, referendum, Political science (General), JA1-92
Abstract

There has been significant attention paid to explaining and understanding the impact of the UK’s vote to leave the EU on UK politics and its constitution. There has also been criticism of the political campaigning, from both the “leave” and “remain” sides, and of people’s understanding of what they were voting for. There has been limited discussion, though, of how to improve the quality of campaign deliberation, which is fundamental to the legitimacy of both representative and direct democratic processes. Using the UK’s vote on EU membership as a case study, this article examines the importance of the law to regulate and improve deliberation prior to direct public votes on specific policy issues. It also considers options for changes to the law and for its implementation, using the current provisions about false statements in electoral law as a starting point. The article argues that the quality of deliberation during UK referendum campaigns needs to improve and that legal regulation should be developed. There are, however, significant challenges in drafting legislation that appropriately defines and limits the use of misleading statements, and at the same time avoids excessive restriction of free speech, or an excessively political role for regulatory bodies and the courts. Given the nature of political campaigning and the challenges in reducing the use of misleading statements by political actors through legal regulation, increased deliberative opportunities for citizens are proposed as a complementary, perhaps more effective means to positively enhance deliberation in political campaigns. Whatever approach is taken, direct democracy needs to be combined effectively with representative democracy, based on a common underlying principle of the importance of deliberation, and not treated as a separate part of a state’s democracy.

Published
2019
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7. The Case for Citizen Participation in the European Union: A Theoretical Perspective on EU Participatory Democracy

Author

James Organ, Alberto Alemanno, Groupement de Recherche et d'Etudes en Gestion à HEC (GREGH), Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales (HEC Paris)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), and HEC Paris Research Paper Series

Subjects
History, Civil society, Polymers and Plastics, media_common.quotation_subject, European Citizen Assembly, Public administration, Transparency, Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, Good governance, Good Governance, JEL: K - Law and Economics/K.K1 - Basic Areas of Law/K.K1.K19 - Other, Participatory Democracy, Civic Empowerment, Political science, media_common.cataloged_instance, European Question Time, Accountability, European Union, Business and International Management, European union, Legitimacy, media_common, Open government, Open Government, advocacy, JEL: K - Law and Economics/K.K3 - Other Substantive Areas of Law/K.K3.K33 - International Law, Participation, citizen lobbying, Transparency (behavior), Democracy, European Citizens Consultations, Civil Society, [SHS.GESTION]Humanities and Social Sciences/Business administration, democratic innovation
Abstract

Ten years after the introduction of participatory democracy as one of the democratic foundations of the European Union, this introductory chapter to "Citizen Participation in Democratic Europe" provides some theoretical background on the role citizens play, and should play, within the EU democratic system. As such, it offers a contribution about the place of citizen participation in the wider, ongoing debate about how to develop the EU’s democratic system in a post-pandemic Europe. It sets the scene for the subsequent chapters written, again, not only by academic scholars but also civil society advocates and practitioners from across Europe who experience on a daily basis the realities of EU citizen participation. Ultimately, this edited volume argues how Europe’s long-standing democracy challenge can be addressed through the emergence of a new model of EU citizen participation, and a set of democratic innovations emerging bottom-up across the continent. To do so, it offers a re-evaluation and systematisation of EU level citizen participation and its future development, which remains largely underexplored.

Published
2020

8. Citizen Participation in Democratic Europe : What Next for the EU?

Author

James Organ, Alberto Alemanno, James Organ, and Alberto Alemanno

Subjects
Political participation--Europe, Democracy--Europe
Abstract

As the European Union undergoes a major, self-proclaimed democratic exercise – the Conference on the Future of Europe – and approaches Treaty change, this volume offers a new model of citizen participation to address Europe's long-standing democracy challenge, and respond to the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Proposed are a set of democratic innovations, ranging from citizens'assemblies to regulatory gaming to citizens'initiatives and lobbying, which are complementary, not antagonistic, to existing representative democracy across the European continent. These innovations are emerging bottom-up across the continent and getting traction at local, national and EU level in a new era powered by technology.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.

Published
2021

10. Decommissioning Direct Democracy? A Critical Analysis of Commission Decision-Making on the Legal Admissibility of European Citizens Initiative Proposals

Author

James Organ

Subjects
European Citizens' Initiative, media_common.quotation_subject, Direct democracy, Commission, Public administration, Democracy, Law, Political science, European integration, media_common.cataloged_instance, Treaty, European union, Citizenship, media_common
Abstract

Following the enactment of the Lisbon Treaty the European Union (EU) sought to bolster its democratic legitimacy by supplementing its existing representative basis with the first instrument of direct democracy at the supranational level: the European Citizens Initiative. The potential, theoretical significance of the European Citizens Initiative for the democratic legitimacy of the EU is widely recognised, and the Commission itself expected it to be a significant step forward in the democratic life of the Union that would add a whole new dimension of participatory democracy. However, despite these high expectations, the regulation implementing the European Citizens Initiative was strongly criticised early on for its potential to limit its impact. This article examines the extent to which these high expectations have been met in practice and whether this new facet of EU citizenship is a strong opportunity for citizen-led democratic participation in the EU or one that is throttled by institutional mediation

Published
2014

11. EU Citizen Participation, Openness and the European Citizens Initiative: The TTIP Legacy

Author

James Organ

Subjects
Political Science and International Relations, Law
Abstract

This paper analyses the European Citizens Initiative, consultation, and transparency in the context of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations, to assess what it tells us about EU citizen participation and the principle of openness. It focuses on the institutional mediation of citizen participation and the degree to which the Commission facilitates such participation and accepts citizen influence over policy-making in EU external affairs. Three categories of openness are used in the analysis: institutional transparency with little or no participation; a democratically weak institutional approach as a means to improve the effectiveness of governance and support existing policy; and thirdly an institutional acceptance of effective citizen participation that facilitates citizen influence over agenda-setting. It is argued that the Commission has made some progress during TTIP in terms of transparency, but that the Commission does not take a strongly democratic position on citizen participation in external affairs. It only engages with citizens as passive actors who can support the effectiveness of EU governance.

Published
2017

12. EU Citizen Participation and the ECI: The TTIP Legacy

Author

James Organ

Subjects
European Citizens' Initiative, Negotiation, media_common.quotation_subject, Corporate governance, Political science, Position (finance), Context (language use), Commission, Public administration, Transparency (behavior), Democracy, media_common
Abstract

This article examines citizen participation in the TTIP negotiation process as a case study of the democratic legitimacy of EU external affairs. The starting point is an analysis of the Commission’s justification for refusing to register the proposed Stop TTIP European Citizens Initiative (ECI), followed by assessment of the changes to transparency and the ISDS, which were two of the key demands of the campaign. Conclusions are drawn about the Commission’s attitude towards participation and transparency, and what the implications are for EU democracy in the context of International Agreements such as TTIP. These conclusions are based on three categories of citizen participation: transparency with little or no participation, secondly a democratically weak approach to participation as a means to improve the effectiveness of governance and support existing policy, and thirdly, effective citizen participation as part of strong democratic legitimacy that facilitates citizen influence over the policy agenda and the possibility of challenge to existing policy preferences. It is argued that the Commission has made some progress in terms of the transparency of International Agreements, but does not take a strongly democratic position regarding citizen participation in external affairs policy. Instead participation, when it is allowed by the Commission, is limited to engaging with citizens as passive actors who can support the effectiveness of EU governance, rather than active participants who can strongly influence the policy agenda and its outcomes.

Published
2017

13. Citizen Participation in Democratic Europe

Author

James Organ Alberto Alemanno and James Organ Alberto Alemanno

Abstract

As the European Union undergoes a major, self-proclaimed democratic exercise – the Conference on the Future of Europe – and approaches Treaty change, this volume offers a new model of citizen participation to address Europe’s long-standing democracy challenge, and respond to the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Proposed are a set of democratic innovations, ranging from citizens’ assemblies to regulatory gaming to citizens’ initiatives and lobbying, which are complementary, not antagonistic, to existing representative democracy across the European continent. These innovations are emerging bottom-up across the continent and getting traction at local, national and EU level in a new era powered by technology. 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.

14. Citizen Participation in Democratic Europe

Author

James Organ Alberto Alemanno and James Organ Alberto Alemanno

Abstract

As the European Union undergoes a major, self-proclaimed democratic exercise – the Conference on the Future of Europe – and approaches Treaty change, this volume offers a new model of citizen participation to address Europe’s long-standing democracy challenge, and respond to the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Proposed are a set of democratic innovations, ranging from citizens’ assemblies to regulatory gaming to citizens’ initiatives and lobbying, which are complementary, not antagonistic, to existing representative democracy across the European continent. These innovations are emerging bottom-up across the continent and getting traction at local, national and EU level in a new era powered by technology. 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.

15. Citizen Participation in Democratic Europe

Author

James Organ Alberto Alemanno and James Organ Alberto Alemanno

Abstract

As the European Union undergoes a major, self-proclaimed democratic exercise – the Conference on the Future of Europe – and approaches Treaty change, this volume offers a new model of citizen participation to address Europe’s long-standing democracy challenge, and respond to the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Proposed are a set of democratic innovations, ranging from citizens’ assemblies to regulatory gaming to citizens’ initiatives and lobbying, which are complementary, not antagonistic, to existing representative democracy across the European continent. These innovations are emerging bottom-up across the continent and getting traction at local, national and EU level in a new era powered by technology. 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.

16. Citizen Participation in Democratic Europe

Author

James Organ Alberto Alemanno and James Organ Alberto Alemanno

Abstract

As the European Union undergoes a major, self-proclaimed democratic exercise – the Conference on the Future of Europe – and approaches Treaty change, this volume offers a new model of citizen participation to address Europe’s long-standing democracy challenge, and respond to the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Proposed are a set of democratic innovations, ranging from citizens’ assemblies to regulatory gaming to citizens’ initiatives and lobbying, which are complementary, not antagonistic, to existing representative democracy across the European continent. These innovations are emerging bottom-up across the continent and getting traction at local, national and EU level in a new era powered by technology. 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.

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