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PAG Project Pages

The PAG projects pages host brief outlines of ongoing collaborations between group members and/or external researchers.

 

'Revolutions' and their aftermath - Emel Akcali

Drawing upon the assumption that only by understanding fully the ways in which social structures constrain and enable the behavior of actors are we able to transcend, rather than ameliorate, existing power relations and the state of affairs, I problematize in my research the question of freedom and the concept of revolution by theoretically engaging with the notions of global neoliberal governmentality and the scope for a revolutionary transformation within such a framework. Empirically, I analyse the current state and societal transformation/s in Tunisia and problematize whether a successful representative democracy, the liberal constitution and a flourishing civil society indicate that the socio-political actors in Tunisia have actually been able to genuinely transform the social structures within which they have been embedded at both local and global levels. 

 

Intergovernmental Coordination and Democratic Accountability - Bettina Petersohn

Fragmented governmental jurisdiction allows for more autonomy of decision-makers at different levels of government to formulate and implement policies according to local preferences. It also offers opportunities to enter voluntary partnerships and cooperation agreements with neighbouring governments of the same level (horizontal) or spanning across levels of governments (vertical). At the same time, policy areas are interdependent. Decisions taken by a government in one area, may result in spill-over effects into other policy areas or neighbouring authorities. Policy problems are often complex and span across administrative boundaries requiring coordination between different governments in order to formulate effective solutions. Distributing power and resources across different levels of government makes coordination necessary and produces collective action dilemmas. Even if intergovernmental coordination takes place to address collective action dilemmas, questions about democratic accountability and the role of elected representatives arise due to the often intransparent nature of intergovernmental negotiations.

 

Based on the institutional collective action framework (Feiock 2013, 2009) and studies of territorial dynamics grounded in comparative historical analysis (Benz & Broschek 2013; Broschek, Petersohn & Toubeau 2017), I am investigating (1) pathways and patterns of intergovernemntal coordination in the UK; (2) decisions to enter into intergovernmental agreements; and (3) the impact of intergovernmental coordination on legislative scrutiny and accountability at the regional level.

Next event:
Intergovernmental bargains, fiscal grants and local governance
PAG Workshop, 5th December 2018
Guest Speaker: Dr Johanna Schnabel, Newton International Fellow, University of Kent