Lecturer | Dr. Christopher Gohl |
Type of seminar | Weekly seminar, Master’s seminar |
Hours per week | 2 |
Language | English |
Date/ Time | Tuesdays, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m. c.t. Start: 2025, April 15th |
Location | Weltethos-Institut, Hintere Grabenstraße 26, 72070 Tübingen |
Prerequisites | Bachelor’s degree |
Proof of performance/ form of examination ECTS-Credits | Active participation, presentation, term paper Up to 6 ECTS, for students of political science up to 8 ECTS |
Registration | To register, please send an email including your name, date and place of birth, student number, and address to lehre@weltethos-institut.org. Please also indicate your major concentration and how many semesters of study you have completed. |
Registration deadline | 2025, April 10th |
Maximum number of participants | 20 |
Literature
- WBGU (2011). World in Transition – A Social Contract for Sustainability. WBGU: Flagship Report 2011.
- Bochsler, D., & Kriesi, H. (2013). Varieties of democracy. In: Kriesi et al.: Democracy in the age of globalization and mediatization, 69-104.
- Gagnon, J. (2013). Evolutionary Basic Democracy: A Critical Overture. Springer.
- Pickering, J., Bäckstrand, K., & Schlosberg, D. (2020). Between environmental and ecological democracy: theory and practice at the democracy-environment nexus. Journal of Environmental Policy & Planning, 22(1), 1-15.
- Brechin, S. R., & Lee, S. (2023). Will democracy survive climate change? Sociological Forum. 38(4), 1382-1392.
Description
Life in democracies is deeply intertwined with, and challenged by, biological and ecological dynamics. Climate change, biodiversity loss, and disruptions in ecological cycles threaten the foundations of peaceful, free, and just ways of life in diverse societies. Experts have long proposed measures to redesign institutions and empower democratic processes to meet these challenges. This seminar invites participants to engage in an open inquiry into three key approaches to modernizing liberal democracies to address ecological crises: environmental democracy, ecological democracy, and evolutionary democracy.
The seminar bridges two critical discourses: the interdisciplinary study of the political dimension of sustainable development, and the emerging field of „democracy policy,“ which focuses on revitalizing institutions, processes, and public cultures in democratic societies. Join us to explore these innovative approaches, engage with intriguing ideas, and contribute to shaping the discourse and research into the future of sustainable democratic governance.