An-Institut der Stiftung Weltethos
an der Universität Tübingen

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Redesigning Democracy for Ecological Challenges? Strategies of Democracy Policy

International diversity or earth day and international world culture as a concept of diversity and crowd cooperation symbol as diverse hands holding together the planet earth.
Lecturer Dr. Christopher Gohl 
Type of seminarWeekly seminar, Master’s seminar
Hours per week
Language English 
Date/ TimeTuesdays, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m. c.t.
Start: 2025, April 15th
Location Weltethos-Institut, Hintere Grabenstraße 26, 72070 Tübingen 
PrerequisitesBachelor’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.