TRENDS IN DEMOCRACY AND CITIZENSHIP
30 April 2006
By David M. Black
Commissioned by the Library of Parliament
i
CONTENTS
Page
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .............................................................................................................................. I
A.
Societal Trends ................................................................................................................................. i
B.
Emerging Democracies .................................................................................................................... i
1.
Structural Trends ........................................................................................................................... i
2.
Trends in Citizenship .....................................................................................................................ii
C.
Established Democracies ................................................................................................................ iii
1.
Structural Trends .......................................................................................................................... iii
2.
Trends in Citizenship ....................................................................................................................iv
D.
Enabling Technologies ....................................................................................................................iv
E.
Conclusion .......................................................................................................................................iv
INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................................... 1
SOCIETAL TRENDS ................................................................................................................................... 2
A.
The Rise of Post Industrial Society ................................................................................................. 2
B.
The Spread of Democracy .............................................................................................................. 2
C.
Study Implications ........................................................................................................................... 3
TRENDS IN EMERGING DEMOCRACIES ................................................................................................. 3
D.
Institutions in Emerging Democracies ............................................................................................. 4
E.
Trends in Citizenship ....................................................................................................................... 4
TRENDS IN ESTABLISHED DEMOCRACIES............................................................................................ 6
A.
Institutions in Established Democracies.......................................................................................... 6
B.
Innovations in Democratic Institutions............................................................................................. 8
1.
Research and Investigation .......................................................................................................... 8
2.
Changing the Work of Parliamentarians ...................................................................................... 9
3.
Clarification of the Notion of Representation ............................................................................... 9
4.
Electoral Reform ......................................................................................................................... 10
5.
Electoral Innovations .................................................................................................................. 10
6.
Development and Use of New Consultative Mechanisms ......................................................... 11
7.
Deliberation on Policy Issues ..................................................................................................... 11
8.
Co-governance ........................................................................................................................... 12
9.
Direct Democracy ....................................................................................................................... 12
10. Civic Education ........................................................................................................................... 12
11. The Obligations of Citizens ........................................................................................................ 13
ii
C.
Citizenship in Established Democracies ....................................................................................... 13
ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES ................................................................................................................... 15
D.
Conclusions ................................................................................................................................... 16
CONCLUSIONS AND LESSONS LEARNED............................................................................................ 16
APPENDIX A – STUDY ORGANIZATIONS
APPENDIX B – EXPERT WITNESS INTERVIEWS
APPENDIX C – DOCUMENTS REVIEWED
i
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This report presents the results of an environmental scan of trends in democracy and citizenship
prepared as part of a strategic planning exercise for the Parliamentary Public Programs Branch of
Canada’s Library of Parliament (PPP). It is based on a review of files within PPP, a search of more than
100 internet sites, interviews with experts (Canadians and non-Canadian) in the subject area, and a
review of related documents published by organizations working on issues of democracy and
citizenship. Details are presented in the appendices to this report.
Because democracy is defined as rule by the people one cannot have democratic institutions without
citizens or citizens who rule without democratic institutions. While democracy and citizenship are two
sides of the same coin it is useful to make a distinction between trends involving institutions (structural
trends) and citizens. It is also absolutely necessary to separate trends in emerging democracies (new
and restored democracies) from those in established democracies.
In a brief and succinct report of this nature it is necessary to make a number of generalizations (e.g.,
about direct and representative views of democracy) that would, in a longer work, receive more detailed
attention qualification.
The report is organized in six chapters. After the introduction there is a brief discussion of underlying
societal trends that is used to establish the basis for discussion of trends in democracy and citizenship.
The discussion of democracy and citizenship is divided between two chapters: one focusing on the
situation in emerging democracies and a second focusing on the situation in established democracies. A
fifth chapter discusses enabling technologies that are being used, or proposed, in democratic institutions
or to facilitate the exercise of citizenship. A brief conclusion provides an overall summary of the work.
A.
Societal Trends
There are two macro level societal trends that are driving most of the changes in the area of democracy
and citizenship:
•
the spread of democracy, and
•
the transition from industrial to post-industrial society.
B.
Emerging Democracies
From the work done for this study it is possible to identify the following trends in emerging democracies.
1.
Structural Trends
The main structural trends in emerging democracies have to do with efforts to establish, or in the case of
restored democracies re-establish, democratic institutions. Among the key institutions (structures) are
the following:
•
free and fair elections,
•
a rule of law,
•
a citizenry with basic rights,
ii
•
freedom of speech and assembly,
•
the establishment of representative parliaments,
•
parliamentary immunity for parliamentarians (legislators),
•
workable legislatures, and
•
the institutions of accountable government.
Related to these structural trends is the growing realization that the balance of power between the
legislature and the executive is an important factor in the survival of democratic regimes.
Legislative weakness inhibits democratization by undermining the development of political parties. This
in turn has led to a focus on issues of citizenship.
2.
Trends in Citizenship
Emphasis on the formal rights of citizens and “voting” in an election has been a core focus of support for
the spread of democracy. The importance of “spreading democracy” grew in importance during the
1990s with the collapse of communist regimes in Eastern Europe and the breakup of the Soviet Union in
1991.
This period marked a strong belief in the determining importance of elections, since elections, it is
believed, will generate other democratic reforms.
The trends that involve citizens in emerging democracies are:
•
education about democratic institutions (e.g., parliaments),
•
how to exercise the rights of a citizen, and
•
creation of mechanisms that allow the exercise of citizen rights (e.g., freedom of assembly, freedom
of speech).
More recently, trends in citizenship programs have been influenced by the lack of success in some
countries (e.g., Russia and Belarus) and the realization that “spreading democracy” involved more than
simply organizing free and fair elections.
This has led to a focus on programs that enhance other aspects of citizenship. These include:
•
support for non-governmental groups that monitor public institutions,
•
the promotion of human rights (beyond those involving freedom of speech or the right to vote),
•
the establishment of political parties,
•
access to information, and
•
the freedom to form organizations independent of direct government control (e.g., NGOs).
iii
C.
Established Democracies
1.
Structural Trends
The main structural trends in established democracies have to do with questions about the function and
suitability of existing institutions driven by the following trends:
•
frustration with traditional decision making models (e.g., parliament),
•
fragmentation and proliferation of the spaces within which political debate takes place,
•
the rise of single issue lobby groups separate from existing political parties (e.g., NGOs),
•
frustration with a simple vote every few years.
•
questions about the legitimacy of existing institutions,
•
a search for mechanisms that allow a full and responsible debate on important issues that cut across
traditional jurisdictional boundaries, and
•
a growing appetite for direct participation models.
These trends, flow from underlying changes related to the development of a post-industrial society. They
in turn produce related changes that involve:
•
a tendency for elements of the democratic process to leak outside of traditional structures, (civil
society organizations working directly with Ministers or senior officials of the civil service in
environmental consultations),
•
the widespread use of consultation mechanisms (e.g., opinion polling) not readily available to
parliamentarians, and
•
the development of a “24 hour” news cycle with its demand for instant responses.
These changes have:
•
reinforced the power of the executive and tended to diminish the role of legislatures.
Current efforts to deal with these trends focus on innovations in the way democracies can function.
Discussion about innovations can be grouped under eleven headings.
•
research and investigation (about potential innovations),
•
changes to the work of parliamentarians,
•
clarification and redefinition of the meaning of “representation and representative,”
•
electoral reform,
•
electoral innovations,
•
development and use of new consultative mechanisms,
•
the development and use of new “deliberative” mechanisms,
•
mechanisms to give citizens direct influence on decisions (co-governance), and
iv
•
examination and use of mechanisms of “direct democracy,”
•
the re-emergence of the importance of “civic” education and knowledge, and
•
a concomitant focus on the “obligations of citizens.”
2.
Trends in Citizenship
Key trends in citizenship in established democracies are:
•
declining participation rates in elections, particularly among younger voters,
•
rising levels of education and sophistication among citizens,
•
increased specialization in the education of citizens,
•
a rising emphasis on the “rights” of citizens,
•
the growth of membership in focused groups (e.g., environmental groups),
•
a growing sense of alienation from formal politics,
•
a decline of interest and membership in “traditional” political parties,
•
an expectation to be engaged in political conversation as equals,
•
modest involvement in new consultative and deliberative mechanisms,
•
a growth in the use of alternate communications media (e.g., creation of on-line newspapers,
e-journals and blogs),
D.
Enabling Technologies
Responses to trends in democracy and citizenship, in both emerging and established democracies,
involve the use of technologies to support innovative solutions. These include:
•
innovative mechanisms for voting (more accessible advance polls, postal voting),
•
e-governance,
•
e-consultation,
•
electronic voting,
•
the use of on-line deliberative polling,
•
the use of a web site to link people to an issue,
•
the use of computer simulations in educational programs,
•
use of an on-line forum to enhance political literacy, and
•
creation of an electronic “civic commons.”
E.
Conclusion
The study concludes by noting that investigation of these trends increasingly involves cross-disciplinary
teams and the formation of strategic partnerships among those attempting to address the issues raised
by these trends. Increasing pressure will continue to be placed on the role of parliamentarians who will
v
be caught between the need to be involved in the development of new consultation and decision
mechanisms and the demands of citizens who may have unrealistic expectations about the capacity of
“representatives” (i.e., parliamentarians and legislators) to represent citizens. This is made more difficult
by the rise of interest in “rights” and a corresponding decline in the interests of “obligations” of citizens.
While the use of enabling technologies will increase (e.g., in deliberative assemblies) the technologies
are unlikely to provide an “easy solution” to the challenges facing emerging or established democracies.
Two institutions in society, the educational system and the news media, have important roles to play in
addressing the trends discussed in this paper. Civic education is becoming an important item and much
will need to be done in the area of formal education. While the media (news and political affairs) will
have an important role in any effort to improve current levels of trust or engagement it is not clear how a
changed role can be brought about.
Finally, one can conclude that the issue of how to refine existing democratic institutions and the ways in
which citizens will exercise their rights and obligations within those institutions will be subjects for study
and debate into the foreseeable future. As the Power Inquiry concluded their report, “Political
participation, democracy, effective government and successful societies all live or die together.”1
1
In Power to the People: The report of Power; an independent inquiry into Britain’s democracy, The Power Inquiry,
London, March 2006, p. 262 [Power to the People].
1
INTRODUCTION
This report presents a summary of the findings of an environmental scan of trends in citizenship and
democracy. It is part of a series of studies being carried out for the Parliamentary Public Programs
Branch (PPP) of the Library of Parliament.
The report is divided into six chapters. This introduction is followed by a chapter that briefly discusses
the societal trends driving trends and issues in the discussion of democracy and citizenship. The third
and fourth chapters discuss trends in emerging and established democracies. A fifth chapter discusses
enabling technologies that are being considered as tools that might support changes either in
democratic institutions or the role of citizens. A final chapter draws general conclusions from the study.
The study is based on an examination of the work of a number of Canadian and non-Canadian
organizations that are carrying out various projects dealing with democracy and citizenship. A full list of
the organizations is presented in Appendix A. A list of those interviewed is attached as Appendix B.
Appendix C lists the documents reviewed.
In summary, the work presented here rests on a file review of material gathered by PPP, a series of
web-based searches for organizations that might be of interest to this study, a review of relevant
documents, a scan of newspaper articles and columns during March and April 2006 and a series of
expert interviews.
Strategic planning, the reason for carrying out this study, often attempts to focus on “recent” or “new
trends” since these can be crucial factors in the survival of an organization. For example, a change in
technology (e.g., the invention, development and eventual widespread use of digital cameras) can have
a profound influence on the very survival of a company or its success. At least three well known
companies (Fuji, Kodak, and Polaroid) struggled for at least two decades with the impact of this
emerging change in technology. The “trend” to the widespread use of digital cameras could be foreseen
for at least 25 years. Exactly how this change would develop, how it would be adopted by consumers
and the implications for the companies involved were not clear. Thus, while the underlying trend
remained the same (the adoption of digital cameras) the mechanisms developed to respond to the
underlying trend varied considerably over the last quarter of a century.
Trends in “democracy and citizenship” exhibit some of the same characteristics. The underlying “trends”
have been the same for many years (in some cases centuries) while the adaptive responses to the
issues raised by the trends have witnessed considerable change. 2
While trends in “Democracy and Citizenship” is a vast topic there is widespread agreement about the
importance of these two topics and considerable agreement about the underlying causes of current
trends. There is, however, less agreement about what “the trends mean” and a wide range of different
approaches that are in play with respect to trends in the area of citizenship.
2
For example, discussion of the idea of “representation” tends to revolve around two different concepts – direct and
indirect democracy. Examples of direct democracy might include ancient Athens or a New England town hall meeting.
Examples of indirect democracy include the Parliament of Canada, Congress in the United States and Westminster in
the United Kingdom. Philosophical proponents could include, respectively, Rousseau and Burke.
2
SOCIETAL TRENDS
Although a thorough discussion of societal trends goes beyond the scope of this paper a number of
those interviewed pointed out that it is societal trends that are driving the underlying dynamic of changes
in democracy and citizenship.
For the purposes of this paper it is worth mentioning two macro trends that were mentioned as crucial to
the background understanding of the “democracy and citizenship” debate.
One trend driving changes is the move from an industrial society to a post industrial society. The second
trend is the spread of democracy in countries that have little or no history of democracy or no recent
experience of democracy. These two changes underpin much of the discussion about trends in
democracy and citizenship. Each is discussed, briefly, in the next few paragraphs.
A.
The Rise of Post Industrial Society
The move from industrial society to a post industrial society, it is claimed, has radically altered the norms
and values of the society within which representative institutions first developed (e.g., parliaments and
legislatures). The movement from an industrial economy to a service economy, for example, has had a
tremendous impact on the way people work, their levels of education and the amount of time available
for leisure activities.
These changes it is suggested have had impacts on the way that people participate in political activity
(e.g., with trade unions) and their interest and understanding of political activities.
These changes have, in turn, created pressures on traditional democratic institutions and the extent to
which they are seen as “relevant.”
These changes are cited by a number of organizations as fundamental to the issue of the engagement
of citizens. For example, the Power Inquiry recently issued a report that argued the fundamental causal
factor underling “disengagement” must be understood as the shift to a post-industrial society. Thus:
The deeper cause behind these factors is the shift from industrial to postindustrial economy. The first is the creation of a large section of British
society which is now better educated, more affluent, expects greater control
and choice over many aspects of life, feels no deference towards those in
positions of authority, and is not bound by the traditional bonds of place,
class and institution that developed during the industrial era. The second is
the creation of permanently marginalized groups in society which live in
persistent poverty, with low educational attainment, poor working and living
conditions and a multiplicity of other deprivations associated with life on low
or very low incomes. 3
B.
The Spread of Democracy
The end of the cold war rivalry between Western countries and blocs of communist countries saw the
rise of interest in and attempts to encourage the development of democracies in countries with little or
no history of democratic structures and practices.
3
Power to the People (2006), p. 18.
3
While the most immediate impacts of the end of the cold war were probably evident in the former
Eastern Europe, other countries with a history of autocratic rule experienced profound changes
(e.g., Rwanda).
The end of the Cold War also saw a reassessment of traditional alliances among former client states of
the larger powers and emergence into clear view of a number of issues and problems that had been
present, but not visible, during the Cold War. Possibly the most important of these is change within
Muslim societies that are faced with adaptations to modern and “post-industrial society.” The emergence
of new strands of terrorism is perhaps the most publicized of these phenomena.
This has led to an important trend, outside the scope of this paper, where some countries, notably the
United Kingdom and the United States of America, have undertaken actions to promote democracy and
prevent terrorism. Although, the U.K. and the U.S. are the countries most heavily involved, Canada’s
current (2006) commitment in Afghanistan is an example of this type of effort.
The emergence of these initiatives after the events of September 11, 2001 (9/11) will have profound
consequences for other issues of “democracy and citizenship” over the next five years and possibly
longer. Critics have pointed out that there are really two separate issues (fighting terrorism and
promoting democracy) and that it is a mistake to see the two issues as having a direct relationship.
A recent, American, analysis suggested:
What the administration sees as one problem ought to be seen as two.
Radical Islamism needs to be dealt with separately from democracy
promotion. 4
C.
Study Implications
The influence of these two quite different set of changes has been profound. They influence people’s
understanding of current trends in “democracy and citizenship.” For example, in developed countries
with a long history of different forms of democracy discussion about “trends” tends to focus on trends
around democratic institutions (e.g., questions of electoral reform) and the engagement of citizens
(e.g., declines in the participation rate of citizens within the electoral process). These issues are often
distant and alien to the trends in those countries where efforts are being made to establish working
democracies.
Those working with “newly democratic countries” point out that the question is not so much about
structural reform of existing institutions (e.g., electoral reform) but the creation of acceptable democratic
structures at the same time as attention is paid to important issues of survival (e.g., as one of those
interviewed for this report pointed out “ensuring that the children have enough to eat”).
TRENDS IN EMERGING DEMOCRACIES
While it is useful to look at overall trends in democracy it is important to remind oneself that generations
of experience with democratic institutions separate those in some countries from those in countries with
little or no experience of democratic institutions. It is also worth remembering that trends in democracy
and citizenship mirror each other and are ultimately driven by underlying changes in the larger society.
4
Francis Fukuyama and Adam Garfinkle, “A Better Idea,” The Wall Street Journal, 27 March 2006, p. A16. In the
th
article they make the interesting point that in the 19 century it was possible to “stigmatize and eventually eliminate
slavery from mainstream global norms without having first to wait for the mass advent of liberal democracy, …”
4
For these reasons it is useful to separate discussion of trends in democracy within established
democracies and emerging democracies.
D.
Institutions in Emerging Democracies
The main trend in emerging democracies is the effort to establish democratic institutions. Among the key
institutions or structures are the following:
•
free and fair elections,
•
a rule of law,
•
a citizenry with basic rights,
•
freedom of speech and assembly,
•
the establishment of representative parliaments,
•
parliamentary immunity for parliamentarians (legislators),
•
workable legislatures, and
•
the institutions of accountable government.
Related to these structural trends is the growing realization that the balance of power between the
legislature and the executive is an important factor in the survival of democratic regimes.
Legislative weakness inhibits democratization by undermining the development of political parties. 5 This
in turn has led to a focus on issues of citizenship.
E.
Trends in Citizenship
Emphasis on the formal rights of citizens and “voting” in an election has been a core focus of support for
the spread of democracy. The importance of “spreading democracy” grew in importance during the
1990s with the collapse of communist regimes in Eastern Europe and the breakup of the Soviet Union in
1991.
This period marked a strong belief in the determining importance of elections, since elections, it is
believed, will generate other democratic reforms.
The trends that involve citizens in emerging democracies are:
•
education about democratic institutions (e.g., parliaments),
•
how to exercise the rights of a citizen, and
•
creation of mechanisms that allow the exercise of citizen rights (e.g., freedom of assembly, freedom
of speech). And
•
freedom to vote for their representative in free and fair elections. 6
5
See M. Steven Fish, “Stronger Legislatures, Stronger Democracies,” Journal of Democracy, Vol. 17, No. 1,
John Hopkins Press, Baltimore, January 2006.
6
See the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s Parliament and Democracy in the 21 Century.
st
5
More recently, trends in citizenship programs have been influenced by the lack of success in some
countries (e.g., Russia and Belarus) and the realization that “spreading democracy” involved more than
simply organizing free and fair elections.
This has led to a focus on programs that enhance other aspects of citizenship. These include:
•
support for non-governmental groups that monitor public institutions,
•
the promotion of human rights (beyond those involving freedom of speech or the right to vote),
•
the establishment of political parties,
•
access to information, and
•
the freedom to form organizations independent of direct government control (e.g., NGOs).
To create and establish these rights and the democratic institutions that support them a number of
developed countries have been involved in “democracy promotion.7 This involves support for activities
such as freedom of expression and freedom of association and (within democracy itself) free and fair
elections. Support for the citizenship component of democracy building is different than traditional aid
packages that might support the development of infrastructure (e.g., roads). 8
While free and fair elections have always been seen as important “there has been a steady trend toward
the acceptance of democracy promotion as a norm of practice within the international system.” 9 There
are two broad components to these programs: support to governments or governmental institutions and
support to groups of citizens.
The transition to democracy in new and restored democracies has not been a smooth one. While there
have been many successes (e.g., Poland, Hungary and Latvia), there have been many stalled or failed
transitions (e.g., Russia and Belarus). Regimes that could be described as being in a state of a “stalled
transition” often have a weak parliament, state controlled media and little recourse to an independent
judiciary. 10
While not every transition to democracy has been a success much has been learnt about conditions for
success. Some of the conditions are institutional (e.g., a strong legislature) while others involve support
for citizenship. This support to citizenship issues as a component of democracy building has been an
important trend during the period since the end of the Cold War (approximately 1993). A recent rigorous,
quantative study carried out on behalf of USAID found that support for democracy building does produce
positive results.
7
Democracy promotion can be defined as the use of non-violent and transparent efforts “to strengthen institutions and
processes of democracy.” See the June 2000 Warsaw Declaration of the Community of Democracies.
8
This is not to disparage the importance of support for infrastructure.
9
Carl Gershman, , and Michael Allen, “The Assault on Democracy Assistance,” Journal of Democracy, Vol. 17, No. 2,
The John Hopkins Press, Baltimore, April 2006, p. 36. In the same paper the authors point out that in Belarus, a
presidential edict in August of 2005 prohibits organizations and individuals from receiving and using assistance for,
“staging gatherings, rallies, street marches, demonstrations, picketing, strikes and producing and distributing
campaign materials …” Ibid., p. 42.
10
Trends involving stalled or failed transitions to democracy are a subject well beyond the scope of this work.
6
One result of the positive findings from the quantative study carried out on behalf of USAID is likely to be
a renewed and expanded interest in the use of rigorous, quantative studies on the impact of support for
democracy (in emerging democracies) and the application of similar techniques in established
democracies.
TRENDS IN ESTABLISHED DEMOCRACIES
A.
Institutions in Established Democracies
The main trends in established democracies have to do with questions about the function and suitability
of existing institutions. These questions are driven by the following trends:
•
frustration with traditional decision making models (e.g., parliament),
•
fragmentation of the milieu within which political debate takes place,
•
the rise of single issue lobby groups separate from existing political parties (e.g., NGOs),
•
frustration with a simple vote every few years.
•
questions about the legitimacy of existing institutions,
•
a search for mechanisms that allow a full and responsible debate on important issues that cut across
traditional jurisdictional boundaries, and
•
a growing appetite for direct participation models.
These trends, flow from underlying changes related to the development of a post-industrial society. They
in turn produce changes that involve:
•
a tendency for elements of the democratic process to leak outside of traditional structures, (civil
society organizations working directly with Ministers or members of the civil service in environmental
consultations)
•
the widespread use of consultation mechanisms (e.g., opinion polling) not readily available to
parliamentarians, and
•
the development of a “24 hour” news cycle with its demand for instant responses.
These changes have:
•
reinforced the power of the executive and tended to diminish the role of legislatures.
Current efforts to deal with these trends focus on innovations and adaptations in the way democracies
can function.
Innovations can be grouped under eleven headings. 11
•
research and investigation,
•
changes to the work of parliamentarians,
11
This list expands on one developed by Professor Graham Smith in his Beyond the Ballot: 57 Democratic Innovations
from Around the World, The Power Inquiry, London, 2005 [Beyond the Ballot].
7
•
clarification and redefinition of the meaning of “representative,”
•
electoral reform,
•
electoral innovations,
•
development and use of new consultative mechanisms,
•
the development and use of new “deliberative” mechanisms,
•
mechanisms to give citizens direct influence on decisions (co-governance), and
•
examination and use of mechanisms of “direct democracy,”
•
the re-emergence of the importance of “civic” education and knowledge, and
•
a concomitant focus on the “obligations of citizens.”
While there is evidence for a “disconnect” between citizens and governments it is not clear what can be
done about it. As one of those interviewed pointed out, “technological change creates a new terrain for
all aspects of political discussions.” Technological change, including the 24 hour news cycle, has shifted
politics to a prime ministerial model. This in turn, it is argued, makes MPs more dependent on a prime
minister and their party than in the past.
While technological change offers new mechanisms to connect with citizens (e.g., the subject of egovernance) it is definitely a two-edged sword. It is not clear, as one interviewee pointed out, if
politicians feed the 24 hour news cycle or if the media creates it and the politicians react but it has the
result that there is less time to think about issues.
All of these underlying changes have had an impact on democratic institutions. In Canada, there has
been a shift in expectations about parliament and the work of parliamentarians. In 1968 the structure of
standing committees was reorganized to reflect that of departments. In 1982 the policy role of standing
committees was strengthened. In 1994 an option for committee involvement in drafting legislation was
made available. In 2004 a number of changes were announced as part of the Action Plan for Democratic
Reform. 12 These changes may be followed by an increased emphasis on issues surrounding
accountability. It is not clear if this is a temporary trend related to recent events (e.g., the Gomery
Commission) or whether it is a more permanent response to accountability issues.
Accountability and legitimacy are related. The presence of well publicized scandals increases
expectations about accountability and may well increase citizens’ sense of unease about the legitimacy
of parliament.
In a complex modern society it is difficult to exercise accountability and difficult to have a perspective
about a “particular scandal.” Accountability is difficult because governments share responsibilities for a
number of activities and create special agencies to deal with particular issues. As one interviewee
pointed out in the “United Kingdom citizens often blame local government for problems related to the
health system but local government is not responsible for the health system.”
12
See Parliamentary Reform and the House of Commons, http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Content/LOP/ResearchPublications/
prb0743-e.htm.
8
The growing complexity of society raises a number of challenges for members of a legislature. As one
respondent asked, “How is a group of amateurs to cope with the complexity and how can they deal with
sophisticated accountability regimes?”
One of the ironies of the current situation in established democracies is dissatisfaction with existing
institutions that, in part, were designed, or evolved, to deal with complex issues thought to be beyond
the capacity of individual citizens. The growth in complexity and size of modern society, it has been
argued, make it impossible for many citizens to take part in political decision making. The solution to this
problem was thought to be representative democracy. Yet, it is now argued that a “system based largely
or entirely on parliamentary representation no longer engages people in the way it once did.” 13
Dealing with these trends has led to interest in the development of various innovations in the work of
democratic institutions and the involvement of citizens. Since democracy cannot exist without citizens it
is often an arbitrary exercise to assign a particular innovation to the democratic side of the ledger or the
citizenship side. With that caveat in mind the next sections discusses trends in recent innovations in
democratic institutions or consultation mechanisms.
B.
Innovations in Democratic Institutions
Recent efforts to re-focus or invigorate democratic institutions involve a vast range of initiatives. In some
cases the effort focuses on the work of parliamentarians (e.g., in Canada an enhanced focus on
accountability issues or changes in the consultation mechanisms that parliamentarians use). In other
cases there are efforts to use modern technology for a variety of ends (e.g., e-governance).
Overall, one might say that there is a strong and growing trend to experiment with a variety of different
innovations. The underlying rationale for these experiments lies in attempts to deal with citizen
disengagement, a lack of trust in politicians and the sense that existing formal political institutions are
less relevant than they once were.
Any effort to separate these efforts into separate and distinct categories will be met with disagreement
from some quarter. However, for the purposes of discussions it is useful to examine eleven different
types of initiatives and innovations.
1.
Research and Investigation
In the past decade there has been a growing interest in questions of public participation in formal
electoral processes. While this is not a new field of study the decline in electoral participation rates has
fuelled a great number of initiatives aimed at understanding the reasons for the decline. This ongoing
work is characterized by research reports, pilot projects and consultative mechanisms that might be
described as research and investigation into the phenomena being studied.
In Canada, CPRN, the IRPP, the Canada West Foundation, the Public Policy Forum, Crossing
Boundaries and the Democratic Renewal Secretariat of the PCO have all been involved in this type of
research.
13
See Power to the People (2006), p. 116.
9
A particular example is the series of studies on Citizen Engagement.14 This ongoing research project
has looked at citizens’ interest in “engagement” and finding that there is an interest in a second phase
examined mechanisms that might be used. In a third phase the project is examining issues surrounding
awareness and use of available consultation mechanisms.
2.
Changing the Work of Parliamentarians
The challenges facing formal political institutions have not gone unnoticed by parliamentarians. The
growth of the power of the Executive, changes in the role of parliaments and parliamentarians have
been the subject of much discussion over the past few decades. In Canada this has led to changes in
the work of Parliamentary Committees with a greater focus on policy and accountability matters. In
addition, in the last few years this has led to efforts to change the way parliamentarians consult with
citizens.
Given the elaboration of new and innovative mechanisms, discussed below, it is difficult to foresee with
any precision the future role of parliamentarians. It is possible that the need for accountability will result
in this being one of the most important roles of parliamentarians. This focus, by parliamentarians, on
accountability cannot be described as a new trend. However, the degree of focus and the amount of
time that it may consume can be thought of as a trend emerging from the shifting responsibilities of the
executive and the growing complexity of the mechanisms developed by governments to deliver
programs.
While there is an undoubted need for modern concepts of accountability to be studied and understood
by parliamentarians it is not clear how the assignment of roles and responsibilities will evolve. The
recent Gomery report made a number of suggestions that would involve a substantial clarification of the
roles of the executive, parliament and civil servants.
At the same time that there will be changes in accountability regimes, there will also be changes in the
way that consultations with the public are developed and managed. In Canada, federal parliamentarians
have been involved in efforts to expand the type of consultations beyond those traditionally involved in
the work of a parliamentary committee. While it is likely that the trend to more sophisticated mechanisms
of consultation will continue it is not clear what the respective role of the executive, particularly civil
servants, and parliamentarians will be.
3.
Clarification of the Notion of Representation
At present, parliamentary committees have extremely limited resources to carry out policy work and the
consultations involved in that work. They also operate under a very restrictive set of rules (e.g., when
they are able to travel) or the timing of the work they perform (e.g., legislation has precedence over other
work). These constraints make effective and permanent change to the consultative work they do difficult
to implement.
A second problem has to do with the limited resources available to individual parliamentarians to engage
in meaningful consultations with constituents on matters of policy. Constituents bring a large number of
individual problems (e.g., immigration issues) to their member of parliament. While this work on
individual cases is important it tends to take time away from formal political consultations with
constituents.
14
See Citizen Engagement 2005: Government Performance and Public Preferences, Ekos Research Associates,
July 2005.
10
Organizing a consultation process on a specific topic takes time and resources, time and resources that
individual parliamentarians, working within the current set of rules and constraints, do not have. Yet, if
one is to move away from the frustration that comes with casting a vote once every few years,
enhancements to the capabilities of individual constituent offices and the resources available for
parliamentarians will likely be required.
The ongoing debate about the role of parliamentarians will grow in intensity over the next decade. Since
there is no simple answer about the appropriate role and the ultimate result will occur through an
evolutionary process of trial and error considerable work and support for trial initiatives could be a focus
of those working with parliamentarians.
A core element in the definition of the work of parliamentarians will be focus on the way in which they
“represent” their constituents and the mechanisms that are used.
4.
Electoral Reform
There are important disagreements about the exact nature of the problems with established
democracies. One set of innovative proposals has to de with changes to the very structure of the voting
mechanism. One of the main changes being investigated is a move to proportional representation. In
some countries, for example Canada, there is a strong interest in developing a form of proportional
representation since it will reduce some of the negative results of the ‘first past the post’ voting system
currently in place.
In a ‘first past the post’ system voters often have the feeling that their vote “was wasted” or “my vote
doesn’t count.” This can happen for a number of reasons. They may live in a riding that has traditionally
been won by one party or they may feel that the main parties do not represent programs and policies
they want to vote for.
Systems where there is a “representation by population” tend to have a 5-10% higher turnout of voters.
While this is a positive sign, countries with representation by population systems have experienced
declines in voter turnout similar to that in other countries.
Representation by population while it would address some issues is not a panacea. Israel which has one
of the most complete forms of representation by population has established a commission to investigate
ways in which the country could move to a system that will produce more stable governments.15
5.
Electoral Innovations
One of the reasons suggested for the decline in voter participation is difficulties that surround the
problem of voting. A number of countries have developed a variety of programs and initiatives to
increase voter participation. These include: advertising campaigns, postal voting, electronic voting, and
changes in the voting age and voting requirements.
15
The Committee on Viable Constitutionalism (COVICO) is examining ways in which the electoral system in Israel can
be changed so that the system will generate more stable governments. At present citizens do not vote for individual
representatives. They vote for a party and the party assigns representatives to the legislature on the basis of the
proportion of the popular vote received by the party. The 120 Knesset seats are assigned in proportion to the exact
percentage of the national vote. The minimum required for a party to obtain a Knesset seat is 1.5% of the total votes
cast.
11
The recent (2006) federal election in Canada witnessed an interesting project to increase the interest of
younger voters in the electoral process. The project involved The Dominion Institute, Historica, Elections
Canada and a large newspaper group in an unprecedented alliance.
This initiative is an example of an important trend that characterizes the whole field – the development of
partnerships that cross traditional boundaries and the breakdown of rigid barriers between organizations.
6.
Development and Use of New Consultative Mechanisms
Traditionally, parliamentarians met with constituents or consulted citizens through formal mechanisms
such as the work of a parliamentary committee. For complex issues governments might appoint a
commission to look into a particular matter. The development and evolution of Canada’s broadcasting
system can be traced in a series of commissions and studies that followed the original 1928 commission
report.
These traditional mechanisms, while still in use, have been expanded in a number of countries to include
the use of:
•
focus groups,
•
public opinion polling,
•
technology panels (e.g., Denmark), and
•
citizen’s panels.
7.
Deliberation on Policy Issues
One problem uncovered by research studies on the issue of citizen engagement is that citizens even
when consulted on a topic feel that their views were not heard or that the eventual outcome did not
reflect their views.
A variety of mechanisms have been developed to make the “deliberative” aspect of consultations with
citizens more evident and possibly more effective (i.e., more likely to influence decision makers).
Examples of these types of initiatives include:
•
search or consensus conferences,
•
deliberative assemblies,
•
deliberative polling,
•
issues forums,
•
study circles.
One trend within the development and use of deliberative mechanisms is to provide feedback to those
involved in the deliberative exercise. This transparent accountability increases the sense of satisfaction
shared by those who participated in the exercise.
12
8.
Co-governance
Co-governance is represented by initiatives that go beyond increasing citizens’ “deliberation” on policy
issues. Co-governance mechanisms are designed to give citizens direct influence on decisions that are
being made. Perhaps the best, recent, example of such an initiative in Canada was the Citizens’ Assembly
on Electoral Reform in British Columbia.
Examples of co-governance include:
•
citizen’s assemblies,
•
participatory budgeting,
•
involvement in community policing, and
•
certain types of environmental assessments.
9.
Direct Democracy
A more definitive set of mechanisms that empower citizens can be described under the heading of direct
democracy. In the exercise of “direct democracy” citizens have the final say. Some examples of direct
democracy are not new. New England has long been known for “town hall” meetings where citizens vote
on all manner of issues. Other examples have a long history in some jurisdictions (e.g., recall in the
United States) and are being considered or proposed in other jurisdictions (e.g., Canada).
Examples of direct democracy (some new and some old) include:
•
New England town hall meetings,
•
referenda,
•
recall,
•
selecting members of a deliberative group by random sample (sortition – used in the selection of
citizens for the British Columbia Assembly on Electoral Reform). 16
10.
Civic Education
One characteristic of modern society is its complexity. Complexity is also a characteristic of democratic
institutions. As governments have introduced more and more programs to address the demands of
citizens they have also introduced a variety of different delivery mechanisms.
The range of programs offered, the way in which different levels of government are involved and the
variety of delivery mechanisms make it difficult for individual citizens to understand how their democratic
system works, how they can influence decisions that are made and how their vote “counts.”
16
Selection by random sample is an attempt to make a group representative of the larger population. This has the
advantage of reducing the influence of factions or special interest groups and involving a more representative sample
of the population. Although the idea of random sample has a “modern” ring to it the idea is actually a very old one. In
Athens a council of Five Hundred was chosen by lot from Athenian citizens to prepare proposals for the assembly.
Proposals from the council of Five Hundred were considered by the assembly where all male citizens were “permitted
to attend, vote, make proposals and debate.” See Donald Kagan, The Peloponnesian War, The Penguin Group, New
York, 2003, pp. 9–13.
13
One mechanism that is being discussed to deal with some of these issues is refinements to the area of
civic education. One of the Power Inquiry’s recommendations involves a substantial change in the way
civic education is presented in the United Kingdom’s secondary schools system.
Organizations in other jurisdictions (e.g., the United States and Canada) have been working on a variety
of initiatives that address questions of civic education.
11.
The Obligations of Citizens
Another area of innovation and adaptation is to address the “obligations” of citizens. The simplest
innovation that is discussed within this category is the introduction of a requirement to vote.
A number of countries have some form of compulsory voting. For example, voting in Australia is
compulsory. It has been suggested that adding the ability to mark a ballot with “none of the above” to
indicate dissatisfaction with the available choices would make compulsory voting more attractive. 17
C.
Citizenship in Established Democracies
Key trends in citizenship in established democracies are:
•
declining participation rates in elections, particularly among younger voters,
•
rising levels of education and sophistication among citizens,
•
increased specialization in the education of citizens,
•
a rising emphasis on the “rights” of citizens,
•
the growth of membership in focused groups (e.g., environmental groups),
•
a growing sense of alienation from formal politics,
•
a decline of interest and membership in “traditional” political parties,
•
an expectation to be engaged in political conversation as equals,
•
modest involvement in new consultative and deliberative mechanisms,
•
a growth in the use of alternate communications media (e.g., creation of on-line newspapers,
e-journals and blogs),
One result of these trends is a disconnect between the “political class” and the interests of citizens. The
evidence for a disconnect is real and convincing. There is, however, disagreement about the causes for
the disconnect (i.e., what led to this situation), the exact nature of the problem and what to do about it.
This “disconnect” is discussed in considerable detail in the report Power to the People. 18
A recent survey about perceptions of democracy in 68 countries produced results that support the notion
of “disconnect.” In the survey, surprisingly low percentages of people felt that their country was governed
17
See Beyond the Ballot (2005), pp. 23–24.
18
Power to the People (2006), c.f., Chapter 3, p. 73. “The one factor felt to cause disengagement that runs through all
the strands of our investigation is the very widespread sense that citizens feel their views and interest are not taken
sufficiently into account by the processes of political decision-making.”
14
by “the will of the people.” For example, less than 50% of those interviewed in France, Germany, Italy,
the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada answered yes to the question “Would you say that
your country is governed by the will of the people?”. 19
Care needs to be taken when analyzing survey results especially when they deal with topics related to
democracy. As Paul Howe and David Northrup point out in their study of attitudes to Canadian
democracy:
When it comes to government, the long-standing and popular refrain is that
Canadians are dissatisfied. … But it is important, at the outset, not to
overstate the magnitude of the problem. On one key measure of overall
democratic satisfaction, Canadians seem to be quite content. 20
In established democracies the most important trend, remarked on by most of those interviewed, is the
decline in participation rates in traditional political activities (e.g., membership in political parties and
voting). This trend is not confined to one country (e.g., Canada) and is a source of concern in most
established democracies.
Attempts to address this trend have largely focused on issues surrounding questions of “citizen
engagement.” Studies around the issue of citizen engagement have tended to have at least two different
foci. Some initiatives have attempted to understand the underlying reasons for “disengagement” while
others have suggested that the problem is not “disengagement” but problems with existing political
structures.
Those focusing on the “underlying reasons” often emphasize the poor level of civic awareness among
the population. This approach leads to an emphasis on the importance of initiatives aimed at students,
correcting misunderstandings amongst journalists and the need to explain the subtleties of the
differences among the executive, the legislature and the judiciary.
A different approach and understanding of the problem is to suggest that the problem of “engagement”
does not have much to do with questions of “civics” but rather the growing irrelevance of certain political
institutions in post-industrial society. Proponents of this position suggest that existing institutions (e.g.,
political parties) reflect the organization of political debate that was relevant for industrial society but not
for post-industrial society.
Proponents of this position argue that citizens in a post-industrial society are better educated than their
grandparents, expect more from themselves and politicians than their grandparents and expect more
from life. This type of citizen is not willing to accept, or feel comfortable with the idea of, voting once
every few years and leaving the intervening decisions and years in the hands of politicians. This trend
might be described as the decline, even death, of deference.
19
As reported in The Globe and Mail, 6 April 2006, p. A6. The very concept of the “will of the people” is not a clear one.
As the Rt Hon David Blunkett, UK’s Home Secretary, pointed out in a speech, “We need to engage formally and
informally in the governance of our community in order to have a say in our own destiny. That does not mean that
there is an overarching or ‘general will’ made up of the sum of our individual parts.” Towards a Civil Society,
Bournemouth 2003, ippr, London.
20
Paul Howe and David Northrup, “Strengthening Canadian Democracy: The Views of Canadians,” Policy Matters,
Vol. 1, No. 5, IRPP, Montreal. They also note that satisfaction levels on the same measure vary over time (lower in
1997 than in 1993 and higher in 2000 than in 1993 or 1997). They also report drops in satisfaction levels depending
on the wording used in a question (e.g., there are differences in satisfaction levels if one asks about ‘democracy’ and
‘the way government works’.
15
While it is not necessary to accept one position or the other it is possible to see that answers the
question “what is to be done?” will be quite different if one accepts one analysis or the other.
Those arguing that modern society is complex, and difficult to understand will argue for interventions that
emphasize civic education. Those arguing that existing institutions are becoming irrelevant will argue for
the creation of new and different systems of accountability and decision making such as those discussed
in the previous chapter.
Proponents of the need for civic education and the absolute need for citizen engagement have
supported a number of different initiatives. While there is an inevitable overlap between the notions of
adapting democratic institutions to the realities of post-industrial society (involving changes to the way
citizens are involved) and citizen engagement there is a trend in discussions of citizenship to emphasis
rights, obligations and education.
Well run consultations or deliberative experiments are expensive. They require planning, a mechanism
for selecting those to be involved, preparation of information material, meetings and mechanisms to
report on the results of the consultation process. Not only are many of the proposed “innovations”
expensive and time consuming for all involved, the very questions of legitimacy that plague existing
institutions will also be present.
Finally, it is not clear that innovative approaches, in and of themselves, will raise electoral participation
rates or improve levels of trust with parliamentarians. In Canada, while respondents to a longitudinal
study report more involvement in consultation mechanisms the level of trust remains low.
These results, supported by comments by experts interviewed for this study, suggest that a growing
area for investigation will be the evaluation of proposed innovations. In particular, proposals will be
objectively examined to determine if they do raise electoral participation rates or stop the long slide of
trust in democratic institutions.
ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES
In recent years there has been growing interest in the use of different technologies, particularly
electronic, to help make the use of democratic institutions and practices more interesting, more efficient
and more effective. The use of these technologies is often discussed under the heading e-governance.
While this is the broadest and most current term in use, it is misleading. First, electronic technologies
can and are used for a much broader range of initiatives than governance. Second, the use of a
particular technology (paper or electronic) does not change the underlying activity (e.g., voting).
Regardless of the term involved, there is substantial interest in the use of technologies that might
increase citizen participation in and understanding of democratic processes.
Responses to trends in democracy and citizenship, in both emerging and established democracies,
involve the use of technologies to support innovative solutions. These include:
•
innovative mechanisms for voting (more accessible advance polls, postal voting, telephone voting),
•
e-governance,
•
e-consultation,
16
•
electronic voting,
•
the use of on-line deliberative polling, (the ongoing Ekos study)
•
the use of a web site to link people to an issue, (BBCican)
•
the use of computer simulations in educational programs, (France’s Ministry of Finance), 21
•
use of an on-line forum to enhance political literacy, (the Hansard Society), and
•
creation of a central site that would be the electronic equivalent of a “civic commons” and a workable
alternative to the town hall. 22
D.
Conclusions
Enabling technologies will certainly be an important element in solving the “disconnect” between
democratic institutions and citizens. Exactly, how this will take place is not clear and a great deal of
experimentation will be necessary over the next few years.
Certain changes such as the use of postal voting do not depend on the direct use of electronic
technologies. Other proposals such as the creation of an “electronic civic commons” do.
Managing these changes will present a number of challenges to those involved even if they have the will
and considerable resources. A study conducted for the US Congress stated, “With individual House
offices now receiving as many as 8,000 e-mail messages per month, and Senate offices receiving as
many as 55,000, the burdens on staff are viewed as unmanageable.” 23
CONCLUSIONS AND LESSONS LEARNED
The study concludes by noting that investigation of these trends increasingly involves cross-disciplinary
teams and the formation of strategic partnerships among those attempting to address the issues raised
by these trends. Increasing pressure will continue to be placed on the role of parliamentarians who will
be caught between the need to be involved in the development of new consultation and decision
mechanisms and the demands of citizens who may have unrealistic expectations about the capacity of
“representatives” (i.e., parliamentarians and legislators) to represent citizens. This is made more difficult
by the rise of interest in “rights” and a corresponding decline in the interests of “obligations” of citizens.
It is highly likely that the combination of the movement to a post-industrial society, higher education
levels and higher expectations about what can be achieved in one’s life are main contributors to the
decline of interest in existing formal political structures. There are, for example, more members of nongovernmental organizations than political parties in a number of established democracies (e.g., the
United Kingdom and Canada).
21
France’s minister in charge of the budget (Jean-Francois Cope) recently announced a new Internet game called
Cyberbudget. It will allow 10,000 players (at one time) to be the budget minister for one hour. Reported by cnews,
26 April 2006. See http://www.performance-publique.gouv.fr.
22
See Blumler and Coleman, Realising Democracy Online: A Civic Commons in Cyberspace,
http://www.ippr.org.uk/publications.
23
Kathy Goldschmidt, Nicole Folk, Mike Callahan, and Rick Shapiro, Congress Online Project, (2001a) Email Overload
in Congress: Managing a Communications Crisis, Congressional Management Foundation and George Washington
University, Washington, 2001.
17
As one of the experts interviewed as part of this study pointed out, “People expect more compared to
our grandparents who did not have great expectations about their lives.” This increased level of
expectation coupled with a lack of knowledge about how formal democratic systems work is probably a
major cause of “disengagement.” In particular, a majority of citizens do not understand how the system
works at the same time that they feel they do not have any influence.
Some evidence for this can be seen in the answers to a series of recent Canadian surveys. In answering
the question “We would probably solve most of our big national problems if decisions could be brought
to people at the grass roots,” 65% of the general public respondents agreed while only 26% of
respondents described as “decision makers” agreed. 24
These divergent views coupled with a general rise in expectations suggest that the problem of
representing constituents will continue to increase in difficulty over the next few years. In particular, the
expert respondent who stated that “the Burkean notion of representation is out of date if not dead,” has
pointed to at least one of the fundamental challenge that will confront parliamentarians.
Part of the response to these issues will be the use of different technologies. While the use of enabling
technologies will increase (e.g., in deliberative assemblies) the technologies are unlikely to provide an
“easy solution” to the challenges facing emerging or established democracies.
Two institutions in society, the educational system and the news media, have important roles to play in
addressing the trends discussed in this paper. Civic education is becoming an important item and much
will need to be done in the area of formal education. 25 While the media (news and political affairs) will
have an important role in any effort to improve current levels of trust or engagement it is not clear how a
changed role can be brought about.
Finally, one can conclude that the issue of how to refine existing democratic institutions and the ways in
which citizens will exercise their rights and obligations within those institutions will be subjects for study
and debate into the foreseeable future. As the Power Inquiry concluded their report, “Political
participation, democracy, effective government and successful societies all live or die together.” 26
24
Ekos Research Associates. The general public survey (n= 1016) was carried out in November of 2002 while the
survey of decision makers (n= 875) was carried out in August of 2002.
25
Organizations in a number of jurisdictions are addressing issues of civic education. For example, The Power Inquiry
in the United Kingdom has made a pointed recommendation about civic education. In the United States a number of
organizations are addressing questions of civic education (e.g., The Carnegie Foundation). In Canada, both Historica
and the Dominion Institute have been involved in addressing questions of history education and citizenship.
26
See Power to the People (2006), p. 262.
i
APPENDIX A – STUDY ORGANIZATIONS
Canada West Foundation (Calgary)
Changing Boundaries (Ottawa)
Congressional Management Foundation (Washington)
CPRN (Ottawa)
Democratic Renewal Secretariat (Ottawa)
Dominion Institute (Toronto)
Ekos Research Associates (Ottawa)
Ippr (London – United Kingdom)
Inter-Parliamentary Union (Geneva)
Institute for Research in Public Policy (Montreal)
Power Inquiry (London – United Kingdom)
Public Policy Forum (Ottawa)
USAID (Washington)
i
APPENDIX B – EXPERT WITNESS INTERVIEWS
As part of the study interviews were conducted with a number of experts in the subject areas of this
study. They include:
•
Patrick Beauchamp (Vice President ), Ekos Research Associates, Ottawa
•
Genevieve Bouchard (Research Director, Governance) IRPP, Montreal
•
Debbie Cook (Manager, Program Liaison, World Urban Forum 3)
•
Anda Filip (IPU Ambassador to United Nations, New York)
•
Adam Lent (Director of Research), The Power Inquiry, London – U.K.
•
Kathryn McMullen (Chief, Education and Learning), Statistics Canada, Ottawa
•
Robert Roach (Director of Research), Canada West Foundation, Calgary
•
Professor Graham Smith (Senior Lecturer in the School of Social Sciences at the University of
Southampton) U.K.
•
Jack Stilborn (Principal Analyst - Acting), Library of Parliament)
•
Judy Watling (Assistant Director, Public Involvement Network) CPRN, Ottawa
•
Douglas Wolfe (Senior Policy Advisor), Democratic Renewal Secretariat, Privy Council Office,
Ottawa
•
William Young (Parliamentary Librarian), Library of Parliament, Ottawa,
i
APPENDIX C – DOCUMENTS REVIEWED
Abelson, Julia and Gauvin, Francois Pierre, Assess the Impacts of Public Participation: Concepts,
Evidence and Policy Implications, Research Report P 06, Public Involvement Network, IRPP,
March 2006.
Carrothers, Thomas. The End of the Transition Paradigm, Journal of Democracy, 13:1 The Johns
Hopkins University Press and the National Endowment for Democracy, 2002.
Community of Democracies, Final Warsaw Declaration: Toward a Community of Democracies.
Effects of U.S. Foreign Assistance on Democracy Building: Results of a Cross-National Quantitative
Study (Finkel, Perez-Linan, Seligson, Azpuru) USAID, 2006
Fish, M. Steven. Stronger Legislatures, Stronger Democracies, Journal of Democracy, Volume 17,
Number 1, January 2006, The Johns Hopkins University Press and the National Endowment for
Democracy.
Fukuyama, Francis. Do We Really Know How to Promote Democracy? New York Democracy Forum,
May 24, 2005.
Gershman, Carl and Allen, Michael. The Assault on Democracy Assistance, Journal of Democracy,
Volume 17, Number 2, April 2006, The Johns Hopkins University Press and the National
Endowment for Democracy.
Hansard Society, Neglecting Democracy, Hansard Society, London, 2005.
Howe, Paul and Northrup, David, Strengthening Canadian Democracy: The Views of Canadians, Policy
Matters, July 2000, Vol. 1, no. 5, IRPP 2000.b
Institute on Governance. Roundtable on the Democratic Deficit: Citizen Engagement and Consultation,
Institute on Governance, March 2005.
IPU. Parliament and Democracy in the 21st Century: Preliminary Report by the Inter-Parliamentary
Union, September 2005.
IPU. Parliamentary Involvement in International Affairs, Inter-Parliamentary Union, 2005
Kaplan, William. Belonging: The Meaning and Future of Canadian Citizenship, McGill-Queen’s
University Press, 1993.
MacLeod, Peter. The Low Road to Democratic Reform: Constituency Offices, Public Service Provision
and Citizen Engagement, a report to the Democratic Reform Secretariat of the Privy Council
Office of Canada, March 2005.
Power Inquiry, Power to the People, the Power Inquiry, London 2006.
Smith, Graham. Beyond the Ballot; 57 Democratic Innovations from Around the World, the Power
Inquiry, London, 2005.
van der Hulst, Marc. The Parliamentary Mandate, Inter-Parliamentary Union, Geneva, 2000.
Watling, Judy, Getting the Public into Public Policy, CPRN, 2006