Resurrection of Social Actors and New Forms of Democracy

In the aftermath of the financial crisis, thousands of people have gathered against austerity measures and social injustice. Civil society has re-emerged with impetus under various forms, and even shaping new political actors.

The purpose of my talk is to analyze:

- political actors: new dimension of traditional ones -social movements- or new ones -civic platforms. It is convenient to study contemporary social movements and activism –global activism, digital activism-, paying special attention to the use of new media and information and communication technologies for collective action. Moreover, some original feature of this period has been the constitution of civic platforms, which do not aspire to become political parties, but aim to have an influence on policy and decision-making;

- the impact of these political actors in new forms of democracy: in Western countries scholars have observed a certain erosion of the representative model: not of democracy itself but of the functioning of representative institutions and, thus, suggest the importance acquired by discursive, collaborative processes among citizens and representatives via platforms, networks and associations (deliberative democracy, associative democracy);

- implications for European integration, in particular for the model of democratic governance which should bring citizens and civil society to its core. Certainly, it is necessary to connect the shaping of new political actors and the claims for more participatory democracy with the EU initiatives enhancing the civil society in accordance with the provisions on democratic principles in its Title II. Article 10 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU).