Between responsible and responsive democratic governance: Imagining intelligent democratic futures in the 21st century

We are excited to announce a workshop on

"Between responsible and responsive democratic governance: Imagining intelligent democratic futures in the 21st century"

hosted by the Department for Political Theory and Empirical Democracy in cooperation with the Interchange Forum for Reflecting on Intelligent Systems (SRF IRIS) at the University of Stuttgart. On September 12^th and 13^th, this two-day event will bring together eminent scholars from around the world for insightful discussions and exploration of the evolving landscape of citizens’ democratic preferences. The workshop will revolve around three research clusters. 

Research cluster 1 focuses on the theoretical dimension of democratic designs for the 21st century. Delving into diverse conceptions of democracy, this cluster will define core ideals, institutions, and practices of multiple models of democracy, such as representative, deliberative or participatory democracy. The goal is to identify contradictions, overlaps, and trade-offs within and across these models.

Research cluster 2 delves into the empirical measurement of democratic concepts and preferences. Established research tools will be evaluated alongside innovative methods, creating a robust framework for studying democracy. The goal is to contextualize, develop, and improve how researchers have operationalized and measured citizens’ democratic preferences.

Finally, research cluster 3 seeks to untangle the underlying factors behind the heterogeneity in citizens’ preferences for democracy. Public attitudes towards democracy depend on many factors, such as inequality and political cleavages. The goal of this cluster is to determine which sub-groups should be considered when researching democratic preferences and what open questions there are on what unites and divides them. Additionally, the workshop will include collective reflections and brainstorming sessions to enrich the ongoing EERC-funded project "Designing Democracy on Mars and Earth (DDME)," encouraging interdisciplinary collaboration.

Join us at the University of Stuttgart, for a thought-provoking event that fosters dialogue, innovation, and deep insights into the intersection of democracy and citizens' preferences.