Objective The aim of this project is to analyse the various modes of contribution of civil society organisations in the process of integration within the EU. My intention is to understand why and how certain groups are recognised as legitimate actors, whereas others are limited to alternative fields of action, in both national and transnational environments. My hypothesis is that the institutional forms of civil society consultation that the EU has initiated, and the much stronger reactions of protest that the EU provokes, are two sides of a single reality. This requires me to consider the interrelations that are at work, both in national and European terms, in the emergence of European civil society. My general research objective is related to various aspects: I) Building a cartography and a complete sociology of “organised European civil society groups”; II) Analysing the protests originating from “transnational civil society”. The European Social Forum can be seen as crystallising moments of this phenomenon; III) Studying the ways civil society is becoming Europeanised, with special attention to civic and social interests. The intention is therefore to establish whether or not the building of Europe is compatible with balanced representation of interests; in other words, does it follow an oligarchic process serving the specific interests of hegemonic minorities, often denounced in economic terms, or is it actually conducive to pluralist expression of a host of causes or interests? One of the main originality of the project is the decompartmentalisation of analyses of interest groups and social movements, since both are essential to an understanding of the relationships between CSOs in European and national terms. Several data-collection techniques are used in this research: quantitative standardized survey, network analysis, semi-structured interviews and lengthy personal interviews, documents from organisations, and systematic consultation of secondary sources. Fields of science social sciencessociologynatural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesphysical geographycartographysocial sciencespolitical sciencespolitical transitionsrevolutionssocial sciencespolitical sciencespolitical policiescivil society Programme(s) FP7-PEOPLE - Specific programme "People" implementing the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013) Topic(s) FP7-PEOPLE-2009-IEF - Marie Curie Action: "Intra-European Fellowships for Career Development" Call for proposal FP7-PEOPLE-2009-IEF See other projects for this call Funding Scheme MC-IEF - Intra-European Fellowships (IEF) Coordinator EUROPEAN UNIVERSITY INSTITUTE EU contribution € 221 553,20 Address VIA DEI ROCCETTINI 9 50014 Fiesole Italy See on map Region Centro (IT) Toscana Firenze Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Administrative Contact Serena Scarselli (Mrs.) Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Total cost No data
