Active Citizenship in Europe

The book provides an overview of key issues in the debate concerning the emergence of active citizenship in Europe.

The specific focus of enquiry is the promotion of patterns of civic and political engagement and civic and political participation by the EU and the relative responses drawn by organizations of the civil society operating at the supranational level and in Italy, Turkey and the UK. More specifically, it addresses key debates on the engagement and participation of organized civil society across the permanent state of euro-crisis, considering the production of policy discourses along the continuum that characterized three subsequent and interrelated emergency situations (democratic, financial and migration crises) that have hit Europe since 2005. 

Active Citizenship in Europe will be of interest to students and scholars in a range of fields, including sociology, politics, European studies and international studies.

“The book provides a thoughtful and timely analysis of the practices and demands of active citizenship in three particular countries: the UK, Italy, and Turkey. These countries are fascinating cases for comparison since the nativist, populist and anti-globalist movements set the political tone in everyday life to demonstrate their resentment against financial crisis, refugee crisis, Europeanization and globalization. The book deserves a very warm welcome to the literature as it unravels the ways in which some social groups such as young people, women, minorities and migrants engage in the current debates on engagement and participation.” (Prof. Ayhan Kaya, Istanbul Bilgi University and European University Institute)

“This book provides a series of fascinating and highly informative analyses of policies, practices and demands for active citizenship in Europe. By examining the subtle intertwining of institutional governance, public policy and civil society activism, Bee clearly reveals the limitations of top-down initiatives for stimulating the civic and political engagement of citizens. The book is directly relevant to contemporary shifts in political activism, and is a vital resource for policymakers and essential reading for anyone interested in active citizenship.” (Prof. Martyn Barrett, University of Surrey)

“This book focuses on the most pervasive, complex and long-lasting set of crises that Europe has encountered in generations. It reviews the information-providing role of civil society organizations and their functions of political representation of under-represented social groups. The analytical focus of the book includes a special attention to geo-political factors as well as analyses of the consequences of the crises for citizens made vulnerable by declining standards of living and loss of job security. It is an excellent, wide-ranging and well-documented book.” (Prof. Carlo Ruzza, University of Trento)

Cristiano Bee is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Political Science and Public Administration of Kadir Has University in Istanbul. Previously he was a Marie Curie Fellow at the European Institute of Istanbul Bilgi University and a Lecturer in Public Policy at the University of Surrey, where he also held the Jean Monnet Module ‘Current trends in European Integration Studies: Beyond the Eurocrisis’. He has published on the development of active citizenship in Europe, European public sphere and identity.