Author: Pascal Lupien
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Published: 2018-03-14
Total Pages: 190
ISBN-13: 1438469195
DOWNLOAD EBOOKExamines why some democratic innovations succeed while others fail, using Venezuela, Ecuador, and Chile as case studies. Citizens’ Power in Latin America takes the reader into the heart of communities where average citizens are attempting to build a new democratic model to improve their socioeconomic conditions and to have a voice in decisions that affect their lives. Based on groundbreaking fieldwork conducted in Venezuela, Ecuador, and Chile, Pascal Lupien contrasts two models of participatory design that have emerged in Latin America and identifies the factors that enhance or diminish the capacity of these mechanisms to produce positive outcomes. He draws on lived experiences of citizen participants to reveal the potential and the dangers of participatory democracy. Why do some democratic innovations appear to succeed while others fail? To what extent do these institutions really empower citizens, and in what ways can they be used by governments to control participation? What lessons can be learned from these experiments? Given the growing dissatisfaction with existing democratic systems across the world, this book will be of interest to people seeking innovative ways of deepening democracy. Pascal Lupien teaches in the Latin American and Caribbean Studies program at the University of Guelph and is a Research Fellow at the Balsillie School of International Affairs in Ontario, Canada.
Book Synopsis Citizens' Power in Latin America by : Pascal Lupien
Download or read book Citizens' Power in Latin America written by Pascal Lupien and published by State University of New York Press. This book was released on 2018-03-14 with total page 190 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examines why some democratic innovations succeed while others fail, using Venezuela, Ecuador, and Chile as case studies. Citizens’ Power in Latin America takes the reader into the heart of communities where average citizens are attempting to build a new democratic model to improve their socioeconomic conditions and to have a voice in decisions that affect their lives. Based on groundbreaking fieldwork conducted in Venezuela, Ecuador, and Chile, Pascal Lupien contrasts two models of participatory design that have emerged in Latin America and identifies the factors that enhance or diminish the capacity of these mechanisms to produce positive outcomes. He draws on lived experiences of citizen participants to reveal the potential and the dangers of participatory democracy. Why do some democratic innovations appear to succeed while others fail? To what extent do these institutions really empower citizens, and in what ways can they be used by governments to control participation? What lessons can be learned from these experiments? Given the growing dissatisfaction with existing democratic systems across the world, this book will be of interest to people seeking innovative ways of deepening democracy. Pascal Lupien teaches in the Latin American and Caribbean Studies program at the University of Guelph and is a Research Fellow at the Balsillie School of International Affairs in Ontario, Canada.