Esta obra es el resultado de horas de deliberación y análisis de un grupo de académicos de la Ciencia Política, movidos por el compromiso cívico y la inquietud intelectual, unidos en torno a la preocupación por la actual crisis económica e institucional de nuestro país y con el objetivo de poner sus diagnósticos y propuestas al servicio de la mejora de la calidad de nuestra democracia. A partir de esquemas conceptuales y analíticos comunes y en su contextualización internacional, se ha procesado una gran cantidad de información relevante disponible en los ámbitos más críticos de nuestro sistema político, deliberando ampliamente sobre el diagnóstico de los principales problemas colectivos que nos aquejan y sobre la mejor estrategia a seguir para intentar superarlos. El casi medio centenar de medidas propuestas en los campos analíticos seleccionados tienen como objetivo recuperar el compromiso y la confianza ciudadanos en las instituciones, actores y procesos políticos. La obra centra su diagnóstico y sus propuestas en los ámbitos de los partidos políticos (especialmente, la representación y la financiación), la corrupción, la transparencia y la rendición de cuentas y los medios y la comunicación política.

John Keane's The Life and Death of Democracy will inspire and shock its readers. Presenting the first grand history of democracy for well over a century, it poses along the way some tough and timely questions: can we really be sure that democracy had its origins in ancient Greece? How did democratic ideals and institutions come to have the shape they do today? Given all the recent fanfare about democracy promotion, why are many people now gripped by the feeling that a bad moon is rising over all the world's democracies? Do they indeed have a future? Or is perhaps democracy fated to melt away, along with our polar ice caps? The work of one of Britain's leading political writers, this is no mere antiquarian history. Stylishly written, this superb book confronts its readers with an entirely fresh and irreverent look at the past, present and future of democracy. It unearths the beginnings of such precious institutions and ideals as government by public assembly, votes for women, the secret ballot, trial by jury and press freedom. It tracks the changing, hotly disputed meanings of democracy and describes quite a few of the extraordinary characters, many of them long forgotten, who dedicated their lives to building or defending democracy. And it explains why democracy is still potentially the best form of government on earth -- and why democracies everywhere are sleepwalking their way into deep trouble.

As the European Union continues to struggle to establish a common agenda on tackling social problems, this compelling book presents a set of comparative sociological studies in southern European countries from leading scholars working in the region. It widens the debate by looking at the specific social problems of southern Europe and highlights the shared trends and critical regional disparities that may improve our understanding of Mediterranean welfare states.

Designed to evaluate the paradigmatic view of the Spanish transition as an ideal model for political and social change, this new and innovative volume appraises Spain's movement to democracy from a variety of important perspectives.

A dense web of private associations drawn from multiple social classes, interest groups and value communities makes for a firm foundation for strong democracy. In Latin America today, will civil society improve the quality of democracy or will it foster political polarization and reverse recent progress? Distinguished theorists from the United States, Canada and Latin America explore the diverse impact of civil society on economic performance, political parties, and state institutions. In-depth and up-to-date country studies explore the consequences of civil society for the durability of democracy in three highly dynamic, controversial settings: Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela.