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Recent CIVICUS Publications

From Political Won't to Political Will: Building Support for Participatory Governance
Edited by Carmen Malena

Despite a recent wave of democratization around the world, traditional systems of representative democracy are in crisis. Citizens in both the North and the South lack opportunities, rights and access to information and have expressed growing disillusionment with their governments. Ordinary citizens (especially women, poor people and other marginalized groups) are largely excluded from the political processes that directly affect their lives. There is growing consensus that good governance is participatory governance(PG), but public officials are often reluctant to adopt such an approach.

From Political Won't to Political Will addresses the particular challenge of encouraging these officials to involve citizens in the political process. The book presents contributions by participants from CIVICUS' 2008 conference on building political will for PG. Representing the perspectives of both civil society and government actors, they propose a number of strategies and lessons such as demonstrating the benefits of PG to governments, complementing formal democratic institutions, building trust, supporting PG champions and using strategic political timing. Their practical and highly original findings will interest anyone eager to see the empowerment of people around the world.

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CIVICUS Global Survey of the State of Civil Society: Volume 1
Edited by V. Finn Heinrich

The CIVICUS Global Survey of the State of Civil Society: Volume 1 is the result of rigorous self-examination by civil society actors around the world. By featuring the civil society profiles of 44 countries around the world, the publication presents a detailed, yet concise description of the current state of civic activism, highlights the key strengths and weaknesses of each country's civil society and puts forward specific recommendations to strengthen the sector's capacity to contribute to positive social change. Indeed, the Global Survey of the State of Civil Society provides a unique contribution to the ongoing debate on civil society both empirically and conceptually. But how is something as vast and contested as civil society measured?

The Global Survey on the State of Civil Society focuses not only on measurable, short-term indicators, but also on long-term and more complex processes so often neglected in evaluations of civil society. The research results are building blocks to strengthen and safeguard civic space for people to meet and act together for a just society. This groundbreaking report was launched globally at 2007 CIVICUS' World Assembly this May in Glasgow, Scotland.

For more information, download the flyer here.

The CIVICUS Global Survey of the State of Civil Society, Vol.2: Comparative Perspectives
Edited by V. Finn Heinrich and Lorenzo Fioramonti

CIVICUS has published the second volume of the CIVICUS Global Survey of the State of Civil Society which provides a wide-ranging analysis of the key issues facing civil society world wide.

Comprising of 24 chapters by prominent researchers and civil society practitioners, the book draws on the information collected by the CIVICUS Civil Society Index project in more than 45 countries to explore issues such as civil society's accountability, its relations to the state and corporate sector and its role in governance and development. It also includes regional overviews of the state of civil society in different continents. By bringing together a diversity of perspectives and themes, this book offers one of the most comprehensive and engaging analyses of civil society worldwide.

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