The European multilevel civil society

1
The European multi-level civil society

• State lt-gt civil society
• Multi-level lt-gt multi-level civil
  governance society organisations

2
Research deficit and CIVGOV contribution

• we know much more about participation in
  consultative committees in the five square
  kilometres of Euroland in Brussels than we do
  about contention over the effects of their
  decisions among the 375 million people who have
  to live with their consequences.
• (Imig and Tarrow 2001)

3
Civgov methodological design

• Combing civil society building from above with
  mobilisation from below
• Cross-sectoral (environmentalism, regionalism,
  anti-discrimination)
• Cross-level (local, regional, national and
  European)
• Cross-country

4
The Europeanisation of civil society (1)

• Horizontal Europeanisation
• increasing attention for civil society concerns
  in other Member States, common problem
  perceptions
• cross-sectoral and cross-territorial diffusion of
  contents, ideas, initiatives
• networking resulting in collective action and
  campaigns
• Vertical Europeanisation
• Incentives for civil society building from above
• Lobbying, collective action through the
  delegation of interests to European umbrellas
• Imposition of common issues and debates through
  European actors/institutions
• direct effects of European policies/law resulting
  in support/oposition of local civuil society
• Implementation

5
The Europeanisation of civil society (2)
6
Grass-roots involvement the hard case

• Incentives to Europeanisation
• Funding
• Exchange of knowledge/experience
• Participation/influence
• Activating boomerang patterns
• Obstacles to Europeanisation
• Lacking know-how/experience
• Budgetary constraints
• Closeness of the political system

7
Budgetary constraints

• Constrained public expenditures
• Co-funding
• Conditional funding, control of the agendas
• Compliance with Commission demands

8
The promise of partnerships

• Consultation depends on invitation
• Preference of economic and social dialogue over
  civic dialogue
• No decision-making authority
• Limited capacities and work-overload for invited
  partners
• Monolgue instead of dialogue

9
Instrumental or symbolic networking

• High density of membership in transnational
  networks but gap between formal and active
  membership
• Risk of alienation from local politics
• Invisibility of network activities
• Incongruence of the issue agenda between European
  level activists and grassroots
• Networking as part of status politics

10
Representation

• Unclear delegation and problems of accountability
  and control of European activists
• GONGOs (governmentally organised non-governmental
  organisations)
• Multiple representative challenges
• Virtual or discursive representation

11
Conclusion

• processes of Europeanisation strengthen those who
  are already nationally strong while, in fact,
  marginalizing the weak even more.
• Inclusive rhetoric but exclusive practice
• De-politicisation (from protest to involvement)