The Jean Monnet Chair “Democracy in the European Union” provides a focal point for teaching, research and public discussion about the EU’s democratic institutions, decision-making processes, and practices of political participation in EU politics. The Chair was established in September 2015; it was supported until August 2018 by a grant from the EU’s Erasmus+ Programme for Education, Training, Youth and Sport .
Conceptualizing the EU as a system of multilevel governance, the Chair examines supranational, national and transnational democratic channels in the EU, including their impact on EU governance and EU-Canada relations. It responds to concerns in political and academic debates about the EU’s “democratic deficit”, which persist in spite of the fact that the EU possesses more democratic mechanisms than any other regional or global governance institution. In the light of these debates, it takes stock of – and critically reflects upon – the emergent democratic politics of European integration.
The Chair is housed in the Institute of European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (EURUS) at Carleton University, which offers interdisciplinary Bachelor of Arts (BA), Bachelor of Global and International Studies (BGINS) and Master of Arts (MA) programs on Europe, Russia and Eurasia. The Chair supports EURUS course offerings, including a first-year undergraduate course on European and Russian Studies and a sequence of MA-level courses that discuss various aspects of democracy in the EU.
The Chair also hosts academic and public discussion events that engage scholars, university students, as well as members of the policy community and civil society in Ottawa. These events are designed to facilitate discussions of how the EU’s democratic institutions and processes shape EU policies, and how they affect the relationship with Canada.
This project is funded, in part, by a grant from the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union.