Democratic Theory and Contemporary Crises

This section features recent work that addresses some of the ways in which contemporary crises shape and challenge core democratic values and corresponding theories of democracy. In an era marked by unprecedented social, legal, political, technological, and environmental crises, democratic theory faces an opportunity to reconsider received concepts and theories and adapt its tools to new questions. The section on "Democratic Theory and Contemporary Crises" invites political theorists to dissect the complex relationship between democracy and contemporary crises in their various manifestations. Do contemporary crises, taken independently or in combination, indicate a moment of crisis for democracy, and does democratic theory and practice still have the resources to withstand these threats? Do contemporary trends - such as populism - suggest a crisis in democratic theory itself? What does the concept of crisis contribute to democratic theory, and how should it be best understood? We have assembled eight panels, each exploring distinctive aspects of the relationship between democracy and crisis, and we invite additional proposals for panels or papers related to this theme. With this program, we aim to advance collective understanding of democratic theory and the democratic state’s potential and limitations for addressing major disruptions of the present and future. Contributions are welcome from all subfields, methodologies, and perspectives in political theory, including interdisciplinary approaches. We especially encourage panels that bridge divides in researchers’ backgrounds and perspectives.