Participation in deliberative arenas is often lauded for its transformative impact on citizens? attitudes, sense of agency and ability to formulate concrete policy proposals. The focus of this paper is the first ever deliberative mini public in Belgrade, centred on the topic of expanding the pedestrian zone and rerouting traffic in the city core. By relying on a set of qualitative and quantitative data collected before and after the deliberation, we aim to explore the effects of the public deliberation on (...) the participants? knowledge, attitudes and preferences. Our hypothesis was that participation in this deliberative process led to better understanding (enhanced knowledge) of the discussed topic and change in attitudes and preferences regarding its realization. The scope of this study is limited, given the non-experimental design and small sample. Overall, the results indicate that participants` knowledge on the topic of deliberation is enhanced, becoming more precise, elaborate and encompassing different perspectives. As for the attitudes and preferences, in most cases, around two-thirds of the sample changed their positions, while about a third of the sample changed sides, mostly agreeing less with the expansion of the pedestrian zone. The findings support the conclusion that, on a local level, deliberation has the capacity to inform and enhance competence for greater political participation. (shrink)

This essay takes a critical and reflective look at two recently published books on contentious politics in the Balkans and Eastern Europe: Social Movements in the Balkans and Ideology and Social Protests in Eastern Europe. Focusing on regions somewhat neglected in scholarly analyses of the recent global upsurge of protests, these books aim to fill the gap by highlighting some contextual and regional specificities: a position of economic and geo-political periphery, weak or unconsolidated democratic institutions, post-socialist and transitional environments, societal (...) divisions, etc. By critically assessing both contributions, in a manner that looks for their complementarity, this essay: examines the characteristics of popular mobilizations and grievances in Southeast and Eastern Europe; questions dominant narratives of political and economic transition and EU integration; re-evaluates socialist heritage and post-socialist political trajectories; discusses the possibilities of articulating political alternatives to representative democracy and free market economy; and addresses the burden of conflicting memories and attitudes towards the region?s socialist past. (shrink)

The paper explores some of the key historical and theoretical traditions of thinking about citizenship, basic tensions and problems inherent to the concept itself, as well as the main contemporary challenges. After presenting key problems that stem from the classical liberal and republican traditions - complemented by a discussion of citizenship within the nation-state framework - the paper turns to an overview of the main contemporary challenges and debates aiming at reconceptualizing the concept itself and including it into novel and (...) different political and theoretical frames. (shrink)

The paper starts by examining some of the key conceptual problems related to the idea of human rights, as well as some key arguments raised in defence of human rights as universal and emacipatory modern project. This is followed by a discussion on cultural rights, sometimes understood as a correction of human rights? universalism, at other times taken as their?logical extension?; it will be shown how human rights have gradually begun to be amalgamated with cultural and collective rights. The third (...) section of the paper continues with an overview of anthropological critique of cultural rights, with an emphasis on ethnographies critically examining the domination of the?rights talk? in perceptions and self-perceptions of various local?cultural? struggles. Finally, the issue of the universality of human rights is reexamined from the perspective of the particularity of citizens? rights with the aim of questioning the validity of their conceptual demarcation. (shrink)

This paper examines the concept of ecological citizenship by looking at two sets of arguments. Those justifying the concept itself, and those criticizing the need to devise a new concept of citizenship and political community in relation to ecological problems. The paper argues for a shift in focus: instead of searching for a new concept of citizenship, we should adopt a different perspective capable of capturing the explanatory potentials of citizenship-related notions - especially citizenship action and political space in which (...) it is constituted - in the context of contemporary global ecological problems. (shrink)

This paper examines the concept of ecological citizenship by looking at two sets of arguments. Those justifying the concept itself, and those criticizing the need to devise a new concept of citizenship and political community in relation to ecological problems. The paper argues for a shift in focus: instead of searching for a new concept of citizenship, we should adopt a different perspective capable of capturing the explanatory potentials of citizenship-related notions - especially citizenship action and political space in which (...) it is constituted - in the context of contemporary global ecological problems. (shrink)

The paper explores some of the key historical and theoretical traditions of thinking about citizenship, basic tensions and problems inherent to the concept itself, as well as the main contemporary challenges. After presenting key problems that stem from the classical liberal and republican traditions - complemented by a discussion of citizenship within the nation-state framework - the paper turns to an overview of the main contemporary challenges and debates aiming at reconceptualizing the concept itself and including it into novel and (...) different political and theoretical frames. (shrink)

Razmatranje problema drzavljanstva i gradjanstva u Srbiji izlozeno u ovom radu, oslanja se na ideju da rezimi drzavljanstva i modeli upravljanja politickim zajednicama reflektuju nacine na koje se konceptualizuju nacija i korpus gradjana. U pitanju je perspektiva iz koje se drzavljanstvo posmatra kao sredstvo kojim se polazna ideja o kongruenciji izmedju drzave i nacije smesta u legalni okvir. Tvrdnja ovog rada je da su razliciti politicki projekti definisanja odnosa izmedju drzave i nacije, u sirem kontekstu jugoslovenskih sukoba i postkonfliktnih razvoja (...) u regionu, proizveli nekonsolidovan rezim drzavljanstva u Srbiji, s nejasnim resenjima u pogledu uspostavljanja zeljene kongruencije izmedju drzave, teritorije i nacije. PR Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 43007 i br. 41004. (shrink)