Centripetal democracy is the idea that legitimate democratic institutions set in motion forms of citizen practice and representative behaviour that serve as powerful drivers of political identity formation. Partisan modes of political representation in the context of multifaceted electoral and direct democratic voting opportunities are emphasised on this model. There is, however, a strain of thought predominant in political theory that doubts the democratic capacities of political systems constituted by multiple public spheres.

Why are there so few advocates for state-mediated economic redistribution and social welfare in contemporary Myanmar (Burma)? Moving beyond a focus on the regime-led political transition since 2011, this seminar explores how informal institutions generated during following the collapse of socialism in 1988 shape contemporary distributive politics.

Join an audience of civilians, military personnel, academics & non-academics alike for a public discourse on issues surrounding war. A panel of veterans and philosophers will share their varying perspectives on war and then answer questions from the audience.
http://www.ccw.ox.ac.uk/events/2017/5/30/together-a-public-discourse-on-war

This event is a two-day, panel-based workshop, devoted to the two themes of veteran/civilian dialogue and the future of warfare. The purpose of this workshop is to engage a broad audience of civilians, military personnel, academics and non-academics alike and encourage them to think more deeply about their moral relationship to these important and timely themes.

Provision of global public goods generally requires the leadership of the largest states to solve the free rider problem. Failure to transition from one leading state to others creates what has been called the “Kindleberger Trap”, named after the MIT economist who attributed the breakdown of the 1930s to American free riding. Now some analysts see America in decline and China failing to lead. Other analysts see a rise of non-state actors creating general entropy in the international system. The threats to the liberal order from international power transition, however, may be exaggerated.