Collective Action and Political Transformations

'What is the future of collective political action when democracies have been reduced to systems for aggregating individual opinions? Mota and Wagner answer this critical question of our age with a rich comparative analytics of globalisation. This is a timely and important book which makes a compelling argument for the retrieval of consent grounded in institutions which are sensitive to the specificity of conflict.'
Michael Power, London School of Economics and Political Science
Taking lessons from the Global South to explore the possibilities for positive political action worldwide
Common perception of the current global situation is of a world shaped by dynamics of increasing economic and political interdependence, the diffusion of free-market capitalism and a merely procedural democracy. Collective action in this climate is often associated with growing intolerance, xenophobia and exclusion, or it is regarded as incapable of making a real and positive difference in the lives of individuals. This book acknowledges the severe problem with effective and significant collective action, but it arrives at a less gloomy diagnosis of our time by rethinking the political from the angle of the experiences with progressive and conservative collective action in different parts of the globe: Brazil, South Africa and Europe. By doing so, it contributes a critical perspective to the debate about the possible impact of parts of the Global South for positive social and political developments worldwide.
Aurea Mota is Associate Researcher at the University of Barcelona.
Peter Wagner is Research Professor of Social Sciences at the Catalan Institute for Advanced Studies and at the University of Barcelona as well as currently Project Director at Ural Federal University, Ekaterinburg.