Rethinking Liberal Democracy: Citizenship, Rights, and the Common Good

Liberal democracy is confronting profound political, institutional, and normative challenges. Democratic backsliding, political polarization, declining trust in public institutions, growing social inequalities, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and pressures on constitutional governance have intensified debates about the resilience and legitimacy of democratic systems. At the heart of these debates lies a fundamental question: how can liberal democracies reconcile the protection of individual rights with the pursuit of collective self-government and the common good?
This open panel invites theoretical, empirical, comparative, and interdisciplinary contributions that address these questions from diverse perspectives. While it seeks to foster dialogue between liberal and republican traditions of political thought, it also welcomes contributions drawing on other approaches to democracy and citizenship. The panel aims to provide an inclusive forum for examining competing conceptions of freedom, rights, participation, constitutionalism, democratic legitimacy, and the institutional foundations of democratic governance in contemporary societies.
Contributions may address topics including, but not limited to:
• liberal, republican, deliberative, participatory, and other democratic traditions;
• citizenship, rights, civic participation, and democratic inclusion;
• democratic resilience, democratic backsliding, and constitutional governance;
• constitutionalism, the rule of law, and institutional trust;
• populism, political polarization, and social cohesion;
• civic education, public reason, and democratic culture;
• freedom, non-domination, and the common good;
• digital technologies, artificial intelligence, public discourse, and democratic participation;
• institutional innovation and the future of democratic governance.
The panel particularly encourages submissions that combine normative and empirical analysis, compare experiences across regions, or develop innovative conceptual and methodological approaches. Contributions from political theory, comparative politics, constitutional law, public policy, democratic governance, political sociology, human rights, and related disciplines are warmly welcomed. By bringing together scholars working across different traditions, regions, and methodological approaches, the panel seeks to advance understanding of how democratic institutions can sustain liberty, participation, and the common good in an era of rapid political and technological change. The panel warmly welcomes submissions from early-career researchers and doctoral candidates, as well as contributions from established scholars, to promote an inclusive and intergenerational scholarly dialogue.