Author Description

The last decades of the 20th century saw a new interest and commitment in democracies across the world in "downsizing" the state. Two decades into the 21st century, the results seem to be mixed, with some "success stories" as well as some not so successful experiments. This book examines experiments in decentralized development and related topics as cooperativism and self-management from a global and comparative perspective with a view to arriving at some general conclusions about the viability and promise offered by these.Drawing on examples from across the world, the book offers various critical perspectives on the extent to which the experiments in decentralization and participatory democracy may have had some positive impact in counteracting these tendencies and the promises these offer for the future. Some of the related sub-themes discussed include the relation between state and sub-state institutions, and the degree to which these work in coordination and in synergy with civil society, the role of the legal and regulatory framework provided by the state to ensure constitutional morality and the rule of law, democratic oversight and transparency, and facing the challenge posed by entrenched structures of inequality that lead to "elite capture" of power, clientelism and corruption. At this critical historical juncture as the world is facing a convergence of several crises that threaten our future: a socioeconomic crisis wrought by the devastating impact of the neoliberal global economy, an environmental crisis spawned by a global system that pursues unlimited extraction and consumption of natural resources, and a crisis of liberal democracy with the rise of ethnic nationalism and authoritarian populism led by autocratic strongmen in many countries--all of these exasperated by the Covid 19 pandemic - this volume has a special relevance.The book will be of interest to students and researchers of international development, political science, business, community de