Sovereignty, Democracy, and Global Civil Society: State-Society Relations at UN World Conferences

by Elisabeth Jay Friedman, Kathryn Hochstetler, Ann Marie Clark

Overview

Sovereignty, Democracy, and Global Civil Society explores the growing power of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) by analyzing a microcosm of contemporary global state-society relations at UN World Conferences. The intense interactions between states and NGOs at conferences on the environment, human rights, women's issues, and other topics confirm the emergence of a new transnational democratic sphere of activity. Employing both regional and global case studies, the book charts noticeable growth in the ability of NGOs to build networks among themselves and effect change within UN processes. Using a multidimensional understanding of state sovereignty, the authors find that states use sovereignty to shelter not only material interests but also cultural identity in the face of external pressure. This book is unique in its analysis of NGO activities at the international level as well as the complexity of nation-states' responses to their new companions in global governance.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780791483848
Publisher:	State University of New York Press
Publication date:	02/01/2012
Series:	SUNY series in Global Politics
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	234
Sales rank:	332,120
File size:	840 KB

About the Author

Elisabeth Jay Friedman is Assistant Professor of Politics at the University of San Francisco and the author of Unfinished Transitions: Women and the Gendered Development of Democracy in Venezuela, 1936–1996. Kathryn Hochstetler is Associate Professor of Political Science at Colorado State University. Ann Marie Clark is Associate Professor of Political Science at Purdue University and the author of Diplomacy of Conscience: Amnesty International and Changing Human Rights Norms.

Table of Contents

List of Tables

Acknowledgments

Introduction

1. Global State-Society Relations

2. Global Civil Society: Emergence and Impact

3. Global Civil Society and Latin America in the UN Conferences

4. Sovereignty in the Balance

5. Sovereignty Bargains and Challenges at the Conferences on Population and Development, Social Development, and Human Settlements

6. Global Civil Society: Transforming Sovereignty and Building Democracy?

Notes

Bibliography

Index

SUNY Series in Global Politics