democracy

Social Justice, Predistribution and the Democratization of Capital: Political Theory and the Future of Social Democracy

Dr Martin O’Neill

ISRF EARLY CAREER FELLOW 2014-15

This is a major research project in normative political philosophy, addressing the justice and justification of a number of specific real-world economic institutions. Its aim is to make fuller sense of emerging ideas of “predistribution”, questioning whether predistributive strategies can generate a positive direction for future progress towards more just and democratic societies. In particular, the primary area of examination will be designing and realizing a more democratic financial system, with a particular focus on the justifiability and plausibility of ideas relating to the democratization of capital investment.

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Sortition and the requirement for state impartiality in transitional and developing democracies

Dr Olly Dowlen

ISRF EARLY CAREER FELLOW 2012-13

This study programme is designed to investigate how the use of randomly selected citizens in public offices could help to develop impartial state institutions and so add stability to developing democracies. By exploring and identifying problems relating to factionalism experienced by modern states in transition to democracy or seeking to maintain democratic progress, the study then uses several model schemes to assess how sortition could contribute towards their resolution.

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