About the project
DEBATING DEMOCRACY aims to develop collaborative, research-informed educational resources that support students working in a range of European languages. It seeks to hone students’ skills in critical reflection and complexity thinking, with a particular focus on the negotiation of key concepts underpinning shared civic values in various and often competing discourses on democracy and sustainability, including concepts such as empowerment, participation and equality.
Although sustainability and democracy are both crucial civic values, the relationship between the two concepts is not without challenges. SDG 16 highlights democratic principles by emphasizing the need to strengthen the participation of all people and to ensure inclusive, participatory, and representative decision-making at all levels.
However, the word "democracy" is not explicitly mentioned in this goal, which may reflect a difference in opinion among countries with varying political systems and perspectives regarding the importance and definition of this value. We will propose ways in which the findings of interdisciplinary, collaborative analysis of such key concepts in two complementary, multi-million word corpora (SHE Corpus and GoK) can be incorporated into a critical, culturally sensitive and empirically informed educational model.
Financing
The project is financed by ERASMUS+
Project period
December 2023-December 2026
Cooperation
- SHE Centre for Sustainable Healthcare Education (Lead)
- Circle U. - European Alliance for students and researchers
- International Summer School, University of Oslo
- University of Agder
- Université Paris Cité
- The Università degli Studi di Perugia
- University of Edinburgh
- University of Belgrade
Honours Certificate starts 2024
Concepts that Matter – Debating Democracy is a new Honours Certificate at University of Oslo. Students can apply until July 1, 2024. For more information, read here.