Research projects

At its meeting at the end of June, the Board of Trustees of the Volkswagen Foundation approved new projects under the funding initiative “Transformational Knowledge on Democracies under Change”. These include the project “The ‘Good’, the ‘Bad’, and the (Un)democratic: Regulating Civil Society in Democracies under Change” by Professor Dr Angelika Nußberger, Director of the Academy for European Human Rights Protection at the University of Cologne’s Faculty of Law. The project will receive funding amounting to around 1.4 million euros over five years. Also involved are Professor Dr Gwendolyn Sasse at the Centre for East European and International Studies (ZOiS) in Berlin, Professor Dr Silvia von Steinsdorff at the Humboldt University Berlin, along with two non-academic partner organizations: Transparency International EU (Brussels) und Democracy Reporting International (Berlin).
The research project proceeds on the basis of the assumption that civil society organizations can strengthen democracies, for example by exposing abuses or promoting citizen participation. At the same time, civil society actors can also undermine democracy, for instance when they themselves contribute to processes of democratic erosion. The team is therefore investigating how states regulate such organizations and the impact this regulation has on democratic development. Together with Transparency International and Democracy Reporting International, the researchers are analysing legislation and policy measures in Germany, Georgia, the United Kingdom and Ukraine, as well as at EU‑level, and are conducting interviews. They are developing criteria that enable them to assess how and under which conditions civil society organizations can influence democratic processes, whether and when regulation may be necessary, and what form such regulation should take.

Professor Dr Nußberger says: “Democracies call for a strong civil society that participates in political processes and helps to shape them. However, in times of populism, there is also a risk that a civil society controlled by external forces could undermine and delegitimize democratic decision-making. “The generous funding provided by the Volkswagen Foundation enables the interdisciplinary research project to explore democracy-promoting models of regulation using case studies with five different countries, in collaboration with the two international NGOs, Transparency International EU and Democracy Reporting International.”

The Rector of the University of Cologne, Professor Dr Joybrato Mukherjee, says: “I would like to congratulate Professor Nußberger on being awarded this grant. This sends an important signal in support of excellent research at the intersection of human rights, democracy and social change. This funding also recognizes the academic significance and far-reaching impact of the research conducted at the Academy for European Human Rights Protection.”

In the collaborative projects funded by the Volkswagen Foundation, researchers work with partners from (civil) society to investigate pressing challenges facing democracy in Germany or at the EU level within the framework of clearly defined research questions over a period of up to five years. By examining the challenges arising in connection with democratic transformation in depth, the researchers aim to generate evidence-based insights to inform practical recommendations for action.

Media Contact:
Professor Dr DDr Angelika Nußberger
Academy for European Human Rights Protection
akademie-menschenrechtsschutz@uni-koeln.de
+49 221 470 5575

Press and Communications Team:
Robert Hahn
+49 221 470 2396
r.hahn@verw.uni-koeln.de

Press Spokesperson: Dr Elisabeth Hoffmann – e.hoffmann@verw.uni-koeln.de

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Wissenschaftlicher Ansprechpartner:
Professor Dr DDr Angelika Nußberger
Academy for European Human Rights Protection
akademie-menschenrechtsschutz@uni-koeln.de
+49 221 470 5575