About
The project “Problems of Representation: Perspectives from Central and Eastern Europe” aims to understand how political and civil society actors interpret the crisis of representation.
In the project, we are interested in the degree of representation of Central and Eastern European countries at the EU level, the perception or framing of representation and the conceptual aspects of representation crises.
Most research in the field of representation crises has been limited to the USA, the United Kingdom and Germany in particular.
However, the crisis of representation is particularly acute in Central and Eastern Europe.
We start from three models of the crisis of representation
The crisis of representation on a descriptive level
A crisis at the descriptive level means that the socio-demographic characteristics of the population are equally represented in the houses of representatives and in elite positions (e.g. gender, origin, region)
Example: While the eleven Central and Eastern European (CEE) member states make up around 20 percent of the EU population, only 9.2 percent of all initial appointments to key positions were given to citizens from the Eastern European region.
The crisis of representation on a substantive level
There is a crisis on a substantive level if the interests and values of the people represented are not sufficiently taken into account.
For example, most Members of the European Parliament are more liberal than the average population of EU countries (especially Eastern European countries), for example with regard to gender and migration.
Problems with substantive representation significantly impair the output legitimacy of a democratic political system.
The crises of representation on a responsive level
Responsiveness exists, for example, when the interests of citizens are taken into account through political decisions
For example, inequality of representation could be particularly relevant in Central/Eastern European countries, which are generally less affluent than the older EU Member States.
However, this could also apply within these countries themselves, especially when it comes to the wealth gap between urban and rural areas.
Research Partner
The Jean Monnet Center will promote international summer schools, joint webstreams and workshops, especially in collaboration with the following universities and institutions:
- Rzeszow University,
- Karls-University Prague,
- University of Sarajevo
- Irris-Institute, Institute for Research Developement und Strategies of Society, Slovenia
- SYRI Institute – The National Institute for Research on Socioeconomic Impacts of Diseases and Systemic Risks, Brno
Knowledge transfer and teaching
- 4 workshops with academics and local actors in Leipzig, Ljubljana, Brno and Cluj
- 4 Interviews with stakeholders from politics, civil society, trade unions and public administration
- A summer school for advanced students from all over the EU in Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Two conceptual publications
Advisory board
The work of the JMCoE is critically monitored by an advisory board. Its members are engaged with the centre’s topic in politics or society. They are the first to hear about our research results, provide ideas and advice. This is intended to increase the usefulness of European Studies in dealing with current political and social problems. Members are:
- Dr. Carsten Berg, The ECI Campaign
- Annika Fleischer, Europahaus Leipzig, e.V.
- Dr. Carsten Herzberg, Potsdam, mitmachen e.V., JUBU – Jugendbeteiligung bei Bürgerbudgets (youth participation in citizen budgets),
- Alexandra Mehnert, Member of the European Parliament
- Markus Schlimbach, Chairman – DGB Sachsen
- Erik Wolf, General Secretary of the Saxon-based trade union association, Verdi
- Katharina Wolf, Saxon State Association of Europa Union Deutschland e.V.
About the former Jean – Monnet Center
The European Union and Its Rural Periphery in East Central Europe
“The Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence The European Union and its rural periphery in East Central Europe at Leipzig University aims to promote participation in democratic life in the EU and active European citizenship.”
The Centre aims to contribute to closing gaps in EU research by analysing attitudes, practices and potentials concerning EU citizenship in the periphery in an interdisciplinary way, using new methods, instruments and approaches. Along with this, experts from political science, sociology, history and ethnology and from the Leibniz Institute GWZO cluster their teaching and transfer activities and intensify their cooperation ties with East Central European universities. The working packages also include:
- a public lecture series with prominent experts from academia, politics, civil society and media,
- more than 30 seminars on EU issues for students in more than 50 study programmes,
- 12 study trips,
- a new lecture series on the EU and its citizens,
- numerous citizen dialogues, three international summer schools,
- six transfer workshops with stakeholders from politics, civil society and administration in ECE capitals,
- policy recommendations in seven languages for better EU networking for local and regional politicians,
- policy recommendations for the EU,
- and three edited volumes as well as other publications with research findings and policy recommendations.
Advisory board
The work of the JMCoE is critically monitored by an advisory board. Its members are engaged with the centre’s topic in politics or society. They are the first to hear about our research results, provide ideas and advice. This is intended to increase the usefulness of European Studies in dealing with current political and social problems. Members are:
- Dr. Peter Jahr, MEP since 2009, member of the Agriculture and Petitions Committees, member of the Lunzenau town council, Chairman of the Evangelischer Schulverein Lunzenau e.V. (supporting association of the free Protestant secondary school in Lunzenau), Chairman of the Land-Union Sachsen,
- Leonhard Weist, Member of the board of the LandesSchülerRat Sachsen,
- Constanze Krehl, MEP since 1994, Member of the Committee on Regional Development of the European Parliament, holder of the Federal Cross of Merit on Ribbon,
- Susann Mannel, Head of the “Youth Strengthening” Department of the Socio-Cultural Centre “Die VILLA” in Leipzig,
- Katja Meier, Saxon Minister of State for Justice, Democracy, Europe and Equality,
- Petr Mikšíček, filmmaker, photographer and author, co-founder of the foundation fund “Renewal of the Ore Mountains”, which among other things supports cross-border projects with pupils, coordinator of the cultural festival “Königsmühle”, author of three books about the region,
- Katharina Wolf, founding chairwoman of the Saxon regional association of the Europa Union Germany e.V., awarded the title “Woman of Europe” in 2019.
Further, our research and practice network includes:
- Dr. Carsten Herzberg, Potsdam, mitmachen e.V., JUBU – Jugendbeteiligung bei Bürgerbudgets (youth participation in citizen budgets),
- Carsten Berg, Freiburg, Director The ECI Campaign – Association for the ECI e.V.,
- Dr. Tim Leibert, Leipzig, Senior Researcher and Deputy Coordinator of the Research Group “Mobilities and Migration” at the Leibniz Institut für Länderkunde,
- Prof. Andrzej Podraza, Catholic University of Lublin,
- Dr. Nora Siklodi, Portsmouth University, Senior Lecturer in Politics, ECPR Standing Group Citizenship.