The project gathers a multidisciplinary consortium of nine European academic and research institutions to examine the evolving role of protest in democratic societies. The April meeting in Hungary marks the start of a three-year exploration of protest as a symptom of democratic crisis, a diagnostic tool and a potential engine for democratic transformation. The researchers investigate the interplay of protest culture and democracy in a time of political polarisation, democratic backsliding, and societal fragmentation.
The first day featured discussions on the project's initial work package focused on mapping the state of the art in protest studies. The research groups presented their respective countries of study, focusing on the historical and current political and socio-legal environments and changes in democracy levels. The second day was dedicated to planning the project's future activities.
The Sociology of Law Department's researchers in the project are project leader Michael Molavi, Isabel Schultz, Elin Jönsson and Chekhros Kilichova. Communications officer Theo Hagman-Rogowski was also present at the kick-off.