The democratic rule of law is under great pressure due to processes of Europeanisation and globalisation. Democratic institutions have traditionally been organised at local and national levels, while the major economic, environmental and social issues of our time, such as climate change, migration, cyber warfare or financial crises, are increasingly being addressed and regulated on a European or global scale. In this cross-nation multi-level governance and regulation, the nation-state often loses sovereignty. There is talk of a growing gap between politicians and citizens, both within countries and on a European and global scale.
How does this change in social order affect democracies and legal orders as we know them? What is happening to the norms and values that underpin these systems? What new forms of governance are emerging that can better regulate cross-nation challenges?
Connecting character
These developments raise explanatory as well as normative and design questions: What forms of global governance do we see emerging and to what extent are they legitimate and effective? How do we sustainably guarantee the legitimacy and vitality of our democratic constitutional state in a globalising economy, and what institutions are needed to do so? In an increasingly intertwined global society, how do we give form and substance to nation-transcending decision-making, regulation and governance, while at the same time maintaining attention to necessary public support? How can we improve the democratic character and decisiveness of European and international institutions? What room is left for the primacy of the national legislator and national democracy? The issue of multi-level governance can be examined both from the perspective of citizens and nation states and from international legal orders. It requires an interdisciplinary approach from law, public administration, political science, history, European studies and international relations.
