IPSA 2014 MONTREAL

The main theme of the IPSA 2014 congress in Montreal were the challenges of contemporary governance.

Political scientists are often seen not merely as analysts of political matters, but as something akin to engineers sculpting the organisation of power.

Globalisation has profoundly altered the work of political scientists, intensifying communication and exchange on issues pertaining to the way in which communities, societies, nations and the world itself are governed.

The ambition of the international political science congress in Montreal is to reflect upon contemporary evolutions in governance in the face of numerous challenges:

• • Political, economic and social systems have become increasingly fragmented, rendering global strategic initiatives ever more complex

  • The variety of values, attitudes and behaviours exhibited by individuals and groups makes for a greater and more diverse demand for inclusion and participation

  • As the structures through which these interests are represented continue to expand, systems of governance become increasingly complex, more difficult to interpret and understand and less responsive to the uninitiated citizen

  • There is a growing risk that the democratic quality of our political systems will deteriorate as a result of the rising influence and decision-making capacity of technical-administrative and technocratic experts

  • For a given sector or type of organisation, comparative analysis and an experimental methodological approach should help better evaluate the performance of different forms of governance

  • It may also be fruitful to focus on the various competitive strategies and means by which models of governance are promoted, or even imposed (in the name of ‘good governance’ demanded by international institutions, for example)

Faced with these challenges, the multi-faceted phenomenon of governance requires a global, comprehensive and multi-tiered approach: from the local association or political party up to the international community, via regional integration or the national regulation of an economic sector.

Adopting an approach to political science which is resolutely open to the opportunities offered by interdisciplinary collaborations, we must also support the circulation of theoretical frameworks and empirical approaches which are applicable in the northern and southern hemispheres, to the most developed nations and the panoply of emerging and developing countries.

The main focus of this congress is to generate the greatest possible number of concrete, innovative answers to the questions of citizens, their political, associative and socio-economic representatives and the policy makers who are working constantly to improve the quality of governance.

RC44 organized 2 sessions at the IPSA 2014 world congress in Montreal:

RC44 — Exploring the Role of the Military through a Geo-strategic Case Study of a Particular Country

A Case Study: Revival of Religion in Power Politics and Its Effects on Foreign Policy in the Syrian Conflict

Sarp Samil Dagçinar

A Cross-national Examination of the Democratic Control of the National Security Sector

Athanasios Hristoulas

Citizen Security Perspectives in Venezuela: Challenges of Venezuelan Democracy after Hugo Chávez

Julio Simancas, Víctor Henríquez

Exploring G-77 Unity Through Two-Level Games

Bjornar Egede-Nissen

The Armed Forces in the Process of Transformation of the State: The Case of Venezuela

Katarzyna Krzywicka

RC44 — The Military in the Globalized yet Fragmented World of the 21st Century

Militarizing International Relations

Asha Gupta

Military Defection and Democratic Transitions: A Study of the Armed Forces' Actions during Periods of Regime Crisis in Benin and Togo

Julien Morency-Laflamme

New Military Roles: Humanitarian Assistance and Response to Natural Disasters

Sergio Aguilar