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KDK Conference Centre, the Netherlands
3-5 December 2008
Civil society is a development buzzword that is used by many, but whose meaning has become unclear. INTRAC’s international conference will re-examine the concept and role of civil society and focus on its significance in relation to current debates and practice in development, human rights and democracy promotion.
Focus
The conference will explore the following issues:
1. Concepts and practice: what do we mean by civil society?
2. Relationships between civil society and the aid industry
3. Civil society and the State – contractor, watchdog or antagonist?
4. New challenges for civil society
Is civil society still a useful concept? The term itself has been challenged as a catch-all category that fails to differentiate between different types of social practices, participation in the public sphere, formal organizations and informal networks and associations.
Beyond the conceptual level, is there still a practical role for civil society? Recent trends suggest that support for civil society actors may be in decline. There are also concerns that the political space for the autonomous activity of civil society actors is being threatened by the rise of the new security agenda and the contracting out of service delivery to non-governmental organisations.
Conference Background Papers
Overview INTRAC CS Conference 2008.doc (96Kb)
INTRAC conference 08 - civil society and aid in theory and practice summary.pdf (63Kb)
FINAL CS Conference Information ApplicationForm (2).doc (223Kb)
Call for case studies
We are looking for case studies on the roles, activities and interactions of civil society actors in their work on development, human rights and democracy promotion.
Venue and travel details
Visa requirements
Contact us at conference@intrac.org
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