Call for Proposals
Démocraties en tension : érosion et reconfigurations citoyennes en Amérique latine
As part of the 63rd Congress of the Société québécoise de science politique, “What Political Science for Our Time?”, ÉRIGAL is organizing a workshop on democratic erosion and citizen reconfigurations in Latin America. We invite professors, researchers, and graduate students to submit a proposal that fits within the theme of the workshop.
Venue and Date: Université de Montréal, May 5–7, 2026
Organizers:
● Roman Perdomo, Université de Montréal (info@erigal.org)
● Julián Durazo-Herrmann, Université du Québec à Montréal
Workshop Overview Recent transformations in the political field—marked by polarization, deinstitutionalization, and the erosion of democratic values and practices—require rethinking the analytical frameworks through which political science approaches democracy and its recompositions. In Latin America, democratic erosion manifests less through institutional breakdowns than through gradual transformations: democracy remains procedural but becomes partially emptied of its substance, weakened by the concentration of power, the exhaustion of representation, or citizen disengagement stemming from unmet substantive promises. These dynamics invite reflection on contemporary forms of “low-intensity democracy,” characterized by persistent inequalities in inclusion, participation, and recognition.
Proposed by the Interuniversity Research Team on Inclusion and Governance in Latin America (ÉRIGAL), this workshop contributes to a broader collective reflection on political transformations across the region. In continuous dialogue with colleagues from Latin America and Europe, the team seeks to move beyond purely rationalist approaches or those centered on formal institutions, in order to grasp socially situated configurations of governance and citizenship. Since 2016, ÉRIGAL has brought together researchers and students from several Québec universities—specialists in political science, sociology, and urban studies—who work on state–society relations, inequalities, and forms of democratic innovation in Latin America.
The workshop proposed for SQSP 2026 invites submissions engaging with one of five thematic panels, each exploring, in its own way, the tension between democratic erosion and the reinvention of citizenship:
1. Democratic Erosion, Resistance, and Human Rights
2. Subnational Regimes, Governance, and Institutions
3. Care and Citizenship
4. Gender and Sexual Diversity
5. Urban Commons and Participatory Spaces
The aim of the workshop is to contribute to a broader understanding of democracy, conceived not only as a regime but as a social and political praxis—made up of resistance, negotiation, and experimentation—that continuously redefines the boundaries of the state and citizenship.
Submission Guidelines Please submit an abstract of no more than 500 words to info@erigal.org, including:
- Title of the presentation
- Abstract and main contribution
- Explanation of thematic relevance to one of the workshop panels
Important Dates
- January 23, 2026: Deadline to submit a proposal to info@erigal.org
- February 9, 2026: Notification from workshop organizers
- May 5–7, 2026: SQSP Congress at Université de Montréal
For any questions, please contact Roman Perdomo at: info@erigal.org