(Ottawa, April 25 ,2006) – Today, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) announced an investment of $2.5 million in a multi-university project including Queen's University, the Université du Québec à Montréal and the University of Toronto that will explore ethnic politics and the complexities of democracy in multi-ethnic and divided states. The researchers will build on Canada’s experience in accommodating linguistic and cultural diversity to find solutions for governance of multi-ethnic states around the world.
Queen’s University political studies professor Bruce J. Berman will lead the “Ethnicity and Democratic Governance” project. Collaborators represent no less than seven countries in Europe, Asia, and Africa and disciplines ranging from political science and law to philosophy and anthropology. The research team will work with several partner organizations. Those from Canada include the Forum of Federations, Rights and Democracy, the Metropolis Project, and the International Development Research Centre. Those from abroad include the Club de Madrid, an association composed of 55 former presidents and prime ministers of democratic countries dedicated to promoting democratic transition and consolidation, and the European Centre for Minority Issues.
“We are aware that this is an ambitious undertaking, but we are all gripped by the importance and significance of the work,” said Professor Berman. “This project will help develop tools, strategies and practices that citizens and governments can learn from as they work through their own conflicts and tensions.”
Berman’s research team will explore why and how ethnic communities form; the forces that influence whether inter-group relations will result in stable, peaceful and fair accommodations or bitter conflict; the range of constitutional and policy options available to help divided societies manage their differences fairly and democratically; the extent to which the international community can help to peacefully resolve ethnic conflicts; and the philosophical tools that citizens, governments and scholars can bring to bear in searching for political stability, peaceful accommodation and social justice.
The Queen’s project, one of four selected from 34 applications to the Major Collaborative Research Initiatives (MCRI) program, was chosen through a rigorous, independent peer-review process, which ensures that only the best research proposals receive funding. The MCRI program is recognized internationally as a powerful way to get universities and communities working together on research that has important social, economic and cultural impacts on society.
“SSHRC is proud to support a broad network of national and international researchers that will work together to redefine how social sciences and humanities research approaches the issue of ethnicity and governance,” said Stan Shapson, interim president of SSHRC. “Professor Berman’s research team will make an important contribution to both scholarship and public policy in Canada and around the world.”
For additional information on this release and other SSHRC research projects, please contact:
Susan Goodyear
Media Relations Officer
Telephone: (613) 947-4629
E-mail: susan.goodyear@sshrc.ca
