Europe’s first university chair on comparative direct democracy

A new academic chair on comparative direct democracy has been established at the Université Catholique de Lille.

The new academic initiative is one of its kind in Europe and aims to strengthen research and international cooperation on direct democracy, bringing together researchers, civil society, and public institutions. The Chaire Démocratie Directe Comparée (Chair in Comparative Direct Democracy), launched in partnership with Democracy International, is the first university chair in Europe dedicated entirely to the comparative study of direct democratic institutions.

The Chair is led by Professor Raul Magni-Berton (AnthropoLab-Ethics, Université Catholique de Lille), co-author of the Global State of Direct Democracy Report. It also hosts the Direct Democracy Navigator, a global database compiling comparative information on direct democratic mechanisms.

The initiative is designed as a platform for cooperation between research, policy, and practice. It brings together:

• Public institutions and policymakers, to support evidence-based institutional design
• Civil society organisations, to connect research with practical democratic experience
• The academic community, to advance interdisciplinary research on direct democracy

The Chair aims to contribute independent, comparative analysis accessible to researchers, practitioners, and the broader public.

The Chair will be officially launched on Thursday, 27 March 2026, from 12:00 to 16:00 at the Université Catholique de Lille. The event will present the Chair’s research agenda and provide a forum for exchange between academic, institutional, and civil society actors.

The programme will also include the presentation of the Global State of Direct Democracy 2026, offering an overview of recent developments and trends worldwide.

For inquiries, contact:
Prof. Raul Magni-Berton, raul.magni-berton@univ-catholille.fr , Université Catholique de Lille – AnthropoLab-Ethics