No 4 (24): 46–50.

Political Science and Regional Studies

 2021

Scientific article

UDK 342.25
pdf-version

Geerte Wijgers
Eberhardt Karls University Tübingen
(Tubingen, Germany),
geertewijgers@gmail.com

How can political student organizations in Tübingen influence local policy-making?

Scientific adviser:
Dr. Rolf Frankenberger
Reviewer:
Evgenia I. Sokolova
Paper submitted on: 12/10/2021;
Accepted on: 12/16/2021;
 Abstract. The article discusses the role of political student organizations and their possibilities for local policy-making and participation. The case of Tübingen serves as an example, as it is a smaller municipality in Germany, creating an excellent environment for political participation. The theoretical approach is derived from the concept of democratic innovation designed by Brigitte Geissel, focusing on new ways to make democracy accessible to everyone. This project is explorative in nature and all empirical material was collected by the author. She conducted several expert interviews with political student organizations that are active in Tübingen, asking them about their own perceived possibilities for political participation on the local level. These interviews were then transcribed and hermeneutically analyzed. The analysis shows that most organizations are not sure where they (would) fit in on the local level and the politics that happen on the local level. However, they do all feel that their interests could be better represented, by them having either a consultative or a cooperative governing role. So, it can be concluded that there is a wish for democratic innovation amongst students to increase their access to local politics. Still further research will have to be done to paint a more representative picture of the situation.
Keywords: democratic innovation, local politics, student organizations, political participation, youth participation

For citation: Wijgers, G. How can political student organizations in Tübingen influence local policy-making?. StudArctic forum. 2021, 4 (24): 46–50.

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