Participatory mechanisms and inequality reduction: searching for plausible relations

Brazil is known for being one of the most unequal countries in the world. Since the 1990s many scholars, both in Brazil and those analyzing the country¹s trajectories from abroad, have been describing a decrease in country¹s inequalities. In this article we discuss the possible role of expanding cit...

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Main Authors: Laura Waisbich, Vera Schattan Coelho
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Westminster Press 2016-10-01
Series:Journal of Deliberative Democracy
Subjects:
Online Access:https://delibdemjournal.org/article/id/537/
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author Laura Waisbich
Vera Schattan Coelho
author_facet Laura Waisbich
Vera Schattan Coelho
author_sort Laura Waisbich
collection DOAJ
description Brazil is known for being one of the most unequal countries in the world. Since the 1990s many scholars, both in Brazil and those analyzing the country¹s trajectories from abroad, have been describing a decrease in country¹s inequalities. In this article we discuss the possible role of expanding citizen participation in policy making processes and overseeing their implementation in inequality reduction. To do so we explore the connections between the participatory mechanisms and the implementation of policies that are expected to reduce inequalities in two different participatory experiments that have taken place in Brazil: São Paulo municipal health councils and the country¹s participation in the Open Government Partnership (OGP). We argue that, despite their thematic and historical differences, there are good reasons to believe that these two participatory experiences sustained the expectations concerning their role in contributing to reduced inequalities. However, these cases suggest that their contributions were less determined by the quality of the participatory process, as defined by the deliberative democracy literature, than by the nature of political alliances and mobilization processes that supported these spaces.
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spelling doaj.art-e9724388e6514765bd555255355db3de2022-12-22T04:17:13ZengUniversity of Westminster PressJournal of Deliberative Democracy2634-04882016-10-0112210.16997/jdd.265Participatory mechanisms and inequality reduction: searching for plausible relationsLaura Waisbich0Vera Schattan Coelho1 Brazil is known for being one of the most unequal countries in the world. Since the 1990s many scholars, both in Brazil and those analyzing the country¹s trajectories from abroad, have been describing a decrease in country¹s inequalities. In this article we discuss the possible role of expanding citizen participation in policy making processes and overseeing their implementation in inequality reduction. To do so we explore the connections between the participatory mechanisms and the implementation of policies that are expected to reduce inequalities in two different participatory experiments that have taken place in Brazil: São Paulo municipal health councils and the country¹s participation in the Open Government Partnership (OGP). We argue that, despite their thematic and historical differences, there are good reasons to believe that these two participatory experiences sustained the expectations concerning their role in contributing to reduced inequalities. However, these cases suggest that their contributions were less determined by the quality of the participatory process, as defined by the deliberative democracy literature, than by the nature of political alliances and mobilization processes that supported these spaces.https://delibdemjournal.org/article/id/537/political mobilizationOpen Government Partnershiphealth councilsinequality reductionsocial participation
spellingShingle Laura Waisbich
Vera Schattan Coelho
Participatory mechanisms and inequality reduction: searching for plausible relations
Journal of Deliberative Democracy
political mobilization
Open Government Partnership
health councils
inequality reduction
social participation
title Participatory mechanisms and inequality reduction: searching for plausible relations
title_full Participatory mechanisms and inequality reduction: searching for plausible relations
title_fullStr Participatory mechanisms and inequality reduction: searching for plausible relations
title_full_unstemmed Participatory mechanisms and inequality reduction: searching for plausible relations
title_short Participatory mechanisms and inequality reduction: searching for plausible relations
title_sort participatory mechanisms and inequality reduction searching for plausible relations
topic political mobilization
Open Government Partnership
health councils
inequality reduction
social participation
url https://delibdemjournal.org/article/id/537/
work_keys_str_mv AT laurawaisbich participatorymechanismsandinequalityreductionsearchingforplausiblerelations
AT veraschattancoelho participatorymechanismsandinequalityreductionsearchingforplausiblerelations