Civil society is receiving renewed attention from academics, politicians, journalists, community leaders, and participants in the voluntary sector. Civil Society, Democracy, and Civic Renewal brings together several of America’s leading scholars—of history, sociology, political science, and philosophy—to explore the meaning of civil society, its positive and negative effects, its relation to government, and its contribution to democracy. The chapters range widely, taking up the connection between social trust and civic renewal, the role of citizen councils in environmental decisionmaking, the growth of self-help groups and their impact on community, historical patterns of civic activity by women and African Americans, and the place of expertise in public deliberation on scientific and medical issues. By examining the many disparate views of the civil society debate, this important volume will contribute to the process of civic renewal.

Contributions by: Benjamin R. Barber, Jean L. Cohen, David A. Crocker, Fredrick C. Harris, Xiaorong Li, Judith Lichtenberg, Loren E. Lomasky, Kathleen D. McCarthy, Nancy L. Rosenblum, Mark Sagoff, William A. Schambra, Kathryn Kish Sklar, Steven Rathgeb Smith, William M. Sullivan, Robert Wachbroit, David Wasserman, Robert Wuthnow