Crafting Democracy
Subtitle: How Novgorod Has Coped With Rapid Social Change
Publisher: Cornell University Press
Published: September 20, 2004
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 255
ISBN-13: 9780801442940
Subjects: POLITICS & GOVERNMENT; Social change; Political Science; Local government; Politics / Current Events; Russia (Federation); Politics/International Relations; Public Policy - Cultural Policy; Economic Conditions; Political Process - General; Government - Local; Democracy; Novgorod
First sentence: In 1996 the J. William Fulbright Scholarship Board afforded me an opportunity to teach comparative politics in Russia.
Description: "The Novgorod region of Russia is a sparsely populated area about the size of Ireland better known for its medieval archaeology and folklore than for anything else. Although Novgorod began the post-Soviet period with no unusual endowment of natural or human resources, it has attracted a large amount of foreign investment. Its dramatic economic success and political innovation have impressed observers. Local governments deliver benefits and services reliably, and the regional government responds quickly to citizens' needs and demands. Something noteworthy is happening in Novgorod that does not square with familiar headlines about contemporary Russia: oligarchs and oil, ethnic tensions and corruption." "Nicolai N. Petro attempts to explain the Novgorod phenomenon by seeking answers at the regional level. Novgorod is, he finds, a model of effective democratic consolidation. Petro suggests that the region owes its unexpected recent success to its political elites, who have identified key cultural symbols and used those symbols to promote democratic development. Drawing on comparisons with other regions and countries, Petro finds that these cultural tactics often yield better results than do Western-style institutions and educational training programs."--BOOK JACKET.