Civil society

It seems all too common today to identify civil society as the ‘third sector’; a distinctive space of voluntary association entirely separate from the formal infrastructure of the state and the market. This categorical distinction does not, however, tell us much about the complex relationship between civil society, the state and the market. Scholars of International Relations have sought to explore this multifaceted relationship through a range of theoretical lenses. They demonstrate how the recent proliferation of transnational social movements and advocacy networks (in civil society) have contributed to the shaping of (political) state behaviour, as well as supporting, constraining and even challenging the logic of (economic) global capitalism. Although the current era arguably reflects a return to realpolitik and the logic of sovereignty, the continued influence of people power in global politics demonstrates that the concept of civil society remains as salient as ever.