講題：Everyday Democracy: Civil Society, Youth, and the Struggle against Authoritarian Culture in China
講者： Anthony J. Spires (Associate Professor, Centre for Contemporary Chinese Studies; Deputy Associate Dean International (China), Faculty of Arts, The University of Melbourne)
主持人：林國明（台大社會系教授）
時間：2025/10/2（四） 12:30-14:00
地點：台大社會與社工系館 R319
演講語言：英語
報名表單：Sign Up Here
＊本演講不提供線上直播，歡迎各位師生到場參與
＊前三十位入場報到聽眾可領取餐盒一份，敬請準時入座
＊會後備有茶會，歡迎交流
演講說明
Bottom-up voluntary associations, it is commonly thought, are among the fundamental building blocks of democracy, preparing people for engaged citizenship. A great deal of interest in Chinese civil society is premised on the idea that such groups might foster the emergence of democracy. But in a society where virtually all major institutions—from schools to workplaces to government—bear the deep imprint of authoritarian rule, can voluntary associations still spur social and political change? This presentation, based on Anthony Spires’ latest book, Everyday Democracy, addresses these questions, arguing that even in an authoritarian state, bottom-up civil society groups can indeed nurture the skills and habits of democracy. Drawing on over a decade of field-based research and offering an in-depth look at two youth-based, youth-led organizations, Spires shows how their values and practices point the way toward the emergence of new, more democratic forms of association in contemporary China.
自下而上的自發性社團，通常被認為是民主的基本組成要素之一，能夠培養人們成為積極參與的公民。對於中國公民社會的高度關注，很大程度上也建基於這樣的想法：這類團體可能促進民主的出現。然而，在一個幾乎所有主要制度──從學校、職場到政府──都深受威權統治烙印的社會中，自發性社團仍然能推動社會與政治變革嗎？
這場演講將以 Anthony Spires 最新著作 Everyday Democracy 為基礎來探討這些問題，並主張即便在威權國家，自下而上的公民社會團體仍然能培養民主所需的技能與習慣。透過十餘年的田野研究，並深入分析兩個以青年為核心、由青年主導的組織，Spires 展示了這些團體的價值與實踐如何指向在當代中國可能出現的新型、更具民主性的結社形式。
講者介紹
Anthony J. Spires is Associate Professor at the Centre for Contemporary Chinese Studies and Deputy Associate Dean International (China) in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Melbourne. He was previously Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and Director of the Centre for Social Innovation Studies at The Chinese University of Hong Kong. His research focuses on the development of civil society in China, including philanthropy, governmental regulation, and the cultures of non-profit organisations. He has published widely in leading journals, including The American Journal of Sociology, The China Journal, China Quarterly, and Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly. Spires is the author of Global Civil Society and China (Cambridge University Press, 2024) and Everyday Democracy: Civil Society, Youth, and the Struggle against Authoritarian Culture in China (Columbia University Press, 2024). A graduate of Occidental College, Anthony holds three master’s degrees and a PhD in Sociology from Yale University.
Anthony J. Spires 現任墨爾本大學文學院當代中國研究中心副教授，並擔任中國事務國際副院長助理。他曾任香港中文大學社會學系副教授，以及社會創新研究中心主任。
他的研究聚焦於中國公民社會的發展，包括慈善事業、政府監管，以及非營利組織的文化。他在多個領先的學術期刊發表過大量文章，其中包括《The American Journal of Sociology》《The China Journal》《China Quarterly》以及《Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly》。
Anthony 也是《Global Civil Society and China》（劍橋大學出版社，2024）以及《Everyday Democracy: Civil Society, Youth, and the Struggle against Authoritarian Culture in China》（哥倫比亞大學出版社，2024）的作者。畢業於美國西方學院（Occidental College），並於耶魯大學取得三個碩士學位以及社會學博士學位。
