Welcome to the website of the RESEARCH INSTITUTE for Direct Democracy

Direct democracy is a central part of the political culture in Switzerland, more so than in any other country. It is therefore surprising that its formation and development has not been a central topic of historical research for a long time. I founded the academic “Research Institute for Direct Democracy” in order to close this research gap.

It all started with the “Forum for Research on Direct Democracy”, which I founded and led in 2006. I organized regular work meetings to promote networking between academics. These colloquia reviewed the current state of democracy research, promoted interdisciplinary exchange and supported research projects. This laid an important foundation for systematically advancing research on Swiss direct democracy within the framework of the institute, which was founded in 2013. To date, I have organized several academic conferences as part of the research institute and published conference volumes. I also work as a journalist and consultant and actively participate in congresses and panel events. See also archives.

In addition to my academic work, political engagement is also very important to me.

I am happy to engage with anyone interested and to answer questions.

Dr. phil. René Roca