On Thursday, April 17th, 2025 at 12:00 PM (CET), we are hosting the CAS SEE Seminar with Milka Ivanovska Hadjievska on “Civil Society Elites? Comparing elite composition, reproduction, integration, and contestation in European civil societies” in conversation with the RECAS Fellow Olimpija Hristova Zaevska.
Milka Ivanovska Hadjievska
Milka Ivanovska Hadjievska is a political scientist specializing in research on civil society organizations and their leaders, from a comparative and an interdisciplinary perspective. She is currently a Postdoctoral Researcher on the ERC-funded Moral Elites project at Copenhagen Business School, studying the social background and beliefs of the individuals who shaped Europe’s welfare states. Previously, she worked on the Civil Society Elites project at Lund University and the Regulating Civil Society project at the University of Exeter, where she earned her PhD. Her research examines nonprofit governance, civil society elites, and interest group representation in Europe. Her work appeared in Governance, Political Studies, British Journal of Politics and International Relations, and other social science journals.
About the seminar
Over the past decade, civil society organizations (CSOs) have played an important role in mobilizing the public to address the climate, refugee, and democratic backsliding crises. From this perspective, the power of CSOs is seen positively as a counterweight to corporate and authoritarian forces. However, research has increasingly highlighted power inequalities within CSOs, a lack of diversity, and the concentration of resources in the hands of relatively homogeneous groups of leaders. These developments can have potentially negative consequences for CSOs’ ability to effectively represent citizens’ interests and provide grounds for criticism of their role in society.
This presentation introduces the concept of ‘civil society elites’ as a useful tool for unpacking power inequalities and struggles within civil society. Drawing on empirical research on civil society elites in the UK, the talk will provide insights into who these elites are, how they rise to the top, how their selection is legitimized, their connections to other elites in society, and who challenges their position and on what grounds. Shedding light on these questions might help us understand why civil society has become a key site of moral and cultural contestation, as seen for instance, in the recent ‘anti-woke’ attacks on civil society, or grassroots challenges of ‘establishment NGOs’.
Join Zoom meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88989643663?pwd=VnZTOWRmdnl0WEZIdTczc1paZWtkdz09
Meeting ID: 889 8964 3663
Passcode: 328897
RECAS Fellowships
RECAS Fellowships
Fellowships are supported by OSF Western Balkans, ERSTE Foundation and Rockefeller Brothers Fund.