Democracy is by no means a fixed concept. It is the subject of debate, especially today. Louis Carré, Director of the Department of Philosophy and member of the Espace philosophique de Namur (Institut ESPHIN), proposes a three-dimensional definition: a political regime, a state of law and a way of forming society.

"Etymologically, democracy is a political regime that consists in giving power to the people," he reminds us. "Our Western democracies today are based on the idea that the people are sovereign, without governing directly. From this arises a tension between ideal democracy and real democracy."Vincent Jacquet, professor in the Department of Social, Political and Communication Sciences and president of the Transitions Institute supports the point: "Democracy is an ideal of citizen self-government, but it is in tension with more centralizing, authoritarian logics. [...] Our political systems are crisscrossed by these different tensions, with both authoritarian logics increasingly present, including in our own country, and logics of participation that are sometimes accompanied by a great deal of hope and disappointment too."

The second pillar according to Louis Carré: the rule of law. Democracy guarantees the fundamental rights of all citizens through the constitution. But here again, beware of paradoxes: "One could indeed imagine laws passed by a majority of representatives or by a referendum, but which contravene fundamental rights" the philosopher stresses. Democracy cannot therefore be summed up by the majority principle alone.

Finally, democracy is also a way of forming society. It is based on real pluralism: diversity of opinions, beliefs and values. "This presupposes the existence of a relatively autonomous public space in the face of the power in place, which at times challenges the decisions taken by the governments that have been elected,"insists Louis Carré.

In this context, what is the university's responsibility? Louis Carré begins by reminding us of a simple fact: a large proportion of our elected representatives have passed through university benches. But its teaching mission doesn't stop there. "It's about training enlightened citizens, not just rulers. Universities must offer quality higher education, open to as many people as possible", he asserts.

"Democracy does indeed presuppose citizens capable of debating, reflecting, problematizing issues", adds Sephora Boucenna, Dean of the Faculty of Education and Training Sciences and member of UNamur's Institut de Recherches en Didactiques et Éducation (IRDENA). It's all about training reflective minds, capable of questioning their times.

Universities also train those who, tomorrow, will educate future generations: teachers. And here again, democracy is at stake.

In addition to teaching, universities also have a research and social service mission. It produces knowledge that can enlighten public policy, but also question it. This critical function presupposes real independence from politics. "To analyze democratic mechanisms with lucidity, including those that governments put in place, the university must retain its freedom of research and speech," insists Vincent Jacquet.

This critical function of the university presupposes strong independence. In Belgium, however, university funding is largely a matter for the political authorities. "Celane must not mean being placed under tutelage", warns Louis Carré. "Conducting critical research that doesn't satisfy short-term sponsors requires independence, including in terms of resources. We need a large number of researchers who can analyze different types of dynamics. The more we cut research funding, as is the case today, the fewer researchers we'll have and therefore the less capacity for independent analysis and diversity of perspectives, insists Vincent Jacquet.

The "Université en colère" movement, recently launched within the universities of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, intends to denounce the effects of definancement. Its representatives are calling for "guarantee the conditions for the development of an open, independent, quality university accessible to the greatest number. Faced with the social, economic and political challenges of our time, and because other choices for society, and therefore budgets, are possible, it is more essential than ever to strengthen the institutions and players at the heart of knowledge production."

Democracy is therefore not limited to elections or institutions. It is based on collective vigilance, carried by citizens, knowledge... and the places where this knowledge is built. In this respect, universities are an essential link in the chain of democratic vitality. Provided it remains independent, accessible and open to society.

"Democracy is not just a matter of institutions. It's about citizens who bring it to life and organize themselves to assert their perspectives at different times", insists Vincent Jacquet. A clear invitation not to remain a spectator, but to participate, with lucidity and exigency, in the construction of a common democratic future.

Whether it concerns linguistics, economics, politics, sustainable development, law, history, educational sciences, literature or translation, research in the humanities and social sciences is as eclectic as it is rich and essential for tackling society's challenges. Of UNamur's eleven research institutes, seven are directly involved in SHS research. While there is a high degree of complementarity in these areas of research, better pooling of resources, sharing and easier access to certain services, resources and support will help to sustain and strengthen the excellence of SHS research at UNamur. It is with this in mind that the SHS impulse platform has just been created.

• Axis 1 - Support for the acquisition of databases, documentary resources and software
• Axis 2 - Subsidy for cutting-edge training in the use of specialized methods
• Axis 3 - Funding access to the SMCS "Support en Méthodologie et Calcul Statistique" platform at UCLouvain, thanks to an inter-university partnership.
• Axis 4 - Setting up an SHS space, containing a laboratory for running experiments and shared work tools promoting exchanges between researchers.

This initiative, launched in January 2025, addresses the specific challenges faced by SHS researchers. The long-term aim is to sustain and expand the services. "We will also hire a researcher expert in methodological analysis in SHS who will be able to inform innovative methodologies and frame the methodological design of research projects," emphasizes Sandrine Biémar, vice-dean of UNamur's Faculty of Education and Training Sciences, a member of the IRDENA institute and the SHS Impulse management committee. "The wish is also to support networking between SHS researchers at UNamur and to be a lever for setting up interdisciplinary projects," adds Sandrine Biémar.

The platform's management team is made up of representatives of the university's various SHS institutes, and ensures efficient management of resources. The platform's impact will be assessed during its initial phase (2025-2027), enabling strategies for its sustainability and development to be defined.

According to Elena Frech, member of the Transitions and of the Department of Social Sciences, and Communication (Faculty EMCP), the lack of parenting Members of the European Parliament, and in particular mothers and young parents, has a direct impact on political decisions. "Parents see the world differently and, if there are fewer parents in the Parliament, this will inevitably affect policy and the decisions taken," she explains in an interview with EUobserver.

The researcher highlights the difficulties faced by MEPs in reconciling their mandate and family life. Between long working hours, travel between Strasbourg, Brussels and their constituencies, as well as the absence of formal parental leave, many elected representatives are forced to curtail or interrupt their political careers. "The absence of a parental leave policy, combined with a demanding schedule, has led some MPs not to stand for re-election in 2024," adds Elena Frech.

The European Parliament currently provides neither maternity nor paternity leave for its members. According to Elena Frech, this lack of official recognition of parental leave increases the pressure on parent MEPs. "Their party loses a vote, because parents on leave cannot be replaced for the vote. So the pressure to return is very strong" (EUobserver).

Elena Frech's research highlights a structural problem within the European institutions, which limits the diversity and representation of parents, particularly women, in the European Parliament. Her work raises a fundamental question: how can internal regulations be adapted to take better account of the reality of MEPs' families? A key issue for the future of European democracy.

Credits : the interview passages in this article are taken from an interview with Elena Frech conducted by EUobserver.

Source for EUobserver article : Bonneyrat, S. (2025).Is the EU Parliament still letting down female MEPs with children? EUobserver.

Find the scientific studies on which the EUobserver article is based:

Frech, Elena and Sophie Kopsch.2024. "Beyond Rhetoric: The European Parliament as a Workplace for Parents and Current Reform Debates", Politics and Governance 12.

Frech, Elena.2024. Mothers, parliamentarians, leaders: career factors influencing women's representation in the European Parliament - a case study of German parliamentarians.European Politics and Society, 1–19.

At a time when various governments are trying to get us to work until we're 67, some workers are continuing to work past the legal retirement age.

The BRIDGE-EXT project, funded by the PDR du F.R.S-FNRS, aims to gain a better understanding of these professional situations by questioning both the individual and relational reasons that contribute to continuing to work, but also the structural dynamics involved. It is for the latter reason that the researchers have developed a partnership with colleagues in French-speaking Switzerland, under the supervision of Prof. Valérie Hugentobler of the Haute Ecole de Travail Social de Lausanne (HETSL/HES-SO).

The interest of this collaboration lies in understanding post-retirement work according to differentiated political contexts where retirement systems are both fairly comparable, but also very different. How, then, are we to apprehend this work, which poses both the question of life choices and the constraints, particularly financial, that weigh on individuals today?

The research team will be made up of sociologists and anthropologists specializing in issues of aging at work. Amélie Pierre will be hired at UNamur to work on these issues, which are at the heart of current affairs.

In recent years, her scientific horizons have opened up to questions related to transmissions, life courses and temporalities, as well as to the sociology of emotions.

She is also a member of the Institut TRANSITIONS - Pôle Transitions et âges de la vie. This cluster studies the way in which these life courses are recomposed according to new social constraints and normative imperatives. It focuses on the fragility of populations at all stages of life, and also on the repercussions of political measures and mechanisms on the construction of life courses. It brings together researchers from different disciplinary backgrounds who analyze both the normative transformations affecting life courses and life-age transitions.