“This paper explores a counter-weight to anti-democratic trends suggested by civil society theory: mediating structures (also known as‘intermediate’or‘intermediary’organizations). We look briefly at the range of ways in which the concept has been used in social science and then focus on literature which employs the conceptspecifically in the context of debates about sustainable democracy We discern from the theoretical literature fourdistinct functions said to be performed in democracies by mediating structures and we offer case examples of or-ganizations which perform those functions in the contemporary real world. We conclude by providing pointers to how mediating structures might be identified, supported and sustained in the face of anti-democratic trends today.”
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