ABSTRACT
The aim of this book is first and foremost to honour Michael Burgess’s contribution to the study of federalism and federation through a selection of approaches, theories, debates and interpretations in the area of federal studies. The overall theme we have chosen for the book is Understanding Federalism and Federation, because we believe this distinction to be Michael’s most valuable contribution to the academic literature. He has, throughout his career, contributed to our understanding of both federalism as a political theory and ideology and federation in the form of a federal state. Based on a variety of contemporary debates on federal theory and the most commonly adduced empirical cases (including the European Union), this book aims to offer a snapshot of the immense range of research done on federalism and federation. To do so, we have gathered authors from diverse subfields and invited them to synthesize current debates and latest developments in their respective areas. Authors have been asked to analyse different topics through multiple lenses and provide, whenever possible, new insights emerging from their domains of study and expertise. While all chapter authors were asked to discuss the role of Michael Burgess’s œuvre and its contribution to their specific fields, we have also asked them to provide updates and new theoretical and empirical insights into their specific topics wherever possible.
